Newsletter – May 2012
"Pay It Forward"
These days, Wall Street traders are having a hard time getting a good return on investment. But Lisa, a young girl in California, is beating even the financial gurus by turning $43 into $212. She doesn’t do it with fancy mathematical formulas or get-rich schemes; she does all this with a kind heart, a lot of empathy and a shared dream for bettering the lives of people she has never met, but surely has touched, in the Mayan villages of Guatemala.
Help Lisa and Roots & Wings International (RWI) keep the dream alive of better access to education for all in Guatemala. The "Pay It Forward Campaign" encourages you to not only get the "word out" to family, friends, colleagues and neighbors, but to go the "extra mile" like Lisa. Why not encourage your employer to match funds for RWI? Every $43 helps. Above all, help Lisa and RWI ensure that Mayan children will have the educational opportunities that every child needs and deserves.
A Profile of two RWI Credit with Wings loan recipients
RWI’s Credit with Wings microlending program offers Guatemalans in rural communities the opportunity to borrow up to $200 to fund a viable business project.
One of our borrowers, Leticia Sohom Xocom, chose to use her credit in two businesses: "one part for my convenience store and the other part for my bookstore." Leticia has already benefitted in the short term from her loan: "I have felt a big change because before we were in debt, and thanks to the support of RWI, we no longer have this problem. Now my family is doing well." In fact, she says, "I am very happy with my loan because it has helped my family a lot and with my businesss. I have enjoyed some positive results and made a little bit of profit." With such immediate results, RWI has already made a difference in Leticia's life.
Manuel Chox López, another Credit with Wings borrower, works in agriculture and has also used his credit to sustain two businesses: "I am using the credit to sell maxán leaves which are used to wrap tamales and to purchase coffees seeds because in the future I want another source of income." Manuel has already seen the growth of his business with the credit he received: "One of the benefits is that my business is growing and my family now enjoys our daily bread thanks to the low interest loan."
Both Leticia and Manuel are happy with the borrowing terms offered by Credit with Wings. In fact, Leticia highlights that "loan conditions are great because they are available to people like us with low resources. We are thankful with the great support provided by Roots and Wings International." In addition, they both work well with the borrowing groups they chose. Manuel noted that "one of the reasons I picked my group is that I saw they were responsible with their payments. I keep in touch with my group and we have not had a single problem so far."
Leticia and Manuel are now planning for the future. Leticia is "certain that my business will continue to grow slowly and with the profit earned, I would like to set up a new bookstore in the community as there is a lot of demand for it in the market." Likewise, Manuel has "faith in God that my business will continue growing and with my coffee seeds in two years I will see the outcome of the credit that has been given to me."
We will continue to follow Leticia and Manuel's business progress and update you in future newsletters. In the meantime, if you would like to contribute to the success of Credit with Wings’ loan recipients, please click here to make a contribution.
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