2013 was an inspiring year. In this blog series, the 12 Days of Opportunity, we are celebrating the accomplishments made possible by our caring and generous community of partners and supporters. Because of you, our clients are working their way out of poverty, strengthening their families and building vibrant communities in 22 countries around the world. 

Every year, Opportunity International is extremely thankful for the generous donors who take their support a step further by turning themselves into fundraisers. These dedicated individuals have made a difference by letting Opportunity share in something important to them. While running marathons, volunteering abroad, pledging birthdays and celebrating weddings (just to name a few), they created fundraising pages on opportunity.org to help raise money and spread the word about Opportunity International's transformational work.

Here is just a glimpse into our 2013 community of fundraisers. 

Birthday Superstars:

• This year, Anne Borrow's birthday wish was to celebrate the 40 fortunate years of her life by paying it forward. Her birthday fundraiser empowered women across the developing world to develop new roles as income earners and community leaders.
• Opportunity's own Allison Kooser raised almost $6,000 for her 25th birthday to help send 25 children to school for a full year through our Education Finance program. 

Socially Conscious Wedding Registries:

• Erin and Michael share the belief that small-scale entrepreneurs can be big change agents in overcoming global poverty. They wanted to build a marriage based upon the same principles of faith, love, dedication & compassion that underlie Opportunity International's mission so they added their Opportunity International Fundraiser to their wedding registry. Congrats to Michael and Erin!  

Just Because: 

• The Democratic Republic of Congo is an important place to Mary Hoyt and her husband - it's where their son was born. This past summer they raised over $1,000 through their "More Than Enough" fundraiser supporting our operations in the DRC. 

Getting Started Early: 

• Caroline Berezin raised almost $2,000 for Opportunity's work with women in honor of her Bat Mitzvah because she believes that women worldwide show inspiring resilience and determination to break out of the cycle of poverty. 
• Inspired by his parents who are long time Opportunity International supporters and Governors, Cody decided to give up gifts for his 5th birthday in order to support Opportunity's Invest in One Family program. 

As you can see, a fundraiser is a fun, easy and effective way to show your passion and grow support within your community.

Feeling inspired? Visit opportunity.org/fundraiser to get started.