Serving a Distressed Population in Colombia Since 1996, approximately 25,000 families each year have been forced to leave their land and livelihood in the countryside and flee to Colombia's urban areas for safety. With the guerillas, para-militarists and narco-traffickers vying for control, Colombia has the highest murder and kidnap rate in the world. Families that previously earned their living from the land are deprived of their livelihood when they flee to safety in urban areas. They are not deprived, however, of their skills or willingness to work. With a small loan from The Colombia Project, coupled with mentoring by an effective Colombian grassroots organization, these families can start to rebuild their lives. The Colombia Project does not charge interest on loans, but the local non-profit has the option of charging a small amount of interest to cover costs associated with mentoring the projects and administering the loans. Some loans are repaid within one year and all repaid funds remain in the local community. To help strengthen those non-profits that truly are working effectively with the disadvantaged communities, 50% of the repaid loans are allocated to the mentoring non-profit and 50% is recycled as new loans within the community. In 2004, The Colombia Project expanded to include a second region in Colombia, partnering with FUNDEHUMAC in the Magdalena as well as Organizacion para el Desarrollo Regional Integrado (ODRI) in Popayan. As funding allows and as suitable partners are identified, the program will be extended to additional areas of Colombia. Using the efficiencies of the web, administrative costs for the US operations is kept to a minimum. All communication is by e-mail and even the translators are virtual volunteers. Funds are generated through fundraising efforts in Miami and through campaigns to solicit individual donations, primarily from Colombian Americans and returned Peace Corps Volunteers. The Colombia Project is grateful to Coral Gables Congregational Church for a seed money grant in 2001 which facilitated a partnership with ODRI. Ongoing support from Returned Peace Corps Volunteers of South Florida as well as Friends of Colombia has helped the program to steadily grow and expand. At the end of 2005, the method of loan request and loan disbursement was changed to a twice yearly cycle, with funds disbursed to a slate of projects in June and December rather than disbursed throughout the year to individual requestors. 97% of funds donated in the United States are loaned to a disadvantaged family in Colombia. The local non-profit is compensated through the repayment process. Unless anonymity is requested, donations are posted on the website along with a description of the supported project and progress reports. This provides for transparency in that US donors as well as Colombian loan recipients can see how donated funds are disbursed. Through the umbrella of the Returned Peace Corps Volunteers of South Florida, Inc, The Colombia Project is a 501(c)3 organization, making all donations tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.