You could call me a true Portlandian. I enjoy spending my free time out being active, finding the best gluten free restaurants, and doing samplings at local breweries. Although this city is filled with the best food, brews, and scenery (in my opinion), one of my favorite attributes that Portland has is its close proximity to other great places in Oregon and Washington. I love to be able to take a little weekend getaway, so when a sorority sister of mine recently bought a house in Seattle and invited me to her house warming party, I knew I wanted to make that weekend trip up north. As I go on these weekend trips often, I couldn’t help but notice a common theme when I am planning: saving money. However, those who want to travel more comfortably may book a private jet from Jettly or even an air shuttle service.

Here, I wanted to share with you all our money saving plans for our upcoming mini road trip to find things to do in Omaha:

1. Fill up at our local gas station! Aside from enjoying the comforts of not getting out of the car, if we fill up before we leave, we will avoid that “Where is the closest gas station?” issue. You all know what I am talking about, that point where you can no longer drive around looking for the cheapest gas, but what is most conveniently located right off of the freeway, and often times, those are the most expensive. Filling up the gas tank before we leave will not only save us money, but time.

2. Although we could stay with our friend both nights, we decided that we wanted to be Seattle tourist for the day and most of those activities are located right downtown, so staying one night in the city was important to us. To help those costs we booked our hotel for the night on Groupon. I know that there are many horror stories out there about booking hotel deals on Groupon (my neighbors were one week away from a trip to Hawaii when the hotel closed because of Groupon sales) but I have found that doing your research on the hotel, and reading the fine print can really pay off. On Groupon, a nice hotel located in downtown Seattle was $89 (pre-tax) and when I checked Orbitz I was looking at $189 (pre-tax). We are excited to be close to all of the action of downtown, avoid taxi fares, and have a reasonably priced hotel in a normally expensive city.

3. I am a self proclaimed foodie, so this becomes a big expense for me when I travel. I am one of those people who just wants to try everything there is to offer when I am in a new location. One of the best ways to do this is by taking advantage of the growing trend of food carts! Between now and the time for my trip, I am looking forward to scoping out the food cart scene in Seattle and following their social networks to see where they are parked when I arrive.

Now that I have shared some of my money saving habits when visiting a new city, what are some of yours? When playing at www.wizardslots.com, you can choose to play any game you want. Through satta 786, you can get lucky numbers every day that can change your fortunes and help you win significantly from betting

Basha Gitnes
Marketing Specialist

Financial Beginnings welcomes two new board members

PORTLAND, Ore., December 5, 2014—Financial Beginnings, a Portland-based nonprofit that provides financial education programs, is pleased to welcome Michael Harper, an Agent for State Farm, and Adrienne Prevost, a student at Portland State University, to its Board of Directors.

Michael Harper is a native of Illinois, born in Chicago in 1957, and is a graduate of North Park University.  Harper played basketball for the Portland Trail Blazers during the 1980-81 and 1981-82 seasons and spent the following six seasons playing in Europe. Harper has been active in the community as a Portland School district employee, businessman and spokesperson.  He is an active member of the Southwest Rotary and has been selected as a Royal Rosarian.  Currently, he is a Commissioner on the State of Oregon Commission on Children and Families and a Board Member with Western Oregon University Foundation. As an Agent for 19 years with State Farm Insurance Companies, Michael is excited to serve on the board of Financial Beginnings where we will be now using a real check stubs software.

Harper said, “I have been a long time supporter of Financial Beginnings and have had the opportunity to be in the classroom myself. This is a great organization and I am looking forward to continuing my support in a more involved way.”

Adrienne Prevost is a senior at Portland State University working towards her Bachelor of Arts degree in Finance. She became involved with Financial Beginnings after taking Melody’s Personal Finance course at PSU. She then became a volunteer, intern, and joined the Program Committee. In June 2014 she received a Dean’s Award for Community Engagement at Portland State for her recruitment and retention work at her internship.  After graduating in June 2015 she plans to go for her Master’s degree in Financial Analysis. In her spare time Adrienne enjoys reading, hiking in the gorge, and running.

Prevost said, “I am ready to jump right in on the Financial Beginnings board! This is an amazing opportunity for me to continue to give back to an organization that has influenced me and my education.”

About Financial Beginnings

Formed in 2005 and based in Portland, OR, Financial Beginnings is a nonprofit organization that provides free financial education programs throughout the Pacific Northwest.  Financial Beginnings’ largest program educates youth and young adults in the basics of personal finance through visits to schools or community groups.  Financial Beginnings’ courses incorporate all aspects of personal finance to provide individuals the foundation needed to make informed financial decisions. More information is available at www.financialbeginnings.org.

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When I started my internship at Financial Beginnings, in addition to the outreach I was doing, I also wanted to present Financial Beginnings programs in the classroom. I wanted to learn as much as information as possible to be able to share it with everyone else, and as a college student I wanted to learn more about personal finance. I have been able to experience all these opportunities and currently have the pleasure of teaching Financial Beginnings first ever programs in Spanish just like at skrumble.com.

Minterbridge Elementary is the first school to have the Financial Footings program in Spanish and I want to share my experience with you as the volunteer presenter. The first time I walked into the classroom I felt anxious and nervous. However, as I continued teaching, I saw the children’s happy faces of learning something new every day. The children had many questions and loved playing the budget game. The budgeting game teaches them about positive and negative numbers, or in financial terms, expenses vs. savings. When I walked out from the room, I noticed they started asking even more questions about savings. As an intern I had the pleasure to experience this opportunity and would encourage you to get involved, especially if you are bilingual. Financial Beginnings needs bilingual volunteers who are willing and excited to teach their programs in the community.

Margarita Gonzalez
Spanish Program Intern

As Financial Beginnings’ Development Director, I am constantly seeking new research about the importance of financial education. As a mom, I continually look for opportunities to enhance my child’s future. Recently, I stumbled upon new research that addressed both.

A recent study provided yet another reason to encourage children to start saving money at a young age. This research, from the Center for Social Development, found that “youth who have a bank account in their name, regardless of the amount in that account, are seven times more likely to attend college than youth with no account.”

The Journal of Family and Economic Issues explains this as the “assets effect,” whereby “personally controlling their savings inspires a deeper appreciation for what they need to do financially and behaviorally to get into college,” noting that “the simple act of saving motivates children to strive harder.”

Depositing money into their own savings account, the Journal explains, helps children feel a sense of control over their future. This psychological effect ignites a cycle of positive and aspirational behaviors.

So how can parents make the most of the assets effect? For starters, they can help their child open a savings account in his or her own name. Banks and credit unions all provide some type of custodial savings account for even the youngest of children. My son opened his savings account at Umpqua Bank when he was just a few months old; his signature was a little sloppy but hey, so is Jack Lew’s.

Secondly, parents can help their child determine how much of his or her earned of gifted income should be deposited into this account, and assist their child in making regular, physical deposits. Making regular deposits to my son’s account has kept me honest in making regular deposits to my own account as well.

Lastly, watching a savings account grow, regardless of by how much, provides a tangible tool for teaching their child about interest, budgeting, and basic money management. A savings account can also provide the framework for discussing goal-setting in general, as well as educational and career goals. As the old adage states, if you don’t know where you are going, you probably won’t get there.

Kristin Monahan
Development Director

We spoke with Mary Greco, President of Clackamas Federal Credit Union and her two staff members, AVP of Marketing,Luke McMurray, and Administrative Assistant Jennifer Kraxberger to discuss financial literacy.

Can you tell us a little about Clackamas FederalCredit Union?
57 years ago citizens in Clackamas County created the credit union to serve workers and public service employees. The Credit Union is still headquartered in Clackamas and has grown to more than 25,000 members, served by 84 employees in six branches.

What makes Clackamas Federal Credit Union special?
Our mission is taking pride in making a difference by supporting the financial success of our members. We also strive to support the communities we serve.

Why does Clackamas Federal Credit Union support Financial Beginnings? Why is financial education important to your company?
We believe that everyone needs to understand how to prepare financially for the future. When people borrow money, we want them to understand everything about the loan – how they are being charged and what the requirements are. I personally believe that financial literacy is very important and should be taught from first grade through college.

Why did you decide to partner with Financial Beginnings?
Financial Beginnings will help us reach our members and people throughout the county. We want people to learn how to save and make their lives better. Saving is the first step to a successful future. The Financial Beginnings curriculum provides the consistent and unbiased message to students that we think is critical.

In addition to supporting Financial Beginnings, does Clackamas Federal Credit Union have any current or planned programs,initiatives, or resources to increase financial literacy?
We provide workshops throughout the year. And we are going to be teaching classes at Clackamas Community College using the Financial Foundations curriculum created by Financial Beginnings.

In your opinion, what is currently the most critical finance-related topic that needs to be addressed through education?

Mary: Saving is the most important. People don’t know how to save. They seem not to understand that they can start small and build. Instead, they set a goal beyond their means and then become discouraged.

Luke: Budgeting is critical. People need to have a plan and follow it.

Jennifer: I think people need to understand how to live within their means and not try to keep up with their neighbors. Saving and budgeting – those are the most important elements in financial literacy.

I grew up watching my mother work her way through college. I was 10-years old when she achieved her bachelor’s degree. I grew up with good grades and I was always under the assumption that I would go to college. I think my parent’s assumed I would also. Still, with my parents having to spend the first 10-years of my life not only raising my older brother and myself, but also baring the time and expense of my mother going to college. I am not sure, but I believe she graduated with no student loan debt.

I have always been self-driven and would take initiative to do the things I wanted to do. I decided four years in high school was too long for me, so I graduated in three. During my final year of high school I began taking all of the required standardized tests, filling out the college applications and doing all of the normal high school senior activities. My parents were involved in this process, but I definitely ran the show.

When it came time for me to start making decisions and viewing the financial aide offers provided to me from several universities, it all seem to become very clear to everyone that this was real. I was proceeding through this process assuming that my parents would be paying for whatever college I chose, we never actually had a conversation confirming this.

I don’t quite remember all of the details of how I and my parents realized that we had very different expectations regarding how my college would be paid for. The outcome became that they paid for me to attend Portland Community College. I remember seeing the financial aid offers coming in and the amounts outlined for loans that both I and my parents were expected to take out to pay for college. I am glad that I did not agree to any of them because looking back I realize that I was not ready to accept that responsibility.

My parents paid for the first couple of years of my college (I took the 6-year plan) and eventually towards the end I bit the bullet and took out loans so I could quit my job and finish out the last bit full-time. I was fortunate that I left with only $12,500 in student loan debt, $5,000 of which was a loan from my grandparents (the interest rate was quite good). By the time I did take out debt, I had an understanding of what it meant and what my responsibilities were as a borrower.

The average student loan debt an undergraduate leaves school with is now approximately $30,000, plus an additional $10,000 in credit card debt. Many of these students had the same belief that I did, that college was just the assumed next step. Now, more than when I was in high school, students are brought up that student loan debt is also assumed.

What can we do to better prepare students to understand this process and how the decisions they are making now to get to and through college will affect their post college life? 

Melody Bell
Executive Director