WERE GOING TO GO TO THE POORER PART OF TOWN AND HAND OUT CASH! FOR REAL. NO KIDDING. REALLY.

Yunus -'Social Entrepreneur'-get idea

I'm working on a new plan along the lines of the Mission Fund (recent Macarthur 'genius' Grant recipient), and similar to 'Social Entrepreneur' & Nobel prize winner  Muhammed Yunus in India, simply starting a network of volunteer-comprised 'lending circles' that will get together monthly, pool their ubiquitously uniform contributions, and give them out as a single loan to a low-income individual they decide merits it.

So, looking for volunteers to lead, organize, and participate in said Lending Circles.
How it works:
-meet once a month,  (no requirement for physical attendance, just donate and participate)
-donate 100$ each
-circle makes a decision with total amt (at least $1000), and loans it to
 an individual in need for little or no interest.
-only 4-7% default
-Mission services the loan and reports payments to credit bureaus (so
 little or no work/time required outside of meetings of any volunteers or
 participants in circle)

Im going to host the first meeting of my circle, which will also have a secondary
purpose and portion of the meeting.  After the primary meeting adjourns, some
of us will reconvene and discuss/deal with any business of the larger area
with the 'leadership circle', small set of rules/guidelines for operation, and
any other order of business that comes up and is agreed upon as appropriate to
the purview of that group. For example- the last time I formed a group to do this,
we focused on/gave preference to individuals seeking the loan as part of an
entrepreneurial effort or to otherwise assist them in beginning or improving a
commercial enterprise (starting or running a business).  That was what we as a group thought
was most important to assist in the community we were working in at the time.
However, each group will have the ability to determine their own course and
decide their own priorities and preferences.

What do YOU(POTENTIAL VOLUNTEER) GET OUT OF IT?
-YOU GET TO KNOW YOUVE REALLY TRULY HELPED SOMEONE OUT WHO NEEDED IT AND
WAS WILLING TO PUT HONESTY, HARD WORK, AND EFFORT INTO IT. 
-YOU'LL KNOW YOUVE HELPED THEM< INDIVIDUALLY, AND THE COMMUNITY, IN THE LONG
 RUN AS WELL AS RIGHT NOW.  By helping individuals living in low income
 communities establish credit, you will clearly be helping that person out for
  years to come.  That is not all.  Additionally, you'll be giving the entire
 community they live in help that is direly needed.  Better credit ratings
 have been proven to help individuals in communities establish local
 enterprises that in turn contribute to the community as well by providing
 jobs, filling empty commercial properties, infusing liquid wealth into
 neighborhoods dying of thirst, and eventually improving the standard of
 living in those neighborhoods.
 Once that process begins to move forward and takes hold in a neighborhood
 that needs it as badly as some do in Richmond, all of Richmond will benefit
 as well.  It's just simple, common sense: If one person gets a hand from
 another in their community, they will be more likely to help others there
 in turn.  So the circle will turn around and around- slowly at first, but
 gaining speed every time, so that soon it will be carrying its passengers
 to the goal.

This is a REAL thing that we as individual human beings can do to change the
world around us for the better.  This is something that is within our power
to do for the world that surrounds us and for the future that our children
will live in.
As I'm certain many feel, I feel responsible for the world I pass to my son. 
In a decade, when he is in High School and preparing for college (hopefully)-
I ask myself: "What kind of environment will all of us have handed these
children to deal with?"  and "Will we give them any guidance for dealing with
the violence, environmental disaster, disease, and basic human suffering that
they will face?  Or "Will they have to figure it out all on their own?"
Or much worse: "Will it all be so overwhelmingly bad that no one will be ABLE
to deal with it?"

Well, I know I personally do not have the resources to change the Earth this
morning. 
BUT I DO know that I can have $100 in a month. 
I can do that, and I can CLEARLY see how it will help someone out.
I can just as clearly see how they will be able to help others out
as a result.
I KNOW that is real, positive 'Change' with a capital 'C'.

Honestly, I'm telling you (whoever is reading this), that makes me feel like
I'm a better person because it makes me feel like Im doing somethiing to
change the world that my generation & those before are saddling my son's
generation with.

Is that worth $100?  Absolutely.
Is that worth the TEMPORARY lack of $100? DEFINATELY.

PLEASE CONSIDER JOINING AS A VOLUNTEER OR AS A VOLUNTEER/HOST FOR A CIRCLE
IN YOUR AREA.
Contact me to do so or for any questions at:
newvoodoocustoms@gmail.com
(I WILL respond, and if you prefer to talk via tele, text, skype, etc--simply
 send me an email telling me and I will reply with my number-its just ssilly
 to publish anything but an email account you have prepared to accept spam)

THANK YOU FOR READING THIS AND I HOPE YOU DECIDE TO GET INVOLVED!!


Sincerely-
Jim.