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Illustration: Rafáel
López |
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Your Money and Your Future
Omaira Hayes never thought twice about buying a cup of gourmet coffee or spending $40 a week at the hair stylist. Then she spent a few hours at an AARP Your Money and Your Future seminar. “They taught us that cutting out simple things, like buying an expensive cup of coffee, can save us thousands of dollars a year,” says Hayes, who lives in Queens, New York. “I thought, ‘What am I doing spending $40 a week on my hair? I am a cosmetologist!’” Since the seminars, Hayes has vowed to pay off debts, curb her spending, and start saving. In addition to learning that small expenses can add up, Hayes learned that over time, small savings add up, too. “I’m going to start putting a little to the side, because I’m already almost 43,” she says. “When we are young, we never think about our future—that we will get old and that we need security in our old age.” That’s the theme of a new program at AARP, Your Money and Your Future, a series of three two-hour sessions in Spanish on basic financial planning. “In general, people in the U.S. don’t save enough,” says Deborah Russell, manager, Economic Security and Work at AARP. Research shows that a lack of reliable, understandable financial information in Spanish was one problem for Hispanics. “We felt these seminars would be a service we could offer in the community, empowering it with information to help get their finances in order,” Russell says.
The seminars offer basic and practical information, including which records to keep and where to store them; how to track spending and take control of it; retirement planning; the basics of investing; and the importance of insurance. Although the subjects can be complicated, the program presented them well, says Hayes, who moved to the United States from Colombia 22 years ago. “It was an amazing program,” she says. “It was not complicated. The book was easy to read and understand, in both English and Spanish. The class taught me many beautiful little things.” And she wants to learn more. “We were so sad when we went to the last class,” she says. “If it is offered again, I will be there.”
Hayes says she has gained more respect for AARP for offering the program to the Hispanic community. AARP piloted the program last year in Colorado, New York, and Texas. Public response was very positive. It is being offered this year in Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Texas, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. Recent seminars in New York City drew 30 to 40 people, says Russell, “and the audience didn’t want the speaker to leave. It looks like this service is very much needed in the community.” Although the program is targeted to Hispanic AARP members and others from 45 to 60, no one is excluded. “We have daughters who are bringing their mothers and mothers who are bringing their sons,” says Russell. “It’s becoming something that the family can get involved with.” The Rev. Lemuel Rodriguez thought his parishioners could use some financial planning advice, so he invited AARP to present the seminars at Promise International Christian Ministry Center in Queens, New York. Rodriguez’s parishioners enjoyed the seminars so much, he says, that “they are after me right now, asking when we are going to do it again.” Rodriguez was surprised to find how helpful
the seminars were to him as well. “There are so many things that
we don’t know about,” he says. “I learned that we
have to learn how to save. I learned that there are 10 good
steps we can follow to prepare for our future and for our children and
our family. Some people think that only a millionaire can be prepared
for the future,” says Rodriguez. Now check out some of the other AARP programs available. |
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