Kiva Loan: January/February

1 down, 5 to go!

This year instead of feeding more money into my Kiva account I’ll be relending the money recipients have paid back to me. This is what makes Kiva so amazing. It’s a cycle!

For January/February’s loan I decided to lend to the Philippines. I cannot tell you how many times a day I’m reminded of how badly I want to go there. Between travel blogs, the Filipino restuarant down the street, and the friendly Filipino population in Abu Dhabi, I’m pretty confident it’s one amazing place. Until I can make it there a loan will have to do.

Photo from Rosa’s Kiva listing

Not only does Rosa have 8 children to raise, she’s also runs a general store. She’s a hard worker who has previously requested and paid off 13 loans. That’s a pretty impressive track record. She plans to use the money to buy snacks to stock her store.

Valentine’s Day is coming up… a Kiva card could be the perfect gift!

xo, jill

Kiva: Year in Review

“Loans that change lives.”

Over the course of 2011 my goal was to fund one Kiva loan per month. I’m happy to say that I stuck with it and funded a total of 12 loans over the year. While some goals (or resolutions) are easy to forget, lending via Kiva had me feeling excited each and every month.

Here’s what my loans look like on the map:

And here’s their progress:

Not too bad!

For the coming year I’ve decided to do things a bit differently. The new plan is only lend money that I’ve already invested. So instead of paying more money into Kiva, I’ll use the repayments to fund more loans. I hope to have enough repaid to fund a loan every two months.

Do you have any Kiva plans for 2012?

xo, jill

Kiva Loan: December

12 down, 0 to go!

It’s my 12th Kiva loan and the last loan of the year. I’ve really looked forward to selecting and funding my monthly loans over the past twelve months. A year in and it’s still a little thrill. I think that’s a good sign.

Photo from Ha’s Kiva listing.

Loaning to a borrower in Vietnam seemed like the perfect choice since by the time you’ll be reading this I’ll actually be there! December’s loan goes to Ha Nguyen Thi Thu who runs a general store with her husband. Ha plans to use the loan to buy more goods in bulk in order to improve her business and her family’s living conditions.

Is anyone giving a Kiva gift card for Christmas?

xo, jill

Kiva Loan: November

11 down, 1 to go!

Even though this is my 11th loan, I still have so much fun logging into Kiva each month. This time around I had about $11 in my account. It’s always so exciting to see what has accumulated over a month or so.

Photo from Faridah’s Kiva listing.

November’s loan goes to Faridah in Uganda. Faridah has a business selling paper supplies and she’d like to increase her inventory as well as pay for her children’s school fees. Mike and I were planning on spending our upcoming 3 week holiday in Uganda, but it didn’t work out. While I’d still love to visit Uganda myself, sending over a loan will have to do for now.

xo, jill

Kiva Loan: October

10 down, 2 to go!

When I checked the balance in my Kiva account this month, I was pleasantly surprised. Nearly $21 dollars had been repaid since last month. That’s almost enough to fund a new loan!

This month I selected an entrepreneur in Kenya. I figured that with all the new trouble happening there, Kenya would be a good place to support. Annah is a tailor and plans to use the money from her loan to purchase more fabric for the upcoming holiday season. I also liked how Annah described herself as quiet, peaceful, and wise.

Photo from Annah’s Kiva listing.

Did you know that you can also give Kiva gift cards? I sent one to my dad for his birthday last week! I figure that most of the people I know don’t need new “things” but might appreciate contributing to the success of others.

xo, jill

Kiva Loan: September

9 down, 3 to go!

When I checked the balance in my Kiva account today I saw a number that made me very happy! Enough money had been repaid over the last month to entirely fund another loan (with just one penny left to spare). Awesome!

Photo from Nancy’s Kiva listing

September’s loan goes to Nancy. Nancy lives in Kenya and supports her family with her tailoring business. Over the last year Nancy has had enough success to hire one employee. She hopes to expand her business by using the loan to purchase more fabric.

Anyone else experiencing some Kiva success?

xo, jill

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