In fact one state wants a list of mentors that would be willing to mentor a new scooter rider and they would distribute that information to all new scooter registrants. Other state representatives are very helpful with advice and feedback. The idea definitely has legs.

In order to pursue this idea further I launched ScooterMentors.org this morning. I want to try to make the mentoring idea as inclusive as possible for all scooter riders and so I wanted to move it off the Burgman focused site.

You know how much I value your opinions and feedback so I don’t want you to be a stranger in offering help and suggestions about how we might be able to be a friend and mentor to new scooter riders to help them avoid trouble on the roads during their early days.

The idea is simple, just go for a ride with new scooter rider and show them how an experienced rider, rides.

Steve

©2010 Suzuki Burgman Scooter Riders - 'Lovers of Fun'. All Rights Reserved.

By the way, I’m going to be joining them in Raleigh and ride along for a bit. As you will see in the interview below, you are invited along anywhere on their trip as well. You can contact Ali and Tim directly for meeting details.

Steve

August 1: Greenville to Spartanburg to Columbia
August 2: Columbia to Bluffton to Hilton Head to Beaufort
August 3: Beaufort to Charleston to Myrtle Beach
August 4: Myrtle Beach to Cape Fear, NC to Raleigh
August 5: Raleigh to Greensboro to Winston Salem to Charlotte
August 6: Charlotte to Asheville to Greenville

2wheels4water Route

Q1: So you’re off on a scooter trip around the Carolina’s to raise money for water resources in developing countries. That’s a pretty interesting use of a scooter. Why a scooter?

Tim and I both love scooters. When we got married last September we decided that our first major purchase would be a Vespa. In May we finally made that dream come true when we purchased our Vespa ET2. We started talking about how fun it would be to take a long trip on the scooter and that transformed into making it a charity ride to raise money for an amazing organization called Hydromissions. We have known about Hydromissions for a while and I just had this burning desire to help them. 2 Wheels 4 Water turned out to be a unique, fun way we could help them.

Q2: It looks like you’ll have some big travel days and long distances to cover on a 50cc scooter. How have you prepared for such a long trip on a small scooter?

I would be lying if I said I wasn’t a little unsure about the trip. The longest trip I have ever taken on the scooter is about two hours. But then again, when I ran my first marathon I had never run 26.2 miles, so it just takes faith and endurance. It’s also good to know that we have nice places to stay every night along the way. Hampton Inn donated hotel stays for us so we can rest up. Plus knowing that the distance we cover will translate into money for an organization we believe in is extra motivation.

Q3: Do you have any concerns about heading out on a 1,200 mile trip on a 50cc scooter?

There is always the unexpected but we know it will be an adventure. Our scooter (the one I will be riding) is technically a 50cc, but it has modifications to give it extra power which is nice when you are side-by-side with traffic. The wonderful people at Touring Sport BMW here in Greenville, SC are loaning us a 250cc Vespa for the trip. My husband will be riding that one. We plan to take a small gas can with us in case we can’t find a gas station. We also have a tire repair kit in the event of a flat. We also know that the people in the Carolinas are so friendly that it won’t be hard to find someone to help us if we need it.

Q4: Why scootering for water? Is this a combination of the love of two passions?

We are a pretty ordinary couple. We don’t have lots of cash to donate. We aren’t celebrities. But we do have a scooter and a passion to help others. We are proving that you don’t have to have lots of money or power to do your part and make a difference. We just found an organization we believe in and we wanted to help them.

Hydromissions was started in 2004 by Steve and Jennifer Lorch. In just four years since they founded Hydromissions they’ve worked to bring access to clean water to over 30 countries. Without having any engineering background, they used 100-year-old sets of encyclopedias for inspiration to invent low-tech water pumps. They go to third world countries and teach people how to install, operate and maintain these pumps. I love Hydromissions because it’s not an organization that is just throwing money or expensive equipment at people. They are teaching people how to get clean water and that translates into saving lives. The numbers are huge- 1.1 billion people don’t have access to clean drinking water. It would be easy to get overwhelmed by that number and just think that it’s too big of a problem to be solved. But Hydromissions knows it’s not about helping all 1.1 billion people. It’s about helping one village at a time and impacting the lives of those people forever.

Q5: How can people in the scooter world help support your fundraising goals?

There are so many ways you can help. First of all, you can support us by making a donation or a pledge. You can do that by visiting our website at www.2wheels4water.com and clicking on the “Donate/Contact” page. Every penny we raise goes directly to Hydromissions. Secondly, you can support Hydromissions by purchasing some of the soap they manufacture.

Currently they fund their trips to third world countries by selling soap that is made in a one-car garage here in South Carolina. You can buy the soap by visiting www.Hydromissions.com. Thirdly, you are more than welcome to ride with us! Check out our route on our website and let us know if you are interested in joining us. Finally, just help us get the word out. If you have a blog, write about our trip and post a link to our site. We want as many people as possible to know about the work of Hydromissions.

Q6: How did you pick the route and are you sticking to back roads?

My husband was in charge of making the route. We decided to try to drive about 200 miles a day. So once we had the main stopping points nailed down my husband mapped out back roads to each location. We are really looking forward to riding along the coast. Our goal is to avoid as much traffic as possible. We’ll probably get lost a few times along the way, but hey, that’s part of the fun.

©2010 Suzuki Burgman Scooter Riders - 'Lovers of Fun'. All Rights Reserved.

Hanoi and Soon to Be Peoria Scooter Traffic?

Maybe you’ve noticed a lot of newbie scooter riders on the road. I have. And that is confirmed by the huge rise in scooter dales over the past year. High gas prices have tipped people out of 4 wheels and onto 2 to help save money.

Just last weekend at the bike meet we were talking about how easy it is to spot the newbie scooter riders. Maybe you’ve noticed the same thing, they don’t wave. It’s not that they are anti-social but this new crop of scooter riders is a bit different than us lovers of two wheels.

For those of us that love to ride and ride the Burgman, we look at what we do as being part of a community. Many new riders just look at their scooter as cheap transportation and if gas went down by half a whole lot of those new scooter would be on eBay or parked. They are not enthusiastic about riding, but thrilled about 50 mpg.

The other trend that concerns me is that these newbie riders will lead to higher injury rates. A look around confirmed that most new rider accidents as driver faults, just due to a lack of experience, mentoring or training. More injuries will lead to a reaction from government and that will lead to more regulation. Not necessarily a bad thing.

Maybe one suggestion is to require new scooter riders to take a safety class before delivery. But who would teach it? Many motorcycle classes are backlogged now. Probably a non-starter idea but certainly it would not hurt at all. And here is a good reason why.

A year or so ago I was in Bermuda and met this woman that was limping and had a bandaged right arm. She told me about how she had an accident riding her rented scooter. She was ranting and raving about how bad the scooter was and that people should not be allowed to ride 50cc scooters.

In listening to her story I caught one very important point. She said she sailed off the scooter to the right when she made a 30 mph left turn. I asked her how she turned to the left and she demonstrated a hard turn of the handlebars to the left.

Seems she high sided off the scooter and threw her own self off. She just didn’t know it. She also mentioned that the turn was sandy but she hadn’t slowed down for that either. [Insert shaking head]

Maybe one suggestion is that we could contact our local dealers and offer to ride with any new scooter riders. It doesn’t have to be a formal class but a little mentoring goes a long way.

Photo by: Flickmor

©2010 Suzuki Burgman Scooter Riders - 'Lovers of Fun'. All Rights Reserved.

When you invest money, as little as $25, to help someone, you are not giving it away, you are making a loan and when the money is repaid you can withdraw it to put back in your pocket or you can lend it out to another in need of your help.

I would not ask you to do anything I would not do. You can visit my lender page on Kiva to see who I have lent money to.

Steve

For more information on each person below, click on the link under their picture.

$225 of $1,200 raised.

Started raising funds on Mar 1, 2010




Sr. Moisés lives in the Santa Rita neighborhood in the town of El Tomo. He provides passenger transport services in his motorcycle taxi. He also has a side business selling livestock on the weekends, which helps him support his wife and two children. They do not own a home so they live at his brother’s house and his wife takes care of the domestic work. When he was a soccer goalkeeper, he had the chance to travel outside of the country. Among his wishes are to have his own house and see his children become professionals.

With the money he is requesting, Moisés will purchase another motorcycle since the one he currently has experienced numerous mechanical failures. He hopes to provide better service to his customers.

Moisés is grateful to Emprender and Kiva for trusting him by providing this loan.

Translated from Spanish by Ronan Reodica, Kiva Volunteer

Urbanus Kioko Wambua : Kenya

$175 of $925 raised.

Started raising funds on Mar 10, 2010




Urbanus is a 35-year-old hardworking father of three. He has a motorcycle transport business located in a busy environment. Besides, he is employed, has semi-permanent rental houses and he does livestock farming together with his wife. He wants a loan of Kes.70,000 from Faulu Kenya to purchase a motorbike. He hopes to upgrade his rental houses to become permanent houses. He sees himself becoming a stable businessman in the future.

Jose Guadalupe Chevez Ríos : Nicaragua

$350 of $725 raised.

Started raising funds on Mar 1, 2010




Mr. Jose Chevez works in the UNAN University in Esteli, working as a security guard.

Jose will use the loan to buy a motorcycle and hopes that with it he will be able to travel to and from work.

Jose is married and has 2 children under his care. This is his second loan with Ceprodel (Kiva’s field partner) he has worked for two years with the institution.

Jose says that his loans with Ceprodel have been very important since he paid his debt and has bought some things for his home.

Translated from Spanish by Mayra Duque, Kiva Volunteer

Seangheng Cheng’s Group : Cambodia

$0 of $2,125 raised.

Started raising funds on Mar 11, 2010




Mrs. Seangheng Cheng is 46 years-old. She is the village bank president for a group loan for 12 persons offered by Kiva partner AMK and located in Sampan Kraom village in Kandal province. With the loan, all the members hope to increase their income in order to improve the family lifestyles. Mrs. Seangheng Cheng is a laborer who receives a small salary to support her family. Her husband is a motorcycle taxi driver who earns a small income to support the family. Mrs. Seangheng is requesting a loan of 800,000 Riels to fix up her home. Mrs. Seangheng is the mother of five children, two of whom stay at home while the other three attend the local school.

Veronica Morilla : Philippines

$500 of $650 raised.

Started raising funds on Mar 1, 2010




Veronica Morilla is from the village of Sebasi in Clarin, Misamis Occidental. She is 51 years old. Veronica is married and has 10 school-aged children. To make a living, Veronica provides motorcycle transport services. Veronica has been engaged in her business for over 3 years and earns approximately 10000 PHP a month from these activities.

In 2010, Veronica joined GDMPC to gain access to financial services to help improve her living situation and ability to engage in business activities. Veronica is requesting a loan of 30,000 PHP to pay for registration, franchise and licenses. This will be Veronica’s first loan from GDMPC. She plans to use the additional revenue generated from the business to improve her family’s living conditions.

About GDMPC:

GDMPC is one of the most progressive cooperatives in Mindanao, Philippines. It has four branches and three units offices covering the provinces of Zamboanga del Sur, Lanao del Norte and Misamis Occidental. Its membership is composed mostly of farmers, fisherfolks and small entrepreneurs.

*Note: To maximize efficiency and reduce costs, this loan was posted using a template to automate the translation by Kiva. Given that manual translation of entrepreneur profiles is costly, Kiva created this template for our Field Partner to allow them to continue to post loans in English while providing quality and accurate information to Kiva lenders.

Fred : Uganda

$75 of $400 raised.

Started raising funds on Mar 11, 2010




Fred is a 43-year-old man married to peasant farmer with eight children. He is the family’s income earner and his dream is to have his children go to school up to university level. He owns a house in which his family resides.

Fred has a mobile disco as his business and has been in the business for eighteen years. He started as a tailor then rode a motorcycle for hire. With the help of loans and savings, he bought the disco machines though he dreams of getting modern machines to have an ultra-modern mobile disco.

The purpose of this loan is to buy a generator to enable him easily to operate in areas where there is no electricity.

Suon Kuntha : Cambodia

$550 of $1,100 raised.

Started raising funds on Mar 1, 2010




Suon Kuntha, 37, is a resident of Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia, where she has established a small family home and lives with other family members. She is married to Bun Sokha, 41, and has three school-aged children, who require her financial support. Her husband owns a small truck that he uses to pick up merchandise or garment workers for a profit. In order to earn an income, Suon Kuntha buys clothing in bulk from the factory and from her wholesale supplier and sells it at retail prices in the local public market. Suon Kuntha is taking out her loan to buy a new motorcycle which will allow her children to ride to school.

Tusitukirewamu Nanziga Group, Mpigi : Uganda

$0 of $2,150 raised.

Started raising funds on Mar 11, 2010




Nalumu Winnie is a hardworking and devoted woman, 41 years old, who is married with six children aged 22 to 7 years. She also takes care of three dependents.

Winnie is a business lady who has been involved in the sale of fuel (gasoline) from Nanziga for nine years and from which she is able to make 50,000/= as profits each week. Her customers are the boda boda (motorcycle transport) riders in Nanziga where there is no major gas station. Hence, she has ready customers in addition to her good customer care skills which has enabled her to succeed.

Winnie needs a loan to be able to buy more gasoline in jerry cans to sell since having more gasoline in stock enables her to save on transport costs. Winnie appears in the small photo as well as in the big photo.

Kodjo Djikpo : Togo

$675 of $1,200 raised.

Started raising funds on Feb 26, 2010




Born in 1969 in the district of Gapé, Mr. Kodjo DJIKPO is a very dynamic and entrepreneurial man. He is married and has two children. Despite his numerous efforts to escape his financially dependent state, he is unable to do so. Because his activities are no longer generating any income and in order to make ends meet, he has started running a motorcycle taxi business. At present the motorcycle he is using is too old, and he is applying for a loan to buy a new motorcycle. This will allow him to increase his income and his family’s living conditions.

Translated from French by Alison Le Bras, Kiva Volunteer

Benito Arbonida : Philippines

$0 of $450 raised.

Started raising funds on Mar 11, 2010




Mr. Benito Arbonida is from the village of Locus, Sapang Dalaga, Misamis Occidental. He is 46 years old. He is a farmer and a Barangay Kagawad (an elected government official) in the local community. His income of 9,000 per month comes primarily from his barangay honorarium (payment for government duties) and from his agriculture business. Benito is requesting a loan of 20,000 PHP which will be used to pay for his motorcycle.

About PMPC:

Paglaum Multi-Purpose Cooperative (PMPC) is one of the most progressive cooperatives in northwestern Mindanao. It reaches out to the rural poor using the Grameen model.

*Note: To maximize efficiency and reduce costs, this loan was posted using a template to automate the translation by Kiva. Given that manual translation of entrepreneur profiles is costly, Kiva created this template for our Field Partner to allow them to continue to post loans in English while providing quality and accurate information to Kiva lenders.

Hâm Sopheavy : Cambodia

$400 of $700 raised.

Started raising funds on Mar 1, 2010




Mrs. Sopheavy, 41, has established a medium-sized stone house, where she lives with other family members. It is located in Phnom Penh, the capital city of Cambodia. She currently stays at home to either care for the kids or to do housework.

Sopheavy is a widow and the mother of three teenage children, two of whom are learning in school and the other one is employed. The entire family is dependent on Sopheavy’s daughter, who is an employee in the Casino Club, earning $250 per month.

Sopheavy’s daughter always finds it hard commuting to work because she doesn’t have a vehicle. Because of this, Sopheavy is asking for a loan to be used to purchase a motorcycle, which will allow her daughter to drive to work.

Chanthorn Chhoun : Cambodia

$0 of $1,000 raised.

Started raising funds on Mar 12, 2010




Mrs. Chanthorn Chhoun (pictured here), 50, and her husband, Mr. Ny Chhum, 57, have been married since 1979 and have eight children: four sons and four daughters. One of the children is married and lives outside the family home, two are garment factory workers, four attend school and one is still young. The family lives in a small village along National Road Number Five about 20 kilometers from Phnom Penh City.

Chanthorn and her husband are rice farmers. Besides farming, Chanthorn also sells porridge in front of her house and her husband is a wooden house builder.

Chanthorn is requesting her first loan in the amount of US$1,000. She will use $400 to purchase a water pumping machine and $600 of the loan to buy a motorcycle for commuting.

Francisco Manuel Muñiz Acuña : Nicaragua

$125 of $1,175 raised.

Started raising funds on Feb 26, 2010




Manuel is a dedicated 26 year old young man who lives with his mother. With his mother’s support, who used to sell in a Masaya market; and help from his uncles, he managed to complete his studies and graduate as an attorney. He currently works as an account manager for a company. He did not have his father’s support, who immigrated to the United States, so this is why he is very happy for having reached his goal with the help of his loved ones. He made improvements to his mother’s home with his savings, and now he would like a loan in order to build a lockable storage area to store a motorcycle that he uses daily. He needs to buy solder, metal bars, paint, sand, cement and flooring. He plans to continue his studies in order to have better job opportunities in the future.

Translated from Spanish by Hugo Reyes, Kiva Volunteer

El Eden Group : Peru

$1,250 of $1,475 raised.

Started raising funds on Feb 26, 2010




The Communal Bank “El Eden” consists of nine members who are beginning their sixth loan cycle. They are all hard workers who look for any opportunity to get ahead. Already, through their daily efforts, the members have been able to provide a better future for their children. They engage in different businesses selling vegetables, groceries, prepared foods, and candy. Others provide services such as motorcycle transport and tailoring.

Juana is the group president. She has been selling vegetables and spices at the market for a number of years. She is married and has two children, which is why she has to work. Her main objective is to improve her financial situation. Her loan will be used to buy products to help increase her earnings.

As the group treasurer, Juan has demonstrated responsibility within the Communal Bank and also with his family. He has worked as an electrician for 15 years, and his business helps to pay for his household expenses. At the moment, his business income is not enough. Since the school year has started, he and his wife have opened a bookstore to help improve their finances at home.

Candelaria is a group member who has been selling candy at home for the past year. This type of work is well-suited for someone who is a bit older. She also has the help of her four dependent children. They are proud of the fact that their work has helped them to move forward.

The members are grateful for this loan and promise to complete their payments on time.

Translated from Spanish by Ronan Reodica, Kiva Volunteer

S N Jose Group : Bolivia

$325 of $4,075 raised.

Started raising funds on Mar 2, 2010




The Communal Bank “S.N. Jose” is led by Sra. Virginia and consists of 15 members (13 women and 2 men) who live in the same area.

Sr. Hugo is the father of three school-age children. He works as a mechanic and helps his wife at night with selling soft drinks and milanesas (breaded meats) from the corner of their house. His oldest son is 15 years old and in charge of looking after his younger siblings while he and his wife are running their business. Don Hugo is a man who has made many sacrifices. He is currently saving so that he can have a more comfortable home and provide his family with a better place to live. For this reason, he continues to work so that he can fulfill his greatest dreams of seeing his children become professionals and providing them with a decent and comfortable home.

The rest of the members are engaged in different business activities involving public transportation, roasted chicken sales, motorcycle taxis, soft drink sales, clothing, bread, empanadas, shoes, and housekeeping services. The competition that exists among their businesses is not as difficult since each member’s business is well segmented and has its own distribution channels for selling and offering products. Their businesses are situated in strategic locations. The members who sell cosmetics have steadily built up their clientele and have been working for many years with their products.

This loan will be designated for investment in their various works. Some members are starting new businesses. Others are changing out their inventory based on the season and the market conditions of supply and demand. Most of the members only heard about the availability of these loans through their group, so they are taking a training course in which they are instructed in how credit works and the expectations the Institution has for each of its members. Some members are very knowledgeable already since this is an experienced group that has worked previously with another institution.

Translated from Spanish by Ronan Reodica, Kiva Volunteer

Poa Pay : Cambodia

$125 of $500 raised.

Started raising funds on Mar 4, 2010




A lot of Cambodian people earn a living by driving a motorcycle taxi. One of those citizens, Mr. Poa Pay, is a motorcycle taxi driver and is able to earn a salary of $5 a day. He uses this income to support all his family expenses such as meals, his child’s clothing, medical bills, and his child’s school fees. In order to help him, his wife works sewing clothes in industry and earns a specific salary.

Recently Poa Pay is hardly finding passengers because his motorcycle taxi is too old and not attractive. To solve this problem, he decided to pursue a loan to be used to replace his old motorcycle taxi. From this he is hopeful that he will able to increase his number of customers and his income.

29 De Enero Group : Bolivia

$1,925 of $3,100 raised.

Started raising funds on Mar 6, 2010




The Communal Bank “29 de Enero” (January 29th) is led by Sra. Dioselina and consists of 14 members (3 men and 11 women) who are mutually supportive of one another.

Sra. Fátima is married and has three school-age children. The oldest is in high school, while the other two are in elementary school. Sra. Fátima manages a small neighborhood grocery store located inside of her home. She sells products such as oil, sodas, and canned goods and hopes to expand her business by adding more products. For this reason she is requesting a loan. In the future, she hopes to enlarge her house and make a few repairs. She also wants to provide her children with a good future by paying for a good education and having a comfortable home where they can develop in all of their activities.

The other members of this Communal Bank have businesses involving cosmetics, food, groceries, fine jewelry, beauty salons, motorcycle taxis, and housekeeping services. Competition is high in the commercial sector, but the members know what it takes to succeed in their businesses by turning over their merchandise or establishing their businesses at the regional markets or neighborhood fairs where they can obtain the most loyal customers who are in need of their products. This loan will be used to expand their businesses by purchasing merchandise, equipment, and supplies. They will also provide more comfortable conditions for their customers. Most of the members are new to the group, but they have plenty of experience working with solidarity group loans at other institutions. They are satisfied with the objectives they have to achieve with Fundación Agrocapital and so far have demonstrated teamwork in each of their previous meetings.

Translated from Spanish by Ronan Reodica, Kiva Volunteer

Shin Ning : Cambodia

$100 of $1,200 raised.

Started raising funds on Mar 9, 2010




Mr. Shin Ning is a 37-year-old military policeman. In addition, he also leaves home with his old motorcycle that he uses to deliver fresh fish to sell retail at the client’s house. This operation has the main point of making more income in order to help him be responsible for his family.

Shin Ning is a widower and has six school-aged kids who are dependent on his income. Recently Shin Ning faced the fact that his existing motorcycle often has broken down during the delivery. Because of this problem happening, he is looking for a $1,200 loan from Kiva’s partner, HKL. He will use his loan to replace his old motorcycle.

Sophat Hor : Cambodia

$275 of $600 raised.

Started raising funds on Mar 9, 2010




Mr. Sophat Hor has been a wooden house builder for almost three years. He operates the business in other provinces far away from his house. Sophat is requesting his first loan of $600 to purchase a motorcycle for commuting.

Sophat, age 38, and his wife, Mrs. Savun Yeun, 38, have been married since 1995 and have five children: four sons and one daughter. One of the children is in high school, two others are in primary school and another one stays at home. Mrs. Savun Yeun has been selling groceries for almost ten years. The family lives on an island in the Mekong River about 15 kilometers from Phnom Penh.

Sophat is not in the photo; his wife was available instead.

Lider Flores Pezo De Pinedo : Peru

$50 of $900 raised.

Started raising funds on Mar 11, 2010




Sra. Líder is a member of the Communal Bank “Mujeres para el Futuro II” (Women for the Future II), which is in the District of Tarapoto in the Province and Department of San Martín. She is 55 years old, in a common law marriage, and has eight children who are all independent.

Her enterprising nature and desire to move forward led to her start her own business selling “juanes” (a mixture of rice, yucca, and meat that is steamed in a banana leaf). Her vending location is at the corner of the main city street, an area that experiences considerable traffic. Motorcycle taxi drivers, residents, neighbors, friends from the area, and other individuals make up her primary customer base. She is gradually become well-known and admits that she is doing very well in her business.

Líder continues selling “juanes” every morning. She has been working in this particular business for several years and feels happy about what she has accomplished. With her loan of 2500 PEN, she will buy ingredients for food preparation such as rice, chicken, crates of eggs, liters of oil, as well as cooking utensils so that she can provide better service to her customers.

Líder feels very strongly about continuing her work and thanks Manuela Ramos for contributing to the fulfillment of her dreams and goals.

Translated from Spanish by Ronan Reodica, Kiva Volunteer

Eustaquio : Bolivia

$50 of $700 raised.

Started raising funds on Mar 1, 2010




Mr. Eustaquio lives in the town of El Torno. He is married and has four school-age children. He is a moto-taxi driver and his wife sells refreshments in the central market; together they support their four children. They own a home in the Naciones Unidas neighborhood which they were able to buy though much hard work.

Mr. Eustaquio is a responsible and hardworking person. With the loan he will maintain his motorcycle which has recently begun to have some problems that prevent him from working as he normally would. He is very grateful to Emprender and Kiva for the trust and support given through this loan.

Translated from Spanish by Isabel French, Kiva Volunteer

Tit Dara : Cambodia

$625 of $1,200 raised.

Started raising funds on Mar 9, 2010




Mrs. Tit Dara owns and operates a small store to sell café to her neighbors who live in the village. She is age 51, a married woman, and the good mother of six children. Tit Dara was married many years ago to Sokha, age 50, who is a motorcycle taxi driver. Two of her children are married and have already started new homes, and the remaining four are single. To help with the responsibilities of the family, two daughters work sewing clothes in a garment factory. She is a low-income citizen living in the best territory of Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia.

Tit Dara’s café shop is too small and limits her clients. She would like to seek a loan on Kiva through HKL’s project. She will be using her loan to help upgrade to a larger shop. The rest of the loan will be used to buy accessories for her café enterprise.

Martha Iris Campos Centeno : Nicaragua

$550 of $725 raised.

Started raising funds on Mar 1, 2010




Sra. Martha Iris Campos has a store in her home, located in the old town of Tonalá. She will use her loan to buy merchandise to restock her business such as rice, beans, sugar, oil, bread, undergarments, metal sheeting, and other products. Martha started her business by selling candy from her home. Today she has a large store that generates a daily household income.

This is her third loan with the Institution and she has completed all of her previous payments in a timely manner. Martha says she is grateful for the loans CEPRODEL has provided because they have enabled her to restock her business, improve her home, and open a mini hardware store and motorcycle parts shop. As a result, she has more income to develop both her family and her businesses.

Translated from Spanish by Ronan Reodica, Kiva Volunteer

Gloria Requintina : Philippines

$50 of $450 raised.

Started raising funds on Mar 10, 2010




Gloria Requintina is one of the very good members of ASHI in San Jose, a province of Antique. She was able to purchase a tricycle (motorcycle with sidecar) for her husband to manage and earn his daily income. The vehicle is for hire and is one of the common means of transporting people around the town and around the province. Just like with other unemployed men in town, this has become the main business of Gloria’s husband. It is the main source of income for Gloria’s family to support their needs, especially the education of her only 14-year-old child who is presently in high school.

Because the motorcycle needs to be maintained (the strength of its engine is already depreciating after it was bought several years ago), Gloria is requesting a loan from Kiva through ASHI to be spent for reconditioning the motorcycle as well as its sidecar to be able to attract more passengers. This means that some spare parts have to be changed and the engine has to be cleaned.

©2010 Suzuki Burgman Scooter Riders - 'Lovers of Fun'. All Rights Reserved.

A Keizer man was transported to Salem Hospital after he was struck by an SUV while riding his scooter.

Malcolm Gilbert Clarkson, 84, was southbound on Windsor Island Road when he was hit by a 2003 Ford Explorer. Clarkson was driving a 2005 Honda scooter.

A witness at the scene stated the driver of the Explorer, later confirmed as Anna Marie Klossen, 42, also of Keizer, made a left turn directly into Clarkson’s path.

As of Wednesday, Keizer Police Department was still investigating the case. No citations were issued.

Clarkson was later transferred to Legacy Emmanuel Hospital in Portland.

I was more impressed by the fact that Mr. Clarkson was out riding his Honda scooter. I can only hope that when I’m 84 that I’ll still be riding.

Granted at 84 my reaction times will be a bit slower but I’ll compensate for that by being sprayed in DayGlo yellow from head to toe with a flashing red strobe light on top of my head.

I hope Mr. Clarkson isn’t injured too badly and can look forward to riding his scooter again, soon.

Curious, I wonder who the oldest Suzuki Burgman rider is? Anyone know?

©2010 Suzuki Burgman Scooter Riders - 'Lovers of Fun'. All Rights Reserved.

©2010 Suzuki Burgman Scooter Riders - 'Lovers of Fun'. All Rights Reserved.