PASSPORT Issue 1, 2013 Journey into HOPE’s work fighting physical and spiritual poverty around the world
Uncharity: unleashed Banking goes mobile Jump rope for HOPE
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TABLE OF CONTENTS 3 President’s perspective 4 Updates from around the world 6 Uncharity: unleashed With a sewing machine of her own, Ingrid put her skills to work— and now employs 25 women from her community.
8 Banking goes mobile In Rwanda, HOPE’s local partner is turning to the country’s growing cell phone network to help clients leave poverty behind.
10 Jump rope for HOPE This February, eight teens set out to make a difference with their jump ropes.
11 Drive out poverty Join HOPE at our 2013 golf tournament in Pennsylvania.
On the cover: Congratulations to HOPE’s 2013 Thurman Award winner—Mardy Cabalo from the Philippines! With loans from CCT, HOPE’s local partner, Mardy expanded her business selling cosmetics and clothing. Her business profits helped three of her children attend college. Through the training Mardy received from CCT, she has become a leader in her community, helping organize skills-training workshops and medical examinations. As a result, 25 families have come to know the Lord. Watch Mardy’s story at www.hopeinternational.org/mardy.
President’s perspective
by Peter Greer
Often, when we see people in need, our immediate response is to fill that need, whether it’s food, clothing, or shelter. These are incredibly important items—but they are all temporary. Food is consumed. Clothes wear out. Homes require repair. All must be replaced in a relatively short amount of time. What if we could help individuals grow their own food? Purchase their own clothes? And build their own homes? What if we look long term—to helping people find a job that enables them to provide for their needs and those of their community?
Photo: Jeremy Cowart
HOPE is passionate about helping individuals find employment. It’s a hand up, not a handout. Offering biblically based business training, savings, and small loans, HOPE is investing in clients’ dreams—so moms and dads can tackle the source of financial poverty and provide for their children. We also know there is more to poverty and hopelessness than just financial lack. At its core, poverty is about broken relationships—with oneself, with each other, and with God. Through the uniqueness of HOPE’s ministry, families are not just working their way out of poverty, they are also experiencing the love of Jesus Christ through staff members who serve as mentors and friends. Addressing poverty at its root, HOPE is seeing hundreds of thousands of lives changed. Ingrid’s story, which you will read in this Passport issue, is just one example. I am so grateful for your support in helping clients like Ingrid become providers in their families and communities. Thank you for your partnership with HOPE in breaking the cycles of physical and spiritual poverty in the lives of over 525,000 families globally. Coming soon! Many authors have shown that our helping can inadvertently hurt the people we serve. But doing good can also harm those who help. In The Spiritual Danger of Doing Good, scheduled for release in August 2013, Peter Greer, along with Anna Haggard, explores the most significant challenges facing weekend volunteers and full-time ministry professionals and equips them to rediscover the heart of true service.
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UPDATES
FROM AROUND THE WORLD Brussels Summit In April, 17 HOPE leaders and advisors convened in Brussels, Belgium, for HOPE’s first group lending conference. During the three-day event, they discussed methodology and planned improvements to the way HOPE implements community banking in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Republic of Congo, where HOPE programs serve more than 4,500 clients. “God blessed us with a spirit of unity,” reports Jesse Ratichek, senior microenterprise technical advisor. “We are on a good path towards increased impact on the lives of the clients we serve.”
Spiritual integration in Moldova After months of prayer, Invest-Credit, HOPE’s partner in Moldova, has appointed Horia Nedelciuc as its spiritual integration manager. “This role is essential because it has the potential to be catalytic,” says Matthew Rohrs, director of spiritual integration for HOPE’s network. Horia’s responsibilities will include discipling and training staff and clients, as well as serving as a pastor figure and ministry strategist for InvestCredit. “My ultimate goal is to motivate Christian business people to live out their faith,” explains Horia, “through sharing the Gospel in word and deed and being an example for coworkers, clients, shareholders, and the community.”
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SCA expansion HOPE’s savings and credit associations (SCAs) continue to grow rapidly, as groups gather together to save money and grow in solidarity. Since HOPE launched a new SCA in Burundi in September 2012, the program has already expanded to serve over 8,000 members. In June, HOPE plans to launch a new SCA partnership in India—our third in that country. SCAs in India have proven effective at providing increased financial security for vulnerable, low-caste families and in bridging the gap between the Church and community members who do not know Christ.
Charit y Navigator HOPE recently received Charity Navigator’s prestigious 4-star rating for the sixth consecutive year, signifying HOPE’s commitment to good stewardship, sound governance, and transparency. Ken Berger, Charity Navigator’s president and CEO, explains, “Only 3 percent of the charities we rate have received at least six consecutive 4-star evaluations, indicating that HOPE International outperforms most other charities in America.” “We are honored,” comments David Wong, HOPE’s chief financial officer. “Our people focus daily on serving our clients in difficult areas of the world with conscientiousness, integrity, and good stewardship, and this rating is a wonderful reflection of their hard work.”
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: Ingrid Mendez started her business 13 years ago in Santiago, the second largest city in the Dominican Republic.
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Though Ingrid had the skills needed to sew beautiful children’s clothing and souvenirs, she didn’t have the capital to purchase a sewing machine. Each time she wanted to create something new, she had to close her home-based business while she used someone else’s machine, limiting her capacity and productivity. But when Esperanza International, HOPE’s partner in the Dominican Republic, reached out to Ingrid four years ago, they didn’t focus on what she lacked. Instead, they invested in what she had: sewing skills, creativity, and motivation. With a loan from Esperanza, Ingrid finally purchased a sewing machine of her own. As her productivity increased, so did her business, allowing Ingrid to pay back her loan and access larger ones. Six loans later, Ingrid’s business is thriving. A true innovator, she explains that what sets her apart is her ability to create custom orders for clients: “I try to understand exactly what they are looking for and give the best service I can.” Because Esperanza invested in Ingrid’s skills and abilities, Ingrid is now fulfilling her dream of investing in other women in her community. She has become a major job creator, employing 25 women and training them in basic skills like weaving and handling the register. Ingrid is active in her community, serving as president of her neighborhood’s leadership board and using her experience raising three children as part of a mothers’ group that meets regularly to pray, share advice, and fellowship. Ingrid also provides health and literacy training in her community, an initiative that started with just two women but has grown to include over 45. Ingrid’s story is a powerful example of the long-term impact of uncharity. By providing Ingrid with the resources to employ her God-given creativity, Esperanza unleashed her to become an agent of change in her community. Now Ingrid is passing on the same mentality to others: “I only want to help my community,” she explains, “and give them the opportunity to help themselves.” Learn more about why charity is not the answer at
www. .org $
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In Rwanda, where 81 percent of the population lives in rural areas, HOPE’s local partner, Urwego Opportunity Bank, is turning to the nation’s growing cell phone network to alleviate poverty by empowering entrepreneurs.
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Photo: Nikole Lim
Cell phone use is spreading rapidly in Rwanda, with the percentage of households owning a mobile phone growing from 6.2 percent in 2006 to 45.2 percent in 2011. Capitalizing on this expanding network, Urwego recently introduced a cell-phone banking system in cooperation with mVisa, Visa’s mobile banking service for developing countries. Called mHose—hose is the Kinyarwanda word for “everywhere”— this system allows clients to make financial transactions over their mobile phones and at participating businesses. Using their phones, clients can access a range of services, from viewing their savings account balance to receiving and repaying loans to communicating with Urwego staff. This reduces cashrelated risks, as loan officers no longer have to travel with large amounts of money between group meetings and Urwego branches.
The mobile banking technology also allows loan officers to use monthly group meetings more effectively. Time previously spent on manual transactions like collecting and distributing cash will now be spent on training, fellowship, and discipleship, and each loan officer will have increased capacity to serve more clients. “With this new mHose mobile banking program,” explains Nick Meakin, mHose program manager, “meetings can be run more efficiently, and more time can be devoted to concentrated discussion of the Word and discipleship.” After piloting the system for several months, Urwego launched mHose in March. In its first month, nearly 300 clients signed up for the service. Support HOPE and Urwego’s work in Rwanda at www.hopeinternational.org/donate.
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At the end of February, eight members of the Mountville Mennonite Church middle school youth group set out to make a difference through a “Jump Rope for HOPE” jump-a-thon. The group was motivated by a visit to HOPE’s Pathways out of Poverty exhibit in the fall of 2012. Located at HOPE’s headquarters in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Pathways provides a multisensory look at the stories of eight individuals living in poverty around the world and invites participants to respond.
event. During the jump-a-thon, each teen completed six jump rope stations with five minutes per station—a total of 30 minutes of jumping. As a result of their hard work and the generous sponsorship of Mountville Mennonite members, the group raised $1,250. “I enjoyed watching the youth engage with this event and saw God at work as we raised $1,250 for the ongoing work of HOPE!” says Mike. Lauren Hartzler, a member of the youth group, was thrilled by what the group’s efforts accomplished: “I thought that jumping rope for HOPE was a great activity, because something as simple as jumping rope could make a difference in someone else’s life.” Adds Nicholas Kanagy, another participant, “It was fun, because in the end I knew that I was helping other people who needed it!”
“I thought that jumping rope for HOPE was a great activity, because something as simple as jumping rope could make a difference in someone else’s life.”
Members of the youth group were profoundly moved by this exhibit: “They wanted to help, to make a difference, to do something with the knowledge that they had just received. That’s where the energy came to do a fundraiser for HOPE,” says Mike Metzler, associate pastor for youth, who led the
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Join our new HOPE Rising advocacy program and start your own creative fundraiser. Learn more at www.myhoperising.com.
THank you, 2012 sponsors! Diamond Sponsors Heritage Hills Golf Resort Hostetler & Church LLC/ Rosen, Sapperstein & Friedlander/VAL-CO IGNISIS Rick and Beth Poole TechniVate Platinum Sponsors AIS Insurance Group Akron Insurance Associates Conestoga Title Insurance Co. Edify Esbenshade’s Garden Centers Hershey Financial Advisers Kaplin Stewart Lancaster Mortgage Co. Mortgage Network
Penn Transfer Sequinox/Boyd Senior Planning Shepherd Real Estate LLC Tri-Emerald Financial Group Woodmill LLC Gold Sponsors Auntie Anne’s B.R. Kreider & Son Garber Metrology Lesher Mack M&T Bank Martin’s Trailside Express mRelevance NE Regional Board Pine View Trucking RE/MAX Select Security
Susquehanna Bank WJTL Silver Sponsors Century 21 Executive Coach Four Seasons Produce Galarza Income Tax Garden State Asphalt Horst Realty Math-U-See Metro Bank Mid Penn Bank Morgan Stanley New Holland Auto Group Sharp Shopper Stewart Title Insurance Co. Verizon Wireless Weaver Energy
Save the date Sign up to sponsor or attend HOPE’s 2013 golf tournament:
Friday, September 27 Lancaster, PA Contact Lori Scannapieco at 717-464-3220 ext. 140 or lori@hopeinternational.org for more information. For a full listing of HOPE events around the country, visit www.hopeinternational.org/events.
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