Share this post
Every October 17, the world pauses to reflect on the urgent and unfinished work of eradicating poverty. Today, nearly 700 million people remain trapped in its grinding, dehumanizing cycle.
For many mothers, that cycle plays out in small, daily decisions that carry enormous weight. With limited income and no safety net, she must choose between medicine and school fees, between feeding her children today and saving for the next failed harvest. Her children’s futures narrow before they even begin, with bright, eager minds too often pulled out of classrooms to work or care for siblings.
At Opportunity International Canada, we stand firm on the belief that poverty is not inevitable. It is a problem created by systems and circumstances, and that means it is a problem we can solve.
When that same mother has access to microfinance, training, and support, a new cycle is set in motion — a cycle of opportunity. She can start a business, build savings, keep her children in school, and protect her family when unexpected challenges arise. And when that happens for one family, it ripples outward. Communities grow stronger. Generations rise with greater choices and brighter futures.
It’s that vision which is at the heart of our 2025–2028 strategic plan. Over the next three years, we are committed to walking alongside 7-million people as they move from the margins of poverty toward stability, dignity, and opportunity. It is an ambitious goal but one we believe is possible when we come together. Because when we equip families with the tools they need to thrive, we do more than change individual lives. We change the trajectory of entire communities, creating a future where poverty is no longer the defining story.
The Power of Walking Together
When a donor chooses to invest in opportunity, something profound happens. Lives change on both sides of the equation.
For the families we serve, opportunity means more than income. It means dignity, agency, and the freedom to shape their own future. It means knowing that a single setback such as an illness, a failed crop, a financial shock, will not erase everything they have built.
For those who give, it means becoming part of something bigger than themselves. It means seeing the world through new eyes, understanding overcoming poverty is not an abstract concept, but as a lived reality. It transforms the way we see generosity — beyond charity, to a partnership.
Paul and Stephen’s Journey: From Entrepreneurs to Champions of Opportunity
Paul and Stephen know what it means to build something from the ground up. As brothers and partners in entrepreneurship, they have experienced the risks and rewards of starting small, persevering through challenges, and watching hard work transform into impact. It is that same spirit that drew them to Opportunity International and that continues to inspire their journey nearly two decades later.
Paul’s connection to Opportunity began with a simple act of generosity: an $84 gift in November 2006 through the Make Poverty History campaign. He first heard about Opportunity through founding donor Howard McLean at a Christian based business forum group called Corpath. This was the conversation that opened his eyes to a model of poverty alleviation rooted not in financial charity, but in dignity and empowerment.
“What inspired me about Opportunity was the way it equips and empowers people to build their own future. I remember the thrill of receiving a bank loan for the first business I started. Someone believed in my ability to start and grow a business and it empowered me! It is about more than giving money; it is about investing in someone’s potential,” Paul reflects. Now by giving now we can empower others in developing communities to do the same.
From that first gift, Paul and Stephen’s involvement only deepened. They rallied their company staff to take part in a Day of Opportunity, donating a portion of their wages that Paul and Stephen would match, to help launch small businesses around the world. They went on to raise over $1,000,000 to help schools in the DR access school improvement loans to accommodate children with disabilities. Both Paul and Stephen stepped into leadership, serving on the Opportunity International Canada Board and helping to guide the organization’s mission and growth.
Their commitment has always been about more than their own participation; it is about bringing others along. Over the years, they have engaged friends, family, business associates and employees in the work of OIC, sharing stories of transformation and inviting others to join them in creating lasting change. And now, they are taking that a step further by launching a Trust Group with like-minded friends united by a shared desire to empower families on their journey out of poverty with another $600,000 project in Cartagena Colombia. After two decades of involvement, Stephen says “I am excited to see this through!”
For Paul and Stephen, supporting Opportunity International is not just philanthropy. It reflects who they are and what they believe: that with the right tools and support, anyone can take the first step toward a brighter future. Their story is a testament to how entrepreneurship, whether in business or in giving, has the power to transform lives, including our own.
It is this belief that sits at the heart of the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. It compels us to step beyond awareness into action and see poverty not as someone else’s problem, but as a shared challenge we are all called to solve.
And that is exactly what we intend to do. Over the next three years, we are committed to walking alongside 7-million people on their journey out of poverty. But we cannot do it alone.
Just as Paul and Stephen have shown, lasting change happens when we walk together. Your partnership makes this vision possible. When you give, advocate, share, and engage, you become part of a global movement rewriting the story of poverty to one of opportunity, dignity, and hope.
Join us. Together, we can reach 7-million lives and help ensure that poverty is no longer the defining story for families around the world.