3c hapter - Index of

82 Locavesting
whom traditional fi nancing is out of reach. Unlike the big banks,
they don’t have rigid formulas, but take a high- touch approach
to fi nancing. And because their business models are built around
a mission to help underserved populations, they have more fl exibility
than banks to make riskier loans. With traditional community
banking on the endangered list, CDFIs will play an even more
critical role.
“I had been turned down by every bank, but no one ever came
to see me,” recalls Ramsey. “They just looked at my package and
said they’d get back to me, and then I’d get a letter declining the
loan.” Her experience at TRF was different. She met with her loan
offi cer face to face. “They could see my passion and commitment,
and they took a chance,” she says.
This fall, Ramsey plans to open a day- care center in the heart
of Philadelphia that will put to use all she has learned in her eight
years running a center for a national chain—her way of “bringing
it back to the community.” The center will serve children aged
six weeks to six years, with fi nancial assistance for lower income
attendees. It will also offer training for teachers and parents to
help them better understand children and manage stress. She
plans to call it Kimberly Academy. And once again, TRF is backing
her. “I really thank God for them,” she says.
Helping Entrepreneurs “Buy the Pond”
Small business lending can be tricky, time consuming, and ineffi
cient, so many CDFIs shy away from it. TRF, for example, has
decided it is more effective focusing on a few areas, such as education,
grocery stores, and housing. For others, such as Accion
Texas- Louisiana, small business is their sole mission. Accion Texas-
Louisiana, a member of the Accion International network, is the
largest microfi nance lender in the United States.
Since it was established in 1994, the organization has made more
than 10,000 small business loans to more than 4,500 borrowers in
Texas and Louisiana who were unable to obtain fi nancing from traditional
sources. Most of the loans are small—the average is $7,900,
although they can reach $100,000—and have helped entrepreneurs