Jessica grew up in the small rural town of Ottawa, Ohio. With a desire to be in the fashion world, Jessica graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Business at BGSU with a Marketing specialization. Her career lead her to manage large retail businesses as a Senior Buyer for department stores, Kohl's in Milwaukee and Sears in Chicago. With a transfer to San Francisco, she began to work on startup retail business and growing business with digital marketing. Her retail career developed her skills in team development, consumer behavior, and creating strategies for profitable growth. As she looks to the future, Jessica would like to see how this skill set links to the microfinance world in international development. After her first international trip, she really wanted to learn more about new cultures and be able to give back and create a more equitable world. Her travels have taken her throughout Europe, Morocco and South America. In her travels, she found a love for artisan products. With this passion, she created an online business focused on sustainable, fair trade retail called www.wanderkarma.com. She is looking forward to being able to meet the people in Rwanda, and is honored to be part of the Kiva team to help support the effort.