Climb a Mountain, Get Muddy: YAO’s Adventures on OptINnow

Brandon Green (seated front right) and his friends raised $200 a few weeks ago to help fund the loan of client Donasian on OptINnow.

Escape to Bear Mountain, N.Y.

YAO-NY member Brandon Green, an investment banker, was looking for a way to get out of the city. So he decided to start a “YAO Adventure Club of sorts,” and brought a group of ten people up to hike on Bear Mountain, N.Y. a few weekends ago.

“Everyone chipped in for the rental car,” he says, “and we donated those proceeds to help fund client Donasian Mbiry‘s loan in Tanzania through our YAO Adventure Club group on OptINnow. We got some cool pictures of us all at the top too (see picture at right).”

Thanks to the $200 Brandon and the group raised, Donasian’s $700 loan has now been funded to $325. 

Getting Muddy in L.A.

On Saturday, August 21, Alison Oviedo battled the mud field at the LA Mud Run in Pasadena with fellow YAO-LA leaders Kristina Olinger, Bianca Javier and Mandy Cheung.  

Dressed in a beach theme for the LA Mud Run on Aug. 21, YAO-LA members had a blast getting muddy. "I may have taken the costume a little bit too far!" laughed Alison (pictured far right).

“We ran this 5K,” says Alison, ”because it sounded like a lot of fun and we thought it would be a great way to bring people together while raising funds for Opportunity’s work in Tanzania. The five of us had a great time running through the mud and obstacle courses, and we’re hoping to make it an annual event. We plan to get even more creative with our costumes next year–we went with a beach theme this time!” 

The mud runners have raised a total of $845 so far for Tanzanian entrepreneurs, and you can still donate to Mandy’s fundraiser, Mud Run for a Bright Future, on OptINnow.    

So, are you as adventurous as these http://www.opportunity.org/young-ambassadors-for-opportunity/YAO[/intlink] members? Go to OptINnow, where you can create your own fundraiser, and let your adventures fund the loans of entrepreneurs in the developing world. You can invite your family, friends, co-workers and social network friends to track your progress, donate and share the victory when you reach your goals. Go to optinnow.org/fundraisers now to get started.