Tonight I had dinner at a small family restaurant in Montero. The mother of the family is a CISNE loan recipient, and Papacho and I ventured to taste the food and take some photos. While waiting for the food, I spoke with the father, who happens to attend the same church as the Sanchez family. He told me about how when he was 20 years old, he served a mission for the LDS church in La Paz. During the last few weeks of his mission, the authorities of his church told him to go to Santa Cruz, an area outside of the boundaries of his mission. Confused but willing to fulfill the unusual request, he traveled the distance to Santa Cruz. On his first Sunday at church, he turned around from a conversation to find his father smiling at him. He had been raised by his mother and an abusive stepfather, and had never known his real father until this day in Santa Cruz. The man then introduced me to his father sitting near the door of the house. Now, all the family lives here in Montero. As I approach my last week here in Montero, I remain touched at the individual histories of everyone that CISNE impacts.

Late into the evening, Sonia, Irma, and I traveled to a nearby school to help two CISNE women clean a school. The women are the same that I blogged about on March 12. Since the micro accident, the mother has been unable to help her daughter clean the school, forcing them stay well into the night to finish the cleaning job. We spent the evening sweeping classrooms, courtyards, and picking up trash around the school grounds. After a quick lemonade and chat with several friends, we left at sundown feeling tired and refreshed.

March 12

Each loan recipient group has a different day for a meeting. Last night was the meeting for group 5, and around nine women appeared throughout the evening to exchange contact information and collect money for a cooperative. Before the meeting started, one woman talked passionately about the importance of her work. She indicated that the past few months have been difficult for her business, but she knows that things will improve. “A lot of businesses have fallen here in Montero in the past years. There used to be a lot more. Now, what can the people do? They can have an independent business.” The woman paid part of her loan and left for Santa Cruz to continue working for the day.

March 10

Irma and I ventured to a nearby neighborhood this afternoon to visit four women from Group 4. The goals were to inquire of the business, set payment dates, and record the location of the houses on a map. Towards the end of the visits, we arrived at the house of a mother and daughter. A relative informed us that they were working at a nearby school, and gave us directions. We arrived in the midst of a school break and small hands filled with coins flooded the two vending tables of the mother and daughter. Irma and I quickly greeted the two and stood back to watch the women at work. Later, we learned that the mother had recently been in an accident. Although her right arm was completely bruised and she complained of pain, she picked up her granddaughter and poured us glasses of lemonade.

March 9th

The sun in Montero is hot! Sonia and I waited until the 39C heat abated in the evening to venture to the houses around Montero. We primarily visited members of the first group of loan recipients. Currently, CISNE oversees five groups of loan recipients. As the numbers grew, CISNE learned quickly what elements are needed to ensure success of the loan repayments. The first groups are still trying to repay the loans, while the newer groups are quickly repaying in order to take out a second loan. Sonia informed me that one of the essential elements in the newer groups is to search for candidates that are already have a small business. In the educational side of the loan, newer groups receive a more comprehensive course on business essentials. Unfortunately, many of the loan recipients experience health problems and no matter their dedication to the payments, they often need more time to repay the loan. Sonia and I spent the night listening to several of these women, doing our best to provide both motivation and guidance.

March 8th

CISNE makes sure to involve multiple parties in the community. I spent a morning visiting the Mother’s kitchen, a cooperative effort to improve nutrition of a local daycare. In the above picture, Erwin Sanchez is asking the children if they are enjoying the meal. Erwin, Sonia’s husband and partnering director CISNE is also a respected employee of CRE, the partnering institution in the cooperative. As a part of the project, CISNE helps fund some of the cooking materials and CRE provides the soy. Given that 1 kilogram of soy is equivalent to 2 kilograms of meat, the project is doing much to improve overall nutrition. On my visit, the children received a three course meal, cookies included. I especially enjoyed the soy-banana refresco.

March 5th

Tonight, I spent time filming a woman in the nearby neighborhood of Warnes. For the purpose of this blog, I will call her Maria. Maria used her loan to buy a sewing machine and now she works as a seamstress, repairing clothes and making orders. I visited her business in order to interview her about her business and how SWAN-CISNE has helped her life. I arrived as dusk approached to find Maria looking comfortable behind the sewing machine, finishing an order for a waiting client. Despite my weak Spanish, we talked comfortably throughout the interview. She spoke of new found independence and busy days. Maria is one of CISNE’s newer loan recipients and has faithfully completed each payment on time. I also spoke with her father and daughter, learning much about how the business is helping her family. After I finished filming, I sat down to enjoy some Mate and bread with the family and neighbors. I left at sundown, making a mental goal to meet more people like Maria.