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"This experience was meaningful to me not just because I was able to help 12 women. It also restored some of my faith in what I often see as a corrupt or pointless enterprise. When you put a few dollars in a cup for some major charities, there is no feedback, no indication that you did more than pay for the office coffee machine. With Village HopeCore, I know, for example, exactly how the money we raised at our auction was spent - I have found a truly effective means of giving something back to the world."
-- Jake Eakle


Documentary

Jake Eakle, Becca Heitz, and Myles Lawrence-Briggs, then juniors at Sonoma Academy in Santa Rosa, California, travelled to Chogoria, Kenya in 2005. They shot 17 hours of footage during one week with the villagers, and, after a year's work, have completed a fascinating 40-minute documentary about how small, low interest, no collateral loans are changing the face of poverty. The film presents a warm, colorful and intimate look at village life.


VILLAGE HOPECORE: Ending Poverty in Kenya with Small Loans, Training and Trust.

"We got to know the men and women that we helped fund, saw their farms and stores. We conducted interviews with women who told us that they now understood the dangers of AIDS, that they can now provide milk for their children and send them to school. " -Becca Heitz

The film was selected for the Sonoma Valley Film Festival and will be shown on KRCB (PBS) TV. We have shown it to very enthusiastic audiences at high schools and community events and will continue to do so. We've been interviewed on the Pete Wilson show on KGO in San Francisco as well as KRCB and KSVY in Sonoma County.

The documentary is now available on DVD or VHS. We request a $10 donation to help cover our costs if you are able; if not, whatever you can afford is fine - if need be we can send one at no charge. Request a copy at info@villagehopecore.org.

We ask that you view it and pass it on to a teacher, service organization, church group, public access or pbs station, or perhaps a friend or relative in another state or country. You are our distribution.

So far, viewers have passed the video to others throughout California, and to New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Wisconsin, Colorado, Washington, Vietnam, Nepal, Australia, England, France, Sweden, and Kenya! If you can, arrange a showing at your high school or service organization. We may be available for presentations. Contact us!

We welcome your interest and questions about microlending and encourage you to create your own projects to help Village HopeCore.