Paying it forward

Kinship Lending welcomes back alumni with new cohort

Tuba City, Navajo Nation (AZ) - The Change Labs Kinship Lending loan program is welcoming 20 Navajo and Hopi borrowers, including 12 graduates of the Change Labs incubator and two former Kinship Lending borrowers. It’s the highest number of alumni to return to any Change Labs program. The latest cohort of Kinship Lending borrowers will receive $151,444 in loans to strengthen their businesses.

The significance of alumni in Kinship Lending lies in their completion of and knowledge of the business education provided in the incubator, says Swarvoski Little, Loan Officer for Change Labs.

“So, it naturally progresses into our program (Kinship Lending) and we take them to the next level and fund them,” he said.

Two of the alumni were already members of Kinship Lending and their return is special.

“When we talk about loans being paid back and money being revolved for new borrowers, like this whole group that we have right now is all from revolved money, money that’s been paid back,” Little said, adding when borrowers pay back loans, it’s like they are paying it forward for other borrowers to gain experience and opportunities the lending program provides.

In total there are 20 entrepreneurs participating in this round of lending. In order to receive funding, the members must commit to two meetings with a business coach as well as attending learning labs, according to Kristine Laughter, Director of Kinship Lending.

In October, the very first in person learning lab and orientation took place and the new cohort was able to use the new Change Labs E-ship Hub in Tuba City. Since the Kinship Lending Program started in 2020, every cohort has had to meet virtually, so having an in person event was a big deal for the program.

“We were able to introduce the members to our Kinship team,” Laughter said, adding the cohort was able to meet Tim Deel, Business Coach, Jessica Stago, Co-Founder of Change Labs, Marsha Greyeyes, Finance Director, as well as Laughter and Little. Laughter said the big difference of the in person event was networking, which is a big deal, especially for Indigenous entrepreneurs. Not only is it a growing community but the business side of things can look different.

“We make (financial education) Native centric or Indigenous centric,” she said. “We have both Navajo and Hopi members in our cohort so I’m very cognizant of delivering information that is respectful to both tribes.”

Through the content, Laughter is able to relate business teachings back to Indigenous values and that’s what makes the Kinship Lending Program unique.

“We have always had a saving and investment process in our culture. It wasn’t cash, it wasn’t money but it was the resources that we had right at our fingertips,” Laughter said, adding that resources at times could have been corn, sheep, meat from hunting or even materials such as Navajo rugs.

“There are so many ways as Indigenous people that we’ve had our own banking systems. We’ve had these systems for centuries and we’ve survived because of it,” she said. “So I let the people know in our cohort that what we’re doing is really nothing new. It’s just a different concept now.”

Through this program Laughter hopes this new cohort can see a future where getting a business loan is a sign of success.

“I think our people have had so many traumatic experiences with predatory lenders, with people who took advantage of them. And too many times, people are afraid to take a loan out because of these bad experiences, they’re just sitting in the back of their mind,” she said. “But I want people to know, especially in our cohort that with the right planning you can take out loans to grow your business.”

Through the programming, Laughter hopes to break the negative cycle of borrowing.

“We want people to dream big and reach their goals and know that they can reach their goals through having access to all of this capital.”