Stories
The Father of a Community
By Stephanie Jimenez on June 14, 2013 This Father’s Day, we are celebrating Dads. Join us as we share the stories of some of our inspiring male clients, and support more fathers at opportunity.org. Meet Ssalongo, a businessman residing in Kampala, Uganda. Before becoming an Opportunity client, he earned $2 a day from a small chicken business he inherited from his grandfather. Although Ssalongo was moderately successful, he felt unsatisfied and was determined to make a change. Ssalongo borrowed…
Read MoreThree Marathons Down, Three To Go
This week, Opportunity International supporter Vanessa Felts is running an ultramarathon across the Gobi Desert to raise funds and awareness for our clients. So far, Vanessa has run three marathons in three days, and has three more to go before her journey ends this weekend. Although the race is grueling, Vanessa remains mentally strong because she knows her perseverance will make a difference in the lives of our clients. She checked in from her campsite last night, and wrote: “Overall I felt…
Read MoreOne Kilometer, One Woman’s Life Changed
This weekend, Vanessa Felts will begin her quest to run six marathons in six days in support of Opportunity International’s clients. In a news clip, Vanessa shares why she’s pushing her body and mind to the limit for Opportunity’s clients. Her goal is to raise $37,500, which could provide first-time loans to 250 women entrepreneurs. Vanessa will be running 250 kilometers next week – every kilometer representing an empowered woman. To learn more about why Vanessa’s running for Opportunity…
Read MoreThe Women Deliver 2013 Conference: Empowering Women Around the World
Since joining Opportunity International I have traveled around the world to support our programs and meet some of our 5 million financial services clients in the developing world who have been able to work their way out of poverty after receiving support and training from Opportunity International. Seeing the faces and hearing the voices of the women and children we are helping is always incredibly uplifting—like nothing I’ve ever experienced. I’ve have seen the power of one woman and the impact…
Read MoreThe Greatest Investment We Can Make
Shannon is a Young Ambassador for Opportunity and a member of the YAO Advisory Board. As a working mom with two amazing young children, I can say without hesitation that there is no greater joy in my life than caring for my children. My life revolves around their every need – making sure they are well-fed, well-dressed and thriving in every way. Like many mothers I know, I serve them more food than they could ever eat and rarely refuse a request for dessert. I fuss over their every runny nose and…
Read MoreHow Far Would You Go To Alleviate Poverty?
Last October, my good friend and Opportunity Governor Deyl Kearin ran 155 miles across the hottest desert on the planet. In support of his pursuit, he started Run4Poverty to raise awareness and sustainable funds for people in impoverished circumstances. Not only did he complete one of the toughest endurance events out there, he raised over $42,000 for Opportunity International. Many people in Deyl’s community and those who followed him on his journey were inspired. They were inspired by the strength…
Read MoreGrowing a Family Small Business
Francisco and Fidel Aleman are brothers working together to run a wood artisan business that has been in their family for the past 15 years. They were initially taught the trade by their “abuelo” Jose Jacinto Aleman. Jose is now 95 but still hangs around their workshop during the day. Through partnering with Opportunity Nicaragua for the past 2 years as part of the Artisan Community Program, Fidel and Francisco have been able to export their products out of Nicaragua. Because of this, they have…
Read MoreQuantity Isn’t The Only Challenge to Ending Hunger
Heather Rubacky is the Opportunity International College Ambassadors Coordinator and recently participated in the Live Below the Line challenge. I love food. I love eating food, making food, sharing food, even just talking about food. It provides me with more than just basic nourishment; it’s my go-to stress reliever, pick-me-up, and icebreaker. I cater friends’ cocktail parties. I measure my exercise in terms of treats earned. And despite my mother’s best training, I constantly play with my…
Read MoreLessons from Mom
Julia and Erin Smith are both Young Ambassadors for Opportunity. They were introduced to Opportunity International by their mother, Governor Jill Smith. Erin is currently fundraising for Opportunity International at https://www.opportunity.org/give/fundraisers/erinandmichael It was Christmas morning and I was eager to open all of the presents to get to the final envelopes in the tree. In our family, we always save any envelopes in the tree for last… the envelopes are often our biggest gifts; they…
Read MoreIt Was a Fortuitous, Fateful Introduction
It was a fortuitous, fateful introduction. The kind of moment where you can trace things back in time and see how every decision you made along the way lead you to this perfect, precise place. The sort of moment that reaffirms that things really do happen for a reason. That’s how my mom and I felt when we shook hands with Opportunity. Years before, my mom and I had spoken about starting a foundation. We were sitting outside in Colorado by a fire, when someone started playing Blackbird by the Beatles…
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