Something of One’s Own
Marisol lives in a rural community high in the mountains of southern Honduras. She’s 36 years old and has four children, ages 18, 13, 10, and 4. She has always had culinary talents and, in 2012, decided to take out her first loan of L.1,500 ($62). She invested this money in buying materials to make snacks including nacatamales (steamed meat and vegetable pasties), hojuelas (fried dough patties), enchiladas, tamales and pastelitos (mini pies). She tours her spread-out community on foot and sells her products to neighbors. Sometimes, her three older children help her by going out to make the sales and always come home with empty hands and full pockets. Her husband grows all of the ingredients that she uses except for the oil and seasonings, making this a collaborative family business. “We all work hard,”Marisol remarks.
This year, Marisol ventured to borrow a L.10,000 ($416) Home Improvement loan. She and her family had long rented a small place and wanted more than anything to have their own home. With this loan, Marisol and her husband were able to construct a house, and she says, “I feel happy, very happy because it feels good to have your own home. It’s not the same to rent someplace else as to have something of your own. We feel very happy.” The house is almost finished, only lacking doors and a proper kitchen. Marisol cooks in an outside area while she waits for the kitchen to be completed. She adds, “We’re also thinking about improving the house later on — making it better, nicer. That’s our dream.”
The monthly financial education and business training has been important for Marisol. She remarks, “My group members and I like the trainings because our credit officer teaches us many things we don’t know. I’ve learned how to manage money, how we can progress, and how to have a business and manage it well.”
“Honestly, I feel great to be running my business because the loans from Adelante Foundation have helped us a lot, because that’s how we can do more and grow more.” If she were to meet another woman who was considering joining her Solidarity Group, she says, “I would give her the advice that it’s good to be with Adelante Foundation, and that there are good options for every woman in the group. I’d tell her that she can also realize her dreams.”
