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Carol Stream, Illinois 60132

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© 2023 Opportunity Internationala 501(c)3 nonprofit. EIN: 540907624.

News Blog

50 for 50: How financial services and access have changed in the last 50 years

by Opportunity International

When Opportunity International was founded 50 years ago, most of the elements that define modern banking today were brand new ideas. The world’s first ATM was installed in a London suburb in 1967. In the United States, 51% of households had a credit card in 1970; today, 83% do. And in developing economies, financial services and access to markets remained largely unavailable throughout the 1970s and 1980s. Women were nearly completely excluded from the limited financial sector that did exist.…

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Left to Tell - What we're reading this month

by Allison Kooser

Last month we read A Girl is a Body of Water, a fictional exploration of girlhood and folklore in Uganda. This month, we're moving south to the neighboring country of Rwanda to remember a painful and essential moment in world history. Honor the International Day of Reflection on the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, recognized each year on April 7, by reading a powerful memoir that details one woman's experience during the Rwandan genocide. Join us as we read Left to Tell by Immaculée Ilibagiza,…

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50 for 50: 7 Bible Verses to Inspire and Encourage You

by Opportunity International

Many things about Opportunity International have changed since our founding, but one thing has remained unchanged for the last 50 years: the heart behind our work. Our motivation is clear: We respond to Jesus Christ's call to love and serve the poor. We seek to emulate the Good Samaritan, whose compassion crossed ethnic groups and religions. We serve all people regardless of religion, race, ethnicity, or gender. Each year, our philanthropy team chooses a Bible verse to serve as inspiration. The verse…

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50 for 50: Founders Circle Award Winners Ken Vander Weele and Larry Reed

by Opportunity International

On Saturday, February 20, 2021, we presented the first of a series of 50th anniversary awards. The first Founders Circle Awards went to a group of Opportunity International pioneers who helped us innovate our strategies and programs to better serve clients. These awards celebrate the earliest days of initiatives that have come to define Opportunity's work—and we are so excited to go back and remember how these programs began. In 1998, then-Opportunity Network CEO Larry Reed issued a Change or Die…

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50 for 50: Founders Circle Award Winner John Magnay

by Opportunity International

On Saturday, February 20, 2021, we presented the first of a series of 50th anniversary awards. The first Founders Circle Awards went to a group of Opportunity International pioneers who helped us innovate our strategies and programs to better serve clients. These awards celebrate the earliest days of initiatives that have come to define Opportunity's work—and we are so excited to go back and remember how these programs began. In the early 2000s, Opportunity Bank of Malawi noticed a challenge facing…

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50 for 50: Founders Circle Award Winner Richard Leftley

by Opportunity International

On Saturday, February 20, 2021, we presented the first of a series of 50th anniversary awards. The first Founders Circle Awards went to a group of Opportunity International pioneers who helped us innovate our strategies and programs to better serve clients. These awards celebrate the earliest days of initiatives that have come to define Opportunity's work—and we are so excited to go back and remember how these programs began. In 2004, a young Opportunity International employee wrote a white paper…

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50 for 50: Founders Circle Award Winners Susy Cheston, Martha Cray, Jill Dailey Smith, and Linda Vander Weele

by Opportunity International

On Saturday, February 20, 2021, we presented the first of a series of 50th anniversary awards. The first Founders Circle Awards went to a group of Opportunity International pioneers who helped us innovate our strategies and programs to better serve clients. These awards celebrate the earliest days of initiatives that have come to define Opportunity's work—and we are so excited to go back and remember how these programs began. In the early 1990s, a group of Opportunity International donors in the…

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What we know (and don't know) about School Reopening Plans

by Catherine O'Shea

    “When will schools reopen in-person classes?”   “Will parents send children back to school?”  “How will learners catch up after so much lost time?”  “Will all students have a school to return to?”   The questions are known and have been echoed around the world, as countries have wrestled with balancing student and educator safety amidst an ongoing pandemic against the massive risks of learning loss. The answers are more complex, shift on a sometimes daily basis, and…

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50 for 50: Founders Circle Award Winner Chris Crane

by Opportunity International

On Saturday, February 20, 2021, we presented the first of a series of 50th anniversary awards. The first Founders Circle Awards went to a group of Opportunity International pioneers who helped us innovate our strategies and programs to better serve clients. These awards celebrate the earliest days of initiatives that have come to define Opportunity's work—and we are so excited to go back and remember how these programs began. Enjoy the first spotlight on a winner: In 2005 and 2006, then-Opportunity…

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50 for 50: Our History, Chapter 2: David Bussau

by Opportunity International

Opportunity International's story began in 1971 with the vision of Al Whittaker and the relentless entrepreneurial spirit of Carlos Moreno, a small business owner in Colombia. As Al was beginning his work in Latin America and raising support for microloans in Washington DC, another innovative humanitarian leader was exploring similar opportunities on the other side of the world. David Bussau grew up in an Anglican boys' home in Australia and began his own entrepreneurial journey by renting a hot…

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