Stories
Day 3: The Gift of Story
I’ve spent more than a dozen years being a storyteller for Opportunity International. Stories go into proposals, reports, cards, letters, articles, videos, speeches. You might think that after a while, stories would start to blur and feel formulaic. But to me, receiving each client’s story is a precious gift that they impart to me – the privilege to bear witness to their journey. Whether they give their story directly to me during a visit, or whether I receive it second or third hand through…
Read More
Day 4: The Gift of Resilience
Pick yourself up. Brush it off. When the going gets tough, the tough get going. We all have casual phrases for moving forward in adversity. But the fact is, sometimes life deals a tragic blow, and there isn’t a phrase in the world that begins to capture the path forward. In Kigali, Rwanda, I met Petronaire, an Opportunity client who has built a successful tailoring business. She introduced me to her colleagues who are also seamstresses. While sketching designs and taking measurements, they started…
Read More
Day 5: The Yellow Latrine
One month ago while the rest of the world was in a meltdown over a certain election, I was thankful to be tucked away in a chaotic corner of India visiting some amazing female entrepreneurs who are changing the course of their families’ futures. There I was in a rural village outside of Varanasi, completely in awe of someone’s toilet. It wasn’t the toilet itself that struck me (I’ve seen and used a squat toilet before), it was the vibrant yellow colour it was painted. In our society, toilets…
Read More
Day 6: The Gift of Abundant Sameness
As we prepare for Christmas, we are counting down our 12 Days of Opportunity - celebrating the many gifts we have received while working with our clients and staff around the world. The developing world is so different, and yet I am taken aback by the many things that resonate as “the same.” As I traveled through Nicaragua last spring to see first-hand how small investments in people—financial, time, guidance and more—can change lives dramatically, I learned something I did not expect. I…
Read More.jpg)
Day 7: Hospitality Woven
As we prepare for Christmas, we are counting down our 12 Days of Opportunity - celebrating the many gifts we have received while working with our clients and staff around the world. I stumbled my way to Dionel’s front door, inching down the side of a steep hill, steadying my feet as I walked. His home sits precariously on a mountainside, at risk because of geology, but even more because of geography. He lives in Colombia in an area known as the violence corridor. The history of Colombia is one…
Read More
Day 8: A Ride in a Time Machine
As we prepare for Christmas, we are counting down our 12 Days of Opportunity - celebrating the many gifts we have received while working with our clients and staff around the world. For many of us Christmas is a season of joy and a time for friends and family, accompanied with the giving and receiving of gifts. Celebrations of the birth of our Lord and Savior are often marked by great bounty—tables laden with sumptuous food and rich desserts, Christmas trees and stockings overflowing with delightfully…
Read More
Day 9: Fulfillment Through Work
As we prepare for Christmas, we are counting down our 12 Days of Opportunity - celebrating the many gifts we have received while working with our clients and staff around the world. Not many people get to thoroughly enjoy their work whilst positively impacting lives and putting smiles on the faces of entrepreneurs living in poverty. I have worked for almost 16 years at Sinapi Aba Savings and Loans (SASL), one of Opportunity’s microfinance partners. My passion is to see and feel the positive…
Read More
Day 10: The Gift of a Very Important Lesson
As we prepare for Christmas, we are counting down our 12 Days of Opportunity - celebrating the many gifts we have received while working with our clients and staff around the world. My gifts from those I meet on my travels generally come in the form of lessons. One of the memorable lessons I was gifted was on justice, learned in a tiny village in Zimbabwe that does not appear on most maps. There I met Esther, the woman who has inspired me these many years, although our paths only crossed briefly. As…
Read More
Day 11: The Gift of Joyful Patience
As we prepare for Christmas, we are counting down our 12 Days of Opportunity - celebrating the many gifts we have received while working with our clients and staff around the world. The holiday season can be trying for those of us in the U.S. who are used to getting everything NOW. We want next day delivery from Amazon Prime, short lines in stores, fast food and quick transport to our destinations. We are not very patient people. My husband Ted and I were lucky to be able to go on an Insight Trip…
Read More
Day 12: Robinah's Drum
As we prepare for Christmas, we are counting down our 12 Days of Opportunity - celebrating the many gifts we have received while working with our clients and staff around the world. Every time I look at the little wooden drum on my desk engraved with the word “Uganda,” I think about Opportunity International’s work to support improved education quality for children. Well, not exactly. When I look at the drum, I think about the first time I met Robinah. Before she saw me standing outside the…
Read More