Hot off the Presses...

While the eBay Foundation offices are closed in observance of Veteran's Day, life continues to remind us of the work that we do. This morning, there was a great piece in the San Jose Mercury News about Lenders for Community Development and the stories we heard as part of the eBay Foundation hosted Microenterprise Funder's Group meeting. On Monday and Tuesday, we were joined by Scott Duke Harris, a writer for the San Jose Mercury News. When Scott entered the room, the image of a Clark Kent-like journalist (complete with very stylish glasses) entered my mind. Scott graciously listened to the clients as they proudly shared their stories about their path to economic independence. He also took the time to understand the historical perspective of the microenterprise movement by speaking with many of those who have been involved with the microenterprise development field for over a decade such as Elaine Edgecomb of the Aspen Institute and Bob Friedman of the Friedman Family Foundation. I can't but be thrilled by the resulting article that you can read via the below link. How great that a wide audience can learn more about LCD's important work and the success stories of clients like Robin, Nestor, Georgette and Sandra, who generously share about their life experiences so others can be inspired. What a great way to start the weekend!

San Jose Mercury News Article on the Microenterprise Funders Meeting

Meet an eBay Foundation Techquity Recipient...

This is Freddy pictured on the right. Freddy, owner of Borges Fine Arts, used his Techquity grant to purchase a digital camera to take photos of his work and post better quality images on his website.

Hard to imagine that the images on his site can get any more beautiful. See for yourself, the vases, dishes and other great finds at Freddy's site http://www.borgesfinearts.com/ are absolutely amazing!

Somer Gardiner, pictured on the left, is the owner of Soul Spun Yarn and Art. Somer used her eBay Foundation Techquity grant to acquire the EffortlessE.com POS system, Broderbund Print Shop 21 Pro, Microsoft Works 8.0 and a Monitor. Somer says she has seen a 33% increase in business revenue and a 10% increase in customers since acquiring her new technology products. The technology created an opportunity for her to grow her business on the internet. Somer now has the capability to broadcast messages (e.g., coupons, flyers, et al) to customers about sales and other events, resulting in some immediate response from customers. We're thrilled for Somer. Keep up the sales!

P.S. If you are ever in Utah, check out Somer's Store located at 2343 East 3300 South #5, Salt Lake City, UT 84109+1 (801) 746-5094. Or visit the store online at http://www.soulspunyarn.com/