Microfinance for Low-Income Entrepreneurs in U.S.

Supporters of LEND,

I am excited to announce that Femke Munting is the new President of LEND! Femke brings to the table a deep passion for economic empowerment and the energy required to lead an organization as dynamic as LEND. In Femke’s own words: “I look forward to working with my tremendous team as we continue expanding LEND’s positive impact in the Evanston community.”

As the outgoing President of LEND, it is bittersweet reflecting on the journey LEND has taken during my tenure. I’ve grown more than I could have ever foreseen and have been amazed by LEND’s trajectory. LEND is one of the few organizations that has the capacity, mission, and people to drive real change in our community. Having interacted with community leaders, government officials, Northwestern administration, students, and local entrepreneurs, this sentiment has been pervasive and is one we should be emboldened by.

Femke will have her hands full, as LEND is as busy as ever this Spring Quarter. We’ll be having our annual Social Impact Symposium on May 16th. Speakers from the Obama Foundation, Google, and more will be attending and speaking to the topic of “How the Public and Private Sectors can Collaborate to Generate Social Good”. Our Alumni Event will be the very next day, May 17th, and will celebrate LEND’s 10 year anniversary.

Look forward in the coming weeks to a deep dive on our most recent loan recipient, Terry Level, who runs an Evanston based cleaning company called “Higher Level Maids”. Terry typifies LEND's ideal client: bold, enterprising, and determined. Running a successful business while also raising three young children, Terry has taught myself and the entire LEND team important business and personal lessons. It is supporting these types of clients and interactions that makes what LEND does special and that makes your contribution invaluable.

Thank you,

Suhaib Khan

LEND has been dedicated to serving the small business owners of Evanston for over a decade now. Our team members are more than happy to set aside many hours during the week to chat with their clients and brainstorm new ways to help grow their business. The support we've received over the past few years has been invaluable and it has allowed us to increase the number of loans. Loans are a very direct way of helping small business owners and we feel lucky to be able to provide small amounts of capital to the very deserving people of Evanston. As you may know, an integral part of our mission is providing assistance to minority and women-owned businesses. LEND members are very passionate about reaching out to overlooked and underserviced members of our community. We feel it is important to acknowledge the economic gaps that exist in an affluent town and work towards making Evanston a more equitable community.

As the winter term begins we are speaking with new clients and strengthening relationships with existing clients. We hope we can continue to count on your support as we expand our impact in the Evanston area. In the coming months, we will be sharing stories of some of our clients and keeping you updated!