Week 21 - Financial Kick Start

This week goes to a dear friend who is in need of a little financial kick start. Increasingly, I have many friends in life who are struggling to find work. This reflection of today’s economic quagmire has hit close to home recently as I watch qualified, responsible people struggle so hard to find ANY work. Even retail jobs are scarce in this environment.

I’ve learned a few things while watching and supporting friends who are out of work. One is that a convenience most of us take for granted, non-cash forms of payment, is not accessible to many people. Checking accounts, debit cards, and online banking have become the norm for most permanently employed people today. However there is still a population of people out there who live on cash only. And wow, what a disadvantage they have! Here is a little story to illustrate this point….

               

My friend needed to pay her cell phone bill of $14.99. Lacking a checking account or debit card, she drove 30 miles each way to the store to pay it. Once there, she was informed she would have to pay a $3 fee for paying in cash. She went out to her car and scraped up $3 in change. When she came back in with the money, she was told that cash payments could only be taken if the bill was $20-$1000 and if the amount was less than that, she would have to pay another $2.00 fee. At this point she gave up in frustration and drove home, effectively wasting all the gas money she invested in getting there to pay her bill.

This donation to my friend will allow her to open a checking account and start to slowly build up her  financial independence. She has been controlled emotionally and monetarily to a point where she is financially crippled. She is about to take a brave leap in life and strike out on her own and I admire her strength, resolve and faith as she embarks on her quest for happiness. As one of my closest friends, I will walk by her side on this journey and I can't wait to see her succeed!

"Kindness in words creates confidence. Kindness in thinking creates profoundness. Kindness in giving creates love. " -Lao Tzu