UUFSMA: “2021: There Is Hope in Mexico!”

Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Online Service
“2021: There Is Hope in Mexico!”
Speaker: Ezequiel Mojica Galvan

Sunday, January 24, 2021
10:30 am

Zoom link: https://zoom.us/j/414604040 

Password: 294513

By Joseph Plummer

UUF Secretary

During this Sunday’s UUFSMA online service, guest speaker Ezequiel Mojica Galvan will share the impressive story of Apoyo a Gente Emprendedora, a nonprofit organization that provides micro-financing, a non-traditional source of seed capital for low-income entrepreneurs who have no assets.

Significantly, this is the story of Ezequiel himself, a young, tireless entrepreneur with a vision for seeding businesses in the region’s small rural villages, like the one where he lived as a child not far from San Miguel. And with the election of the new Biden/Harris team in the USA, Ezequiel maintains that there can be much hope in Mexico as well.

Like many of his compatriots, Ezequiel went to the United States as a young worker only to return after a few years and go to work for CASA, an NGO devoted to career development for underprivileged adolescents. During eight years of work there, he developed a vision for his life’s work and soon thereafter received support from two local businessmen for a micro-finance program.

With these benefactors behind him, his mother received a $200 grant to purchase a larger tortilla machine for her small business, an investment that quickly expanded her customer base and revenue — and inaugurated the small-loan pilot program that became Apoyo. Since then, his program has continued to demonstrate that small loans for hard-working people provide not only economic security but also pride and independence for entrepreneurs who would not otherwise be able to support their families. As a result, Apoyo has grown steadily and attracted more seed capital, including annual grants from the San Miguel Community Foundation that have grown from $5,000 in 2005 to $10,000 in its current funding cycle, capital that attracts matching funds from many other community nonprofits, including UUFSMA.

To participate in our online Sunday Service, visit the Fellowship’s website at www.uufsma.org and click on the Zoom Service button displayed on the home page. If requested, enter password: 294513. Sign-in from anywhere Sunday mornings between 10:15-10:25 am CST.

Through grants and awards, UUFSMA donates at least fifty percent of its budget to support nonprofit organizations that provide health, educational, and environmental services for underserved communities in the San Miguel region. Please support this work by clicking on the website home page Donate button. Now more than ever, your support is essential.

Due to the coronavirus, UUFSMA has suspended in-person Sunday services and other gatherings. A growing collection of previous online services can be found on the UUFSMA’s YouTube channel. Go to https://www.youtube.com/ and enter UUFSMA in the search box. The UU Fellowship welcomes people of all ages, races, religions, sexual orientation, and gender identity.