#Women of GLOBE

#Women_of_GLOBE

In the summer of 2018, near Antigua Guatemala, Volcán de Fuego erupted killing over 200 people, with hundreds more injured or missing.  With limited warnings and scarce time for evacuation, many lost their homes and belongings.  Families were torn apart, and temporary dwellings were erected by charitable organizations and the Vincentian Daughters of Charity to house the survivors. One year later, St. John’s University student managers from the GLOBE (Global Loan Opportunities for Budding Entrepreneurs) program visited Antigua, and the Daughters of Charity introduced them to many of these victims, the majority of whom were women.  During that meeting, GLOBE learned of the challenges these women faced in the aftermath of the volcanic eruption, and the dreams they harbored of starting small businesses to provide income that would pay for their children’s school fees, clothes and food for the family, and repairs to their homes. We learned that GLOBE can, in fact, empower women even in the most dire of circumstances.

What is GLOBE? We are a student-managed academic program here at St. John’s University that provides loans, sourced entirely through donations to entrepreneurs in the developing world. We are committed to building a global community that contributes to the eradication of poverty within our lifetimes, and this mission starts with our outreach to women. GLOBE empowers women by providing a space for them to begin their businesses and improve their lives. Today we introduce you to some of the “Women of GLOBE” who include not only over 80% of our borrowers, but also the Daughters of Charity who serve as local field partners, and many of our student managers. As we close the celebration of Women’s History Month, we want to share a story of one of our Guatemalan female borrowers, and the testimony of some former female GLOBE managers whose lives were also changed by GLOBE. 

Meet Allisson, a 24-year-old single mother who had dreams of opening her own bakery. With a small loan from GLOBE, Allisson was able to make this dream a reality, and now sustains a successful bakery in Antigua only 10 miles from the fearsome Volcán de Fuego that engulfed so many lives and homes a mere 4 years ago.  The growth of her business allowed her to take out a second loan to purchase a commercial oven, thus expanding her income. She is one of 18 Guatemalan female borrowers who, through microcredit, have taken steps to help themselves and their families out of poverty

We also introduce you to Alina and Jhanelle, two former GLOBE managers and Student Fellows who traveled to different GLOBE operating spheres. From Alina’s first-hand experience with our women borrowers, she remembers their “unrelenting spirit and dedication to their families and to their community” and calls it “nothing short of inspirational.” Jhanelle shares similar sentiments from her experience of meeting women borrowers.  In GLOBE, she learned that women could make a small loan go much farther than their male counterparts could, and saw this in action in the field, noting that women “have this uncanny ability to do more with less.”

These stories of the Women of GLOBE inspire us to continue to make inroads in changing the lives of women who once thought their dreams would never come true, and whose abilities were often underestimated. We are asking you to help us support the Women of GLOBE with your donation. Every dollar has an impact on our ability to create positive change in the world. Will you join us in our quest to empower women? We hope you respond with a resounding “YES!”