My dear friends in the beauty biz, you will be inspired by this great story from my mother, Charlotte Duncan. Trust me, after reading this article, you will want to learn more about KIVA and also visit my mother's site to see the beautiful success stories.
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| My mother, Charlotte Duncan, shares her story of kindness. |
I have been loaning money through KIVA.ORG since June 2007. I started with a total of $300, which is handled through PayPal. As money is repaid, it is added back to my account. As soon as I have enough money to reloan, kiva.org notifies me. I have now loaned $950. The least amount of money you can loan to one person is $25, and kiva.org, a non-profit, asks for a 15% administrative fee, which I always donate.
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| Rosemary, from Kenya, received a loan from Charlotte to purchase supplies. She has repaid it 100%. |
Of my 38 loans, 92% have been to females.
Locations are as follows: 15 loans to Mexico; 3 each to Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, and Cambodia; 2 to Lebanon; and 1 each to Armenia, Bolivia, Ghana, Guatemala Honduras, Kenya, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Tanzania, Togo, and the United States.
The types of loans I have made include 18 for services (47.37%); 6 for housing (15.79%); 4 for retail (10.53%); 3 for construction (7.89%); 3 for food (7.89%); 2 for clothing (5.26%); 1 for personal use (2.63%); and 1 for arts, 2.63%. Of the 18 service loans, 12 have been for beauty salons and 2 for cosmetic sales.
My 38 loans include only 3 defaults -- for a total loss of $32.39. I feel sure that I blow more than that each week on sodas, coffee, wine, and cocktails.
It is very easy to register... matter of fact, you can even sign in through Facebook. A loan for as small as $25 can change lives!
