PJ profiles Kelli Ross
Director of communications
Five Talents International, Vienna, Va.
Five Talents International
Five Talents International was created as a long-term response to the ravages of poverty that debilitate communities in developing countries. We provide access to basic savings and microcredit services built on their trusted community traditions. We provide biblically-based business training to help the poor start small businesses and begin to build their future.
What inspired you to work in the nonprofit world?
I began my career as a daily newspaper reporter, but it was in 2005 during my first trip to Africa that I was introduced to the concept of microenterprise development. That trip has literally changed my life.
Describe an individual who has been helped by your nonprofit.
Thanks to the income from her small food business, Ahok, a single mother living in Lietnhom, Sudan, is now able to send all five of her children to school.
What are your favorite coping strategies for dealing with stress?
Running and pottery.
Name the best movie of all time, and explain why it’s the best.
“Hoosiers.” I grew up in Indiana where basketball, particularly high school basketball, is an integral part of life. And my hometown, Rockville, and my high school were very small – similar to the town of Hickory in the movie. I also love the theme of this movie – the underdog winning, beating the odds, never giving up.
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