Cross-country trip

Six men of various backgrounds are traveling cross country to fight poverty.

Michael Delorenzo, Tyler Heishman, Keith Kolakowski, Frederick Piumelli, Bryan Stinchfield and James Watson set off on their journey 4 1/2 weeks ago and arrived in El Dorado on Wednesday.

Traveling an average of 70 miles a day, the group totaled 125 miles on Wednesday, stopping in El Dorado to rest and eat.

“We’ve been riding pretty much six days a week,” said Stinchfield.

The men bike for six days and then take one day off, camping with only vital necessities most nights.

The group of newly graduated gentlemen were granted a room free of charge at the Heritage Inn Wednesday night and ate breakfast at Double D’s restaurant on West Central.

“Usually we wake up around 6 a.m. and we’ll have breakfast, ride for 10 or 20 miles then take a break, have some water.”

The group is raising money for a charity and is on a shoe-string budget.

“We’re trying to keep costs as minimal as possible so we carry our sleeping bags, clothes, everything on our bikes,” said Kolakowski. “We pretty much camp most nights.

“Last night was the first night we were actually able to get a donated room.”

“We got in last night at around 11:30 and we saw the lights,” said Delorenzo.

“It was really nice to see some sign of civilization. El Dorado was an oasis,” he said.

“There have been nights where we’ve had to camp out in baseball fields and take showers with hoses.”

Delorenzo said, “We’re riding across the country for micro-finance, a really new and unique form of charity that involves giving small loans to people in poverty in developing countries.”

The group is spreading the word about micro-finance, an idea that’s been around since the 1970s, but most have never heard of it.

It focuses on sustainability and education to provide independence for the poor and poverty stricken.

Micro-finance is a movement that was created to bring forth financial services like credit, savings, insurance and fund transfers to poverty stricken communities.

MicroBikeUSA is in conjunction with ACCION, a micro-lending and micro-finance organization.

The men were introduced to the idea of micro-finance through classes they were attending at college and the group of six decided to form MicroBikeUSA.

Delorenzo explained that the idea of biking across the country started out in casual conversation and manifested into a physical challenge.

“We weren’t sure what charity to ride for at first, then it dawned on us,” said Piumelli. “ACCION’s motto is ‘Helping millions help themselves.’”

Piumelli went on to explain, “What’s really cool is that a loan as small as 50 American dollars can help someone start a business and then go on to support their entire family, and then that loan gets repaid and the loan money gets returned and reused for another family in need.

“It’s a cyclical process.”

“The difference between Micro-finance and the standard charity is that it’s not just a hand out,” said Delorenzo.

“It creates a lifestyle where a person can start a business, but has to pay back the loan. It’s not free money, it allows individuals to get back on their feet.”

Delorenzo went on to explain that micro-finance was started back in the ’70s in Bangladesh by Muhammad Yunus.

Yunus was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006 and is a leading advocate for the world’s poor.

“Dr. Yunus is kind of the face of micro-finance and he’s done an awesome job, he’s kind of a rock-star in that scene,” said Kolakowski.

ACCION was started around the same time in Brazil.

“We’ve raised around $30,000 for them, which we’re really excited about. We’re still trying to raise some more money; our goal is $50,000,” said Delorenzo. “In these poor countries, there aren’t banks, people can’t just go to a bank and have an account or get a loan, we take that for granted here.

“There is a 97 percent repayment rate of the loans for the poor, so they are paid back.”

“Just in the last three years larger banks are getting involved with micro-financing,” said Heishman.

Kolakowski said one of the most exciting parts of the program he’s involved with is the pride and independence that comes with the ability for previously poverty stricken families to support themselves.

“I like the opportunity for the people to receive good credit and money at reasonable rates, and they’re so happy they are anxious to pay back the loans,” said Watson.

“Besides the money, I like the idea of the program offering education and a support system,”” said Stinchfield. “If you were to get a loan you would start out being able to gain some financial literacy and how to run a business, so they’re learning just as much as they are getting out of the opportunity.”

“When we tell people about micro-finance they say well how can we help people in the U.S.?, well there is actually a small company adjunct to ACCION called ACCION US that helps citizens create something more sustainable,” said Piumelli.

“We feel like micro-finance deserves a lot more attention than it gets,” said Delorenzo.

“When we meet people on the street or in gas stations and restaurants, 90 to 95 percent of the people we talk to have never heard of micro-finance and have no idea what it is.

“We think it’s a big thing and people can take the next step to learn more about it and get more involved.”

“We hope to help inspire that, that’s a big reason,” said Heishman.

“This is the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my entire life,” said Kolakowski.

“Physically, mentally and emotionally, waking up every day and riding 60 to 80 miles, yesterday we rode 125 miles, we rode into the night.

“That’s what’s so cool about it. Doing something that is harder than anything I’ve ever done before, that  shows people we really believe in this. We see poverty in the world around us and we don’t think it’s okay and micro-finance is one of the most practical solutions for it.

“When we’re off the bike and rolling into a town late at night, it’s overwhelming the generosity in certain areas,” continued  Kolakowski.

“We all come from Connecticut and New Jersey and wish we could see as much generosity there. Complete strangers wake us up with waffles at six in the morning when we’re on the road. It’s amazing, I think the people we’ve come across have made a huge impact on us.”

The group has planned Pueblo, Colo., as their next destination.

They will then travel on to Cedar City, Utah, and plan to arrive at Lake Tahoe around Aug. 2.
San Francisco, Calif., is the their final destination and the group plans to arrive there on Aug. 7.

More information about MicroBikeUSA and micro-financing is available at www.microbikeusa.com.