Friday Night Fireside
Consider living and raising a family on a
per capita income of less than $2 / day. This sets the stage to have
a greater appreciation of our many blessings in this land,
regardless of personal economic circumstances. I give a brief
overview of one answer to poverty; microfinance and how small loans
help to break the cycle of poverty. I have some slides that compares
basic circumstances that poor people face vs. our shallow concern
over having the latest luxuries. (one shot is a women’s toilet – a
hole in the ground, in an LDS church in Kenya and compare that to
how snipping about whether our building is one or two degrees hot or
cold.) Lastly, I conclude with a call to action, that one person can
make a difference. Regardless of whether you have money to donate,
you can begin by caring for others, magnifying our callings, and
giving of your time.
Clair Jenkins is from Redmond, WA., and is
currently board vice chair of Unitus, Inc., a non-profit
microfinance organization also located in Redmond. Clair heads up
the selection committee of Unitus and does extensive travel
throughout the world in third-world countries, donating his time and
resources in serving the poor. He has traveled to Kenya, Mexico,
Pakistan, India, and Indonesia. He also serves on the board of two Unitus partners in Indonesia and the Philippines.
Professionally, Clair was a co-founder and
president of Alerton Technologies, Inc., a technology manufacturing
company in Redmond, WA. Upon selling his company, he and his wife,
Nancy determined to find various causes that help assist the poor
and are also very involved in helping to build up the church. Clair
currently serves on the board of TRM, Inc. of Lakewood, WA. He has
served in a wide variety of church callings including bishop. He
holds a BS in Business Management – Marketing from Brigham Young
University. He and his wife, Nancy are the parents of six children
and grandparents of ten grandchildren