Poetry Wednesday #2 – Those Winter Sundays...

Last week I posted one of my favorite poems of all time, This Is Just To Say by William Carlos Williams. I can’t think of that poem without thinking of Those Winter Sundays and so I wanted to share this, probably my second favorite (before we get into the category of poems I just like) a classic by Robert Hayden.

Didn’t know I was such a renaissance woman, huh? It’s true, I like poetry, I bake a mean pizzelle, I once had a nice garden of herbs and tomato plants (ok this was YEARS ago but I haven’t had a backyard since), I have a life outside dedicating my life to others through what my good friend Alexa calls my “fierce commitment to philanthropy.” And truthfully, I need a little reminder about all those other parts of me since sometimes I seem to be falling down a path of just giving and giving and giving of myself and wondering why I feel raw at the end of a day, week, campaign, experience. To be the best to you – the world – I have to be the best to me too. So for now, and for a few weeks to come, I’ll be posting my favorite poems (on Wednesdays) and reminding myself of some of those “other parts of me” that can’t get lost as I expand and explore the Humanitarian me.

In that giving to others, I am strongly reminded of the poem below, I hope you enjoy it and please take a moment to really feel what the poet is saying, it’s palpable to me now, a good 13 years after I first read it in high school English class.

Those Winter Sundays

Robert Hayden

Sundays too my father got up early
And put his clothes on in the blueback cold,
then with cracked hands that ached
from labor in the weekday weather made
banked fires blaze. No one ever thanked him.

I’d wake and hear the cold splintering, breaking.
When the rooms were warm, he’d call,
and slowly I would rise and dress,
fearing the chronic angers of that house,

Speaking indifferently to him,
who had driven out the cold
and polished my good shoes as well.
What did I know, what did I know
of love’s austere and lonely offices

#fightmalaria campaign update!...

It was a BIG night for Cause It’s My Birthday.

• Los Angeles was on the verge of breaking $1,000 in donations and a little tweet-competition started to see who would break $1,000.
• We had our 100th donor.
• The total raised crossed $3,500 (700 nets can you believe it)!

So I’d like to personally say a HUGE thank you to the 101 people who have donated to the campaign so far. And this before the actual parties start! You’re making my birthday, my big 3-0, the best one ever.

You’re also saving lives.

You’re giving back! Doesn’t it feel great! Do you miss that money you just donated? Nahhh. See. Give once, give twice. I’m really looking forward to meeting many of you at the BIRTHDAY SHINDIGS and FUNDRAISERS starting SATURDAY NIGHT in New York City at Cornerstone Tavern at 9pm.

HOSTS:
CAUSE ADVISORS
Joey Leslie
Scott Henderson
Stacey Monk
JD Lasica
Alexa Brandt

PR
Tim Rosco
Paula Gould
Donna DeDario
Jennifer Fader

NYC
Anna Richardsoon
Brett Petersel
Craig Stanton
Kate Dwyer

MIAMI
Kristen Kenney
Scott Weissman
Liz Bloom
Monica Diaz

NEW ORLEANS
McKenzie Coco
Adele Tiblier
Tiffany Starnes
Tom Martin
Robby Moss
Katie DelGuercio

CHICAGO
Amisha Wallia, MD
Tim Courtney
Leslie Meredith
Joey Nakayama

SEATTLE
Drew Meyers
Rosemary Ferrentino
Alexander Schirer
Taryn Jensen
Kate Gosser

SAN FRANCISCO
Gerard Ramos
Jacob Mullins
Dave McMurtry
Joe Brilliant
Jess Sykes

LOS ANGELES
Joey Soto
Stephanie Schneider
Lynn Langit
Robyn Cohen

THE DONORS:
1. Andrew Warner, 2. Olivia Kuhn-Lloyd, 3. Tammy Lee, 4. Willard Campbell, 5. Michelle Greer, 6. Citron Studio, 7. Laura Ferguson, 8. Laura Cococcia, 9. Christopher Dennis, 10. Stephanie Schneider, 11. Michelle Haugh, 12. Alex Rose, 13. Tim Courtney, 14. Kathryn Del Guercio, 15. Bronwyn Lewis, 16. Phillip Jeffrey, 17. Andrew Sternberg, 18. Pete / Rad-Info, 19. Crystal Williams, 20. $1000 IS BROKEN BY TUNG LY, 21. Taylor Davidson, 22. Catherine Wygal, 23. Catherine Gosser, 24. Dave McMurty, 25. Robert Turner, 26. Dev Dugal, 27. Todd Steiner, 28. Jessica Heinzelman, 29. Shelby Clark, 30. Ari Greenberg, 31. Ari Sacks, 32. Elizabeth Anderson, 33. Greg Butensky, 34. David Whelan, 35. Joey Leslie, 36. Anthony Kelman, 37. Timothy Soslow, 38. Barbara Jean Bogaev, 39. Chris Noble, 40. Daniel Busby, 41. Kristy Bolsinger, 42. Stephen Henault, 43. Scott Cotenoff, 44. Taiwan Student Association, 45. Cathy Brooks, 46. Drew Meyers, 47. Tyler Kurlas, 48. Zach Greenberger, 49. James Marriot, 50. $2000 IS BROKEN BY PETER JOHNEN, 51. Wedding & Event Photography by Katie , 52. Jamie Engelman, 53. Reagan Murray, 54. Hector Alvarez, 55. Anna Verghese , 56. Joseph D. Lasica, 57. Matthew diGirolamo, 58. Mollie Culligan, 59. Nilima Achwal, 60. Trevor Rotzien, 61. TommEE Catanzano, 62. Daphne Vega, 63. Lara Long, 64. Liya Brook, 65. Wolfgang Fuchs, 66. Jagannathan Thinakaran, 67. Noreen Campbell, 68. Lauren Purple , 69. Andrea Choe, 70. Robert Richman, 71. Jessica Hartrick, 72. Brian MacDonald , 73. Jason Porath , 74. Michael B Beerman, 75. Kwamina Bentsi-Barnes , 76. Rosemary Ferrentino, 77. Rhonda Richford, 78. Joshua Shagam, 79. Kathryn Harris, 80. Michael Gruen, 81. Natalia Guzman, 82. Michael A Liskin, 83. $3000 IS BROKEN BY JOHNATHAN DINGMAN, 84. Geoffrey Emery, 85. Bob Harris, 86. Lee Bruner, 87. Celeste Hamilton, 88. Andrew Pape, 89. Sundeep Ahuja, 90. Samuel Oh, 91. Erica Johnson, 92. Ric Gibbs, 93. Oren Schaedel, 94. Ashley Aull, 95. LA BREAKS $1000 THANKS TO CHEWS, 96. Richard August, 97. Helen Lee, 98. Arlene Wszalek, 99. KW Low, 100. Jory Felice, 101. Mark Jeffrey

THANK YOU! Keep spreading the word and telling your friends to donate!

Catch you on the cause side,
Sloane

What You Can Do To Help Cause It’s My Birthd...

Hello there friends, followers and fellow birthday celebrants. The time is almost here, it’s almost birthday kickoff and man are Doug Campbell and I excited. Not only did we enlist the fiercest host committee teams and cause advisory and PR power-brokers to help us put the pieces of this campaign together in three weeks, but we got insane venues and sponsored drinks and fun auction items and WHEW – it’s all just so much excitement for one birthday girl to handle!

A bunch of you have asked how you can help – uhm, how about a ride to/from the airport?

But aside from that – there are some really valuable, appreciated and action-oriented steps you can take to help the Cause It’s My Birthday campaign be a big success. Remember 100% of donations go towards malaria nets and each net is $5. Remember that bit when you’re helping with the steps below because that’s real. That’s the difference between having a bed net to protect you from mosquitoes at night or not. The birthday parties are fun and great networking, but don’t for a minute think I’m not really talking about what’s most important, saving lives. Ok off we go.

1) Live in New York City, Miami, New Orleans, Chicago, Seattle, San Francisco, or Los Angeles? Buy your ticket (and help your city in the CITY COMPETITION for first place) and come join us for the fun! The parties are going to bring together different industries of people with different backgrounds, long lost friends and perfect someone’s. Each city is bringing some of their local flavor to the mix so get ready, buy your ticket now and mark your calendar.

2) Invite 10 friends. Seriously. We want you to bring your friends and have fun and participate in this 7-city campaign. Make a night of it!

3) DONATE! Don’t live in one of those cities or can’t make the one in the city you live? Make a donation! $5, $100 or $1,000 – your donation counts. If every person reading this just gave $5…the act of giving will bring you good (FILL IN THE BLANK) karma. Remember that.

4) Spread the word. Join the Facebook group. RSVP for the party in your city. Write on the wall. Engage. Twitter that you’re coming to a party or made a donation. Do you know how much your friends value the things you do, the places you go, the thing you buy? Well they do. And if you say this is a cause you believe in (and believe you me, thank you from the bottom of my heart) then people will want to join you in that effort. These parties aren’t just about Doug and I. Never were. It’s about a BIRTHDAY for social change, so get excited, get involved and spread the word!

The Twitter account is @causeitsmybday and the hashtag to follow is #fightmalaria.

5) Is it YOUR birthday during our birthday week? We’re enlisting BIRTHDAY BUDDIES! Join hands and we can all sing together. Let us know if you want to have your birthday with ours – the more the merrier.

6) BLOG about the campaign. ASK your friends to blog about the campaign. Talk about the city you’re in, what you think is cool about the campaign or a birthday that was special to you. Cause It’s My Birthday could be Cause It’s Your Birthday – we’re building our army and want you on board. Send me the link to your post to sloane (at) thecausemopolitan (dot) com,

Thank you everyone. Can’t wait to meet many of you starting SATURDAY NIGHT at Cornerstone Tavern in NYC on 51st and 2nd starting at 9pm.

Cause Counting Down in 3-2-1,
Sloane

Teaching of the Buddhas...

On my recent journey in Burma, I was kidnapped on my final day in Yangon. Wait a minute. Don’t be alarmed. Not really kidnapped. Borrowed, let’s say. It went something like this, it was my final day and I was planning on visiting the most famous pagoda in Yangon, Shwedagon Pagoda, a pilgrimage site for the Burmese people.

A small history of the Shwedagon Pagoda:

According to legend, the Shwedagon Pagoda is 2500 years old. Archaeologists believe the stupa was actually built sometime between the 6th and 10th centuries by the Mon, but this is a very controversial issue because according to the records by Buddhist monks it was built before Lord Buddha died in 486 BC. The story of Shwedagon Pagoda begins with two merchant brothers, Taphussa and Bhallika, from the land of Ramanya, meeting the Lord Gautama Buddha and receiving eight of the Buddha’s hairs to be enshrined in Burma. The two brothers made their way to Burma and with the help of the local king, King Okkalapa, found Singuttara Hill, where relics of other Buddhas preceding Gautama Buddha had been enshrined. When the hairs were taken from their golden casket to be enshrined some incredible things happened:

“There was a tumult among men and spirits … rays emitted by the Hairs penetrated up to the heavens above and down to hell … the blind beheld objects … the deaf heard sounds … the dumb spoke distinctly … the earth quaked … the winds of the ocean blew … Mount Meru shook … lightning flashed … gems rained down until they were knee deep … all trees of the Himalayas, though not in season, bore blossoms and fruit.”

The stupa fell into disrepair until the 1300s when the Mon king Binnya U of Bago had the stupa rebuilt to a height of 18 meters (60 ft). It was rebuilt several times and reached its current height of 98 meters (320 ft) in the 15th century. The Mon kingdom possessed two great pagodas of especial sanctity, the Shwemawdaw at Bago and the Shwedagon. Originally only twenty-seven feet high, it was raised to a height of sixty-six feet in 1362 by King Binnya U as an act of special piety. Dhammazedi’s immediate predecessor, his mother-in-law Queen Shinsawbu (1453-72), raised its height to 40 meters (129 ft). She terraced the hill on which it stands, paved the top terrace with flagstones, and assigned land and hereditary slaves for its maintenance. When in 1472 she yielded up the throne to Dhammazedi, she retired to Dagon, and during her last illness had her bed placed so that she could rest her dying eyes upon the gilded dome of the sacred fane. The Mon face of the Shwe Dagon inscription catalogues a list of repairs beginning in 1436 and finishing during Dhammazedi’s reign. It mentions Queen Shinsawbu under a terrific Pali name of sixty-six letters. By the beginning of the sixteenth century the pagoda had become the most famous place of pilgrimage in Burma.

But it was also my last day so I was thinking I would “pagoda-hop” to another famous shrine with a reclining buddha an then hit the markets, most notably Bogyoke Aung San Market, the largest in Yangon. I had spent a day in Yangon at the beginning of my trip, but knowing that Burma is a country where you have to have all the money you will need on your person – no ATMs, no credit cards accepted – I was wary of buying gifts or souvenirs on the first day since I didn’t know how much money I would need and was definitely on a tight budget. I therefore arranged my final day in Yangon to be able to let loose and spend any extra money I had in the market.

I arrived in Shwedagon Pagoda and it was lightly raining. It’s rainy season throughout SE Asia, I’d gotten used to the rain by now. Like all pagodas in Asia you must remove your shoes at entrance meaning you then climb the stairs and have to walk around the entire exterior and interior without shoes. Which is normally fine, but on the marble floor at Shwedagon I kept feeling like my feet were falling out from under me. I sat under one part of the plaza and allowed myself just to watch people walk by. Seeing people of all ages there making pilgrimages was really amazing. They knew the prayers, which spots in this enormous place where the most famous. I was without a specific tourbook and mostly content to just walk around and take it all in.

Two monks approached me. One with bitteroot red lips and teeth smiling at me, the other more quiet with cleaner looks. Where am I from. How long am I in Burma. The usual questions. Their English was fair, my patience was at an all-time high and I’d gotten very good at knowing what words tended to be known by people with limited English and could speak very slow so that they understood. They were nice, kind, eager to engage and practice their English. A few minutes passed and I stood from my perch where I had been quietly and meditatively watching the crowds before the monks arrived. It was time to go on my way. “It was nice talking to you, thank you, enjoy your day.” I said and walked away.
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Show Transparency In Your Projects...

Thank goodness we asked for help. Doug Campbell and I could quite simple have not planned Cause It’s My Birthday on our own. One of the groups I really wanted to put together early to go to for feedback and advice was what I was going to call a Cause Rockstar Team. Well – first piece of advice from Scott Henderson, “Can we be called your Cause Advisory Team?” Ok, no gushing it up. Done and done.

When Cause It’s My Birthday first launched, Doug and I asked friends and family for feedback, and then we went to our Cause Advisory Team which to me are people in the cause branding/marketing/strategy field that I really look up to and admire. They are well-respected for their craft, their expertise, their level of authenticity and commitment to raise money for causes and have had great success online in their online endeavors.

Scott Henderson from Media Sauce, Stacey Monk from Epic Change, JD Lasica from Socialbrite.org, Joey Leslie from Kompolt and Alexa Brandt formerly of Step Up Women’s Network make up our Cause Advisory Team and have been generous enough to let me send long emails and ask for suggestions and offer us feedback on the site.

Now I’m a fundraiser by craft and at heart, so I know one of the big things is being very clear about what you’re asking for. We wanted the first driver to be donations. But Doug and I wanted the site to be fun and almost look like a birthday invite and make it so people knew they could learn more by digging into the site but not have all of the facts and figures up front. We wanted to also drive attendance and showcase the city competition where each city is competing for the most donations.

I’ve learned a lesson. I’ve learned if there is something I say on the phone all the time while I’m pitching the campaign – that should be on the website. For example? Doug and I bought our own plane tickets. Could we have gotten them sponsored? Maybe, probably, but it seemed like a big undertaking that would have had to start months ago and with me in the Philippines and Doug deep into projects he was working on, that wasn’t a reality. Doug priced them out and they are just over $500 per person. NOT BAD RIGHT! So in every call I find I say something like:

When picking the nonprofit to partner with, I had two requests. The first no overhead and no admin costs. All of the money we raise is to go to nets. The second request is that we got to choose where the nets go. Netting Nations, the 501c3 we partnered with agreed to both. Doug and I paid for our flights because it’s our birthdays and sometimes you have to spend money on your own birthday.

So I’ve been saying this again and again, but it wasn’t until JD Lasica emailed me and wrote, “You should really tell people you paid for the flight and be transparent about that.” He’s right, it WAS on the site, in the “ABOUT” section, but not clear.

The Cause Advisory Team sent email notes and this past weekend, Doug and I reviewed them all. Almost all of the suggestions we agreed upon, but the way development goes with time and resources and skills, well there were some changes we could easily make, some we could try and some that we just aren’t able to do at this time. Interestingly, almost everything were things we’d thought of at some point, it was immensely helpful to have people on board to help reiterate that point.

We made the following updates to the Cause It’s My Birthday website:
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What You Give You Will Get Back Tenfold...

Tonight, I was on the phone with a friend. I was saying I was overwhelmed. This is too much. Yesterday, the day before yesterday, today, tonight – it never stops. The giving, the caring, the wanting so badly to make the world better and to make people care more that I can feel it in my soul and I ache from the wanting. I physically ache from it. I’m not saying people don’t care. They do, they care a lot. I’m not saying I’m any better. Because I’m not. What I’m saying is that I know, for me, I feel it more. It aches. And it leaves me longing.

How can you really convey those things online? Here I am, I’ve built a portal, I’ve launched a campaign, and the wheels are in motion, and it’s all happening. You can’t go back, you can only go forward and here it is, it’s almost here.

If it all ended tomorrow. It would be a success. Truly. It would be a success because people have showed to me that they want to be involved and they want to care, and they trust me to put their efforts into a place where they are needed and can make a difference. So it could all end tomorrow and it would be a success.

But it’s not ending tomorrow. Not the Cause It’s My Birthday campaign and not the feeling in my very soul that there is just so much more for me to do. So I keep pushing forward, and sending emails and looking for sponsors and press contacts and hosts for cities and putting together pieces. And I send targeted emails to friends asking for donations. I watch the donations trickle in, little by little each day.

Let me tell you something, when you’re fundraising and an email comes in, it can be with $5 or $500, it means something. It means that person choose to click on the link, and choose an amount and pressed “DONATE.” They entered personal information. They confirmed their donation. They did those steps because they believed in the power of GIVING. They looked at the screen, at words I very well may have typed or images picked for the website or a video made to talk about an issue and they said – I CAN DO MY PART. That means something. It means more than something, in my very heart and soul, it means everything. And to the people you’re helping, it means their life, it means their livelihood, it means the freedom to dream again and to work towards their dreams.

Yet, if people really knew how much I was willing to give, how much I was willing to give up to make people care, maybe they would be scared. Think I was too good or too giving. Think they had to sit up straighter when I passed by. Which is flattering, that a friend would say to me that people sit up straighter when I go by. But I guess what I’m saying is I want people to sit up straighter because they feel the power of giving too.

The power of giving is my Formula 1, it’s my skydiving, it’s my fix. It’s not all of who I am and it’s something that not everyone understands. “Surely you’re not really ok with my just giving $5.” Someone says to me. I am. I swear I am. Because sometimes $5 turns into $10 turns into $100. And sometimes $5 is just $5. But it’s something. It’s a start. Think of what would happen if only we all just pressed “DONATE.”
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War On Malaria and Why You Should Care...

There are so many causes out there. How do you pick one to care about? And if you start to care, how can you get involved? How can you feel like you’re actually contributing to solving a problem? Those are big questions and something I’ve more or less now dedicated my life to helping you answer. So stay tuned and I’ll have many more posts about HOW to care, WHY you should and WHAT you can do.

But for today, and through Cause It’s My Birthday, let’s focus on a crisis I’m passionate about, malaria. The developed world knows less about malaria than the developing world merely because malaria is not a problem here in the United States. Part of what I’m really enjoying about dedicating my birthday to this cause is learning all about it, the players involved in making an impact in the global arena.

A big thank you to Netting Nations, the nonprofit organization that Cause It’s My Birthday has partnered with. They have made terrific introductions and enabled me to really dig into this cause and personalize it and make it something I want to fight for.

I want YOU to join me in this fight. Please watch the video above and below and let the information sink in. We’ll start slow, I don’t want to overwhelm with facts and statistics, because frankly, that’s when causes start to feel like “THE WORLD IS ENDING AND WE’RE DOOMED.” And I don’t want that . Not from you now, or ever. Let’s focus on the good. The good is you’re HERE, you’re engaged, you think I have SOMETHING of interest to say and so please – trust me. Malaria is an issue we need to care about.

Start there. And the rest will start to fall into place.

http://www.vimeo.com/6715987

Humans are at war with malaria, and malaria is winning, killing one child every 30 seconds. That’s 3,000 children every day! Malaria has killed more people than all wars combined. Netting Nations believes that shelter is a fundamental human right, and that everyone deserves a net, and a chance at life. This war can and must be won.

Make a donation to Cause It’s My Birthday TODAY!

This Is Just To Say...

After posting So Much To Say But Where Are The Words, I was reminded of one of my favorite poems of all time by William Carlos Williams. I’m posting it below. I’ve found a lot of emotional relief in poetry this week, caused by finding an old poetry book in my stepdad’s house and reading it in bed at night. The poems from 100 years ago remind me of the Philippines where you have a lot to say and not a lot of tools of communication to do it. The simple and yet utterly complex imagery deeply move me. I’ll post a few more of my favorite poems in the coming week. To kick it off…

This Is Just To Say
by William Carlos Williams

I have eaten
the plums
that were in
the icebox

and which
you were probably
saving
for breakfast

Forgive me
they were delicious
so sweet
and so cold

Ahon sa Hirap, Inc. Mass Journal to Kiva Lenders...

**This is a follow up to the post from earlier this morning entitles, Kiva Mass Journals. All mass journals go to Kiva Lenders from each microfinance partner so the example below is the letter I wrote to ALL ASHI Lenders.**

Dear Lender,

Thank you for supporting the Ahon sa Hirap, Inc., otherwise known as ASHI here in the Philippines.

Ahon sa Hirap, Inc. translated from Tagalog to English means “to rise up from poverty” and is the oldest example of the Grameen Bank approach to microfinance in the Philippines. Kiva launched the Philippines as an expansion country in November 2008, with ASHI among the first group of microfinance institutions partners.

All new microfinance partners with Kiva start in what is called “Pilot Status” which is like an introduction, a “getting to know you” phase. Both Kiva and the partner institution have to make sure the relationship is going to work – after all Kiva now has over 120 partners in more than 50 countries and that’s a lot of different ways of doing business.

Once both parties have fulfilled some internal controls, a partner can be moved to active status – which means a higher fundraising limit and a more solidified partnership. I’m happy to announce that due to hard work from the President and staff members of ASHI that Kiva has approved ASHI for active field partner status! The main way you, the Lender, will be able to see the difference is through increased loans on Kiva.org over the next few months.

For the past three months, since June 2009, I have been serving at ASHI as a Kiva Fellow, assisting in the transition from pilot to active. The time has flown by and I can hardly believe my Fellowship is coming to an end. I’ve learned so much about microfinance when it’s in practice and in the field and I wanted to share a few of my biggest takeaways with you.

Microfinance is about more than a loan. The loan is the first step, the building block, and for that Kiva Lenders, I really thank you from the bottom of my heart and from each and every ASHI member and staff. You are the ones turn the key on in the ignition. The Borrower is the driver, the have a new path in front of them that can lead them out of poverty. What do I mean, more than a LOAN? Let me tell you.

Microfinance is also structured lending. For many in poverty they could get loans from loan sharks in their town (or 5/6s), but it’s only a loan and with much higher interest rates. Often times that loan would have no guarantee on terms or repayments. Someone could knock on your door and say, “Pay up today!” Microfinance changes that. It puts structure into lending for the Borrowers. It is term sheets, interest rates and responsibility. It’s not “pay when you can” but “pay weekly during a group meeting with all of the members in your neighborhood.” It’s training and retraining and “checking in” and making sure the Borrowers are using the funds for their business, and if not, why not? How can we help? It’s caring about their future.

Microfinance is also savings, with interest rates and an opportunity to plan for the future or put away for a rainy day.

Microfinance is house repair loans for when typhoons and storms sweep the country and the Borrowers homes and huts are washed away. It’s having the capital to rebuild with stone instead of bamboo so when they next storm arrives, your home is strong enough to withstand the winds. It’s having a home that is on solid ground and being proud of where you live.

Microfinance is educational loans and savings with better rates on interest paid and accrued. It’s an opportunity for Borrowers to send their children, grandchildren, sometimes even nieces and nephews to school.

Microfinance is life insurance policies for family members. Financial literacy classes for new members. Sustainable farming and agriculture classes. Training, tips on packaging, on taking goods to market, on how to grow your business in a way that will help lead you out of poverty.

Microfinance is community. It’s women gathering once a week to make repayments, discuss their business problems and come together as a second family. Some Borrowers I’ve met joined ASHI because their husband died and they were lonely. Some joined because without a new primary business or ability to start a second business their families were going to struggle to put food on the table. Some join quiet and shy and find their confidence and become leaders in their community. Many have told me they are better mothers, daughters, wives, sisters and friends because of ASHI and microfinance.
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What’s a Kiva Mass Journal?...

I might not be a Kiva Fellow anymore, but I still have lots of good information to share with you about Kiva, microfinance and how you, the engaged reader and Kiva Lender (well I hope Kiva Lender!) can make the most from your Kiva experience.

Later today, I’ll be posting my Kiva Mass Journal for Ahon sa Hirap, Inc. (also known as ASHI). First, I wanted to tell everyone what a mass journal is. I included this on my workplan, which I wrote about while I was in the Philippines in the post, My ASHI-Kiva Fellows Workplan.

Mass Journal

Actual: Write a journal entry that can be sent to all lenders of your MFI.

Translation: This goes not just to one set of lenders, but anyone who has made a loan through ASHI. One is expected per placement.

Many of the Kiva Fellows wrote about their experiences in the field, interviewing borrowers and writing journals and updates. My perspective isn’t so different from theirs. But it’s my take on the experience and I wanted my mass journal to really speak not just to the power of Ahon sa Hirap, Inc. in the Philippines but to the power of microfinance.

The mass journal goes to most lenders email inbox, which means this is how they can engage with the microfinance institution. I was so proud of my journal update that I read a part of it out loud at my going-away dinner where the ASHI Board of Directors was present. I look forward to your thoughts on the journal when it’s posted this afternoon.

Always Your Kiva Girl,
Sloane