I’ve been a longtime supporter of Kiva, including having made hundreds of dollars worth of loans on their website for entrepreneurs worldwide and spending last summer in the Philippines as a Kiva Fellow. I am also a member of their “Social Media Dream Team” (follow my Twitter list: Kiva Dream Team) a small group that rallies and support their online campaigns. I’m so incredibly proud to announce that our latest endeavor has been a success and Kiva has won the Sam’s Club Giving Made Simple campaign and a $1 million grant.
See my original blog post entitled: Please Vote for Kiva In Sam’s Club Giving Competition!
We are thrilled to announce that Kiva has won a $1 million grant through the Sam’s Club Giving Made Simple campaign. The campaign ran from April 8th to May 2nd with over 125,000 Sam’s Club members and associates placing votes for their favorite charities.
Thank you to everyone who supported Kiva throughout the campaign. We could not have won without your daily votes, outreach to friends, and participation during the Double Points Days on Twitter.
KIVA will use the $1 million grant to enhance and expand the reach of its microloan platform to generate approximately $10 million more in loans from the internet community, helping approximately 25,000 entrepreneurs in the United States and around the world.
“We are truly grateful to Sam’s Club and its members for helping Kiva win this generous grant,” said Premal Shah, president of Kiva. “Kiva’s mission is to help to connect people, through lending, for the sake of alleviating poverty in the developing world – and right here at home. This grant will enable Kiva to continue to provide the opportunity that microfinance presents to hard-working entrepreneurs in our global community.”
On behalf of our community of staff, board members, volunteers, and friends, thank you for showing your support for Kiva. We won this together!
I’m so proud to be a part of the Kiva community because I have seen with my own eyes as a Fellow how that money directly impacts poverty alleviation worldwide. Kiva, congrats!
A bit of extra information for you:
About Kiva.org
Kiva.org is the world’s first person-to-person micro-lending website, empowering individuals to lend to an entrepreneur across the globe. Founded in 2005, Kiva.org’s mission is to connect people, through lending, to alleviate poverty. Over 585,000 people have loaned more than $100 million to 249,000 entrepreneurs in 49 countries. Currently, loans made through Kiva.org have a 98% repayment rate. Kiva.org is headquartered in San Francisco.
About Sam’s Club
Sam’s Club is a division of Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., (NYSE:WMT). The first Sam’s Club opened its doors in Midwest City, Okla., in 1983. Today, Sam’s Club serves more than 47 million U.S. members with locations nationwide, as well as in Brazil, China, Mexico and Puerto Rico. Sam’s Club saves its members on average 30.4 percent over grocery and specialty retailers by offering superior values on quality merchandise and services for home or work. Saving is made simple at Sam’s Club. Visit samsclub.com for more information.
Sam’s Club Charitable Giving Programs
Giving Made Simple is a new addition to a long history of charitable contributions made by Sam’s Club at both the national and local level. Last year, Sam’s Club associates logged more than 113,879 hours to the company’s Volunteerism Always Pays grant program, which resulted in $948,000 worth of charitable grants to education, workforce development, environmental and health and wellness focused organizations. Sam’s Club also donated more than 38 million pounds of food last year to U.S. food banks through Walmart’s partnership with Feeding America; and participates in disaster assistance, events such as the Salvation Army Red Kettle Holiday Drive as well as Children’s Miracle Network fundraising.