Local Lenders of Knox County
Local Lenders is a non-profit
microfinance organization that was founded in the spring of 2009 and is
completely staffed by students from Kenyon College and Mount Vernon Nazarene
University (MVNU). The organization was founded for the purpose of supporting
Knox County's sustainable agriculture through providing credit to agricultural
entrepreneurs who are unable to obtain loans from traditional banks to maintain
or start their businesses. As a startup organization, our biggest challenge has
been raising capital for our project. Therefore, we hope this online
fundraising project will help provide us with financial support which will
allow us to overcome our biggest obstacle and achieve our goals.
Any donation to our organization will
be an investment to many residents in Knox County. As Lawrence Lovasik stated,
"A single act of kindness throws out roots in all directions, and the roots
spring up and make new trees." Farmers will be able to invest some of the
loans from Local Lenders to develop hoop houses, local storage, and
distribution facilities. This will help create jobs and develop a
quality brand for Knox County food and farm products which will in turn
generate a ripple of economic expansion in the county.
Local Lenders' goals and objectives
include:
"¢ Providing capital in the form of
small and affordable loans to low and moderate income agricultural
entrepreneurs. These loans will range from $500 to $5000 and will be paid back
with a fixed interest rate of 8%.
"¢ Promoting a local food system
which will provide Knox County's residents with fresh and healthy food, a
secure income, and reduce residents' ecological footprint.
"¢ Working with the Small Business
Development Center of Ohio and CES Credit Union to provide free business
counseling, business workshops and training programs
to borrowers. This will increase our borrowers' knowledge of managing a business as well as the likelihood of success.
"¢ Creating access to
traditional credit for entrepreneurs participating in our program through
improved credit scores upon exit.
"¢ Strengthening the
relationships between local academic institutions and Knox County residents.
"¢ Boosting the overall
economy by empowering the residents of Knox County to create new opportunities
to succeed.
If you want more information about Local Lenders, please visit our website: Local Lenders of Knox County.