This is Meldred A., 40, resident of Caloocan City, Philippines. She is married to Raul A., a soldier. Meldred is mother of three children, one of whom is already working and settled down with a family, while the other two are in high school. By the grace of God, Meldred has managed to support her children's schooling. At this time, she is working hard to be able to send the younger ones to college. A dream for most Filipino parents, like Meldred, as she herself has been a college undergraduate and believes that a college diploma is the best inheritance parents could leave to their children.

Meldred operates a charcoal and firewood business. Many Filipinos are still using the old ways of firewood and charcoal cooking, which is the cheapest way to cook. Charcoal is sold in PHP 5 bags for easier lighting up. She also sells mineral water in their neighborhood. This is mostly used by nursing mothers and households with children, as normal tap water is already part of a normal adult's life. Her regular customers are her neighbors and the local community. She earns a minimum of PHP 650 in sales every day for her firewood and mineral water refilling businesses.

To help her continue operations of her business, she is requesting a PHP 9, 000 loan. She will be utilizing the loan to buy more quantities of firewood and charcoal to be incorporated into her inventory. She will also be using a portion of the loan to buy mineral water to be retailed to her customers. She expects a boost in her business income as she expands her business.

Meldred dreams to be able to give her all of her children a good and high quality education through all her hard work in her business. She also hopes to have her house renovated by the end of the year.