FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE MicroLoan Foundation USA to host Taste of Africa Gala at Fenway Park Presented by VOSS Water, featuring the music of Armando Peralta and honoring Whole Planet Foundation® (Boston, MA, November 14, 2013) -- On Friday Dec. 6, 2013, MicroLoan Foundation USA will honor Whole Planet Foundation for their commitment to promoting microfinance and women’s empowerment on the global level, with special emphasis on sub-Saharan Africa. A Taste of Africa, presented by VOSS Water, will be held in the EMC Club at Fenway Park, Boston from 6:30 – 10 p.m., where the World Series trophy will be on display. Musician, singer and songwriter Armando Peralta will perform at the gala, with special guests Joh Cameron, West African percussion grandmaster with his troupe of traditional dancers and a very special a capella guest performance by Boston Music Awards International 2013 Artist of the Year nominee Women of the World. Emcee for the evening is WCVB TV Channel 5 news anchor Pam Cross, and the event will also highlight student presentations of their experiences in Malawi. This annual event highlights the Microloan Foundation’s poverty alleviation efforts in Malawi and Zambia, work supported through grants from Whole Planet Foundation for the past three years. “We are honored to celebrate the amazing work of Whole Planet Foundation”, said Linda Thomson-Clem, Executive Director of the MicroLoan Foundation USA. “With their support, we have been able to provide microfinance services, business education and mentoring to more than 15,000 women in southern Malawi. Their work to alleviate poverty through microcredit and entrepreneurship programs around the world is exemplary, and sets a high bar for others to emulate.” “ Irene (in Malawi) told me her story and how working with the MicroLoan Foundation had changed her life, and the lives of her children,” said Avian Song, a student at Phillips Exeter Academy after her trip to Malawi this summer. “Irene’s dreams for a better future are no different than anyone else’s dreams. Microloans really make a difference and gives Irene and the many women like her hopes and dreams that can come true.” This event is sponsored by: VOSS Water, Envoys, Seventh Generation, Copy Inks and Dsenyo, with additional support from Whole Foods Market® and The Naked Grape. In addition, Whole Planet Foundation supplier partners Alter Eco, Aloha Candles, Bob’s Red Mill, Hain Celestial, Frontier Co-op, Greyston Bakery, Somersault Snack Co., Boulder Brands, Rishi Tea, O.N.E. Coconut Water, Hint, IZZE, Organic India, Acure Organics, Mrs. Meyer’s Clean Day, Popchips, Soapbox Soaps, Nourish Organic, Justin’s, PACT, Sensible Organics, Alaffia, Esperos and Reserveage Organics are supporting the event with in-kind donations. Media interested in learning more about this exclusive celebration, please contact [email protected], or visit our website: microloanfoundationusa.org. About MicroLoan Foundation USA The MicroLoan Foundation (MLF) is an international development organization that reduces poverty and inequality by providing microfinance services to impoverished women living in remote rural areas in sub-Saharan African countries. MicroLoan does this by providing small loans, specialized business training and ongoing personal mentoring support enabling women to start their own small businesses. MicroLoan also facilitates savings and financial planning so women can work their own way out of poverty for the long-term. The organization provides a hand-up not a hand-out in a self-sustainable way. MicroLoan helps women only. Since 2002 it has helped over 170,000 women start small sustainable businesses and had a positive impact on over 850,000 dependents. We work throughout Malawi and Eastern Zambia. MLF facilitates independence rather than dependency, providing women with the opportunities to flourish and capitalize on their own entrepreneurial ambitions. The MicroLoan Foundation USA is part of the larger MicroLoan family. We have offices in the UK and Australia, as well as headquarters in Malawi and Zambia. We employ more than 170 local people in Africa, who work throughout our 26 branch offices helping more than 30,000 marginalized women each year. Learn more and donate online at microloanfoundationusa.org. About Whole Planet Foundation® Founded in 2005, Whole Planet Foundation is a Whole Foods Market foundation that funds poverty alleviation worldwide where the company sources products. The nonprofit’s mission is to empower the poor living in developing-world communities with microcredit and the chance to create or expand a home-based business and lift themselves and their families out of poverty. As of November 2013, Whole Planet Foundation is funding microlending programs through microfinance institution partners in the U.S. and across 57 countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America, supporting more than 1.95 million people with a chance for a better life. To date, the nonprofit has authorized more than $41 million and disbursed $29 million through microlending partners worldwide. Learn more and donate online at wholeplanetfoundation.org.
Posted on: Mon, 25 Nov 2013 17:29:38 +0000
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