A Day in the Life of a Kiva Fellow [VIDEO]

Here is a peek into my daily routine as a Kiva Fellow in Sololá, Guatemala. My schedule usually goes something like this…

8:00AM – Wake-Up

8:15AM – Emails, Updates and Writing for my travel blog

8:45AM – Arrive at ADICLA Office in Sololá, Guatemala

9:00AM – Plan our day of borrower visits, Kiva training and other tasks

10:00AM – Leave office

10:20AM – Morning snack at the central market in Sololá

10:40AM – Begin motorcycle ride into the countryside to visit borrowers

11:30AM – Arrive at first borrower’s home to gather information, take photos and get a participation signature (in this video we filmed a Kiva”Thank You” piece)

12:15PM – Arrive at second borrower’s home (in this video the borrower didn’t arrive, which is a regular occurrence when there are crops to be harvested)

1:30PM – Lunch at one of my favorite spots just outside the town of San Andres. Churrasco, chorizo, black beans, tomato sauce, cheese and a Coca Cola!

2:30PM – Wait at the San Andres ADICLA Office for a borrower group to arrive. Juan Carlos and I exchanged language lessons (Kakchiquel and English).

3:00PM – Group Borrower Meeting

3:45PM – Ride back to Sololá

5:10PM – Upload new borrower profiles

7:00PM – Leave office for the night, change and snack

7:30PM – Get it right. Get it tight.

8:15PM – Grocery shopping

8:45PM – Shower and Dinner

9:30PM – Catch up on emails, writing, Kiva Fellow tasks and travel blog work

That’s my day as a Kiva Fellow!

A Day in the Life of a Kiva Fellow

About the author

garethleonard

Born in Indiana and raised in Upstate New York, Gareth was addicted to basketball and dreamed of growing up to become a famous actor. All that changed when he went away to college and found his passion for business and the stock market. He changed his major from liberal arts to a double major in Finance and Economics, started the Entrepreneur's Club, tended bar three nights a week and joined a start-up college textbook company that rivaled the on-campus store. After graduation, Gareth took on the role of Marketing Director with the textbook business and helped expand the dorm room start-up into a multi-million dollar online textbook marketplace with stores in New York, Utah and California. Six years later, he found himself working non-stop for someone else’s dream and for an organization that he was not passionate about. In 2009, Gareth uprooted everything comfortable in his life and bought a one-way ticket to Buenos Aires, Argentina on a quest to submerge himself in a foreign culture and push personal limitations. Since then, he has lived in Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia, building relationships, learning Spanish and adapting to his surrounding while moonlighting as a marketing consultant.