Kiva Brings Life-Changing Loans to the U.S.

Jeremy is a former ambulance driver and a high-energy entrepreneur. He runs Emergency BBQ, a mobile catering company in San Carlos, Calif., that serves up barbecue favorites in a style Jeremy calls California Beer B-Que.

With this loan, Jeremy can expand his business beyond on-the-go catering trucks and open up a retail store in San Carlos. He will be able to cater a greater number of lunch and dinner events from his shop, as well as serve lunch to local workers in San Mateo. He will also be able to create full-time employment for his three seasonal employees.

Click Here to Lend to Jeremy at His Kiva Page

Amato Loma-Yindja, a widowed mother of two, has always loved children and believes her mission in life is to help them. For more than 10 years she worked with disadvantaged children at various nonprofits before being laid off in 2003. She began fostering children and decided to take this effort one step further by opening a day-care in her home in Fremont, Calif. Loma-Yindja hopes to expand her business, but she needs funds to fully convert her home into a day-care with a larger capacity.

"I'm originally from Africa," she said. "I've been in the U.S. for 24 years. I've been a widow for 20 years. So I've raised my children by myself, and being a single parent and to see how hard it is, that's what really motivated me to become a day-care provider to help children."

Without these kinds of loans, she said, "It would be very, very hard to fulfill my dream. So they make it possible."

With a $6,000 loan, Loma-Yindja will be able to carpet her nap area, convert her garage into a playroom and buy art and educational supplies. Currently she has three children in her bilingual French and English day-care, but she hopes the loan will expand her capacity to care for more children.

"I'm very grateful, to begin with, for the opportunity that has been given to me," she said. "It's not just me, it's the children. That's where my heart is."

Click Here to Lend to Amato at Her Kiva Page

Luis has learned to navigate the Manhattan streets like the back of his hand through his baked goods delivery business. He began his business seven years ago and smiles when he thinks of the success his venture has become. He is happy and proud to be able to send his 13-year-old to a good school. He also has two sons serving in the Marines.

Luis begins his morning with his first delivery route between 1 a.m. and 2 a.m. He does three rounds of deliveries throughout the day. He has expanded from two delivery contracts to six major contracts with various bakeries throughout the city, and he has added a new van and hired an employee. He has requested a loan to insulate his second van, which will be necessary to keep his goods fresh during the hot New York summer.

Click Here to Lend to Luis at His Kiva Page

Carl worked for 20 years in the trucking industry and washed windows on the side for extra money before deciding to start his own window washing business. Carl manages the business and washes the windows, often waking at 3 a.m. for early jobs while his wife helps out with bookkeeping. His business capacity has doubled in the last few years and could keep growing, but he needs to invest in advertising and hire a full-time employee to meet the high demand.

A $5,000 loan would help Carl advertise his business online and in real estate brochures, as well as prepare the business to hire a full-time employee.

Click Here to Lend to Carl at His Kiva Page