Managing your money, given the current economic state of the country, is challenging for everyone including Soldiers and their Families.
There's no need to continue to stress -- Fort Belvoir's Army Community Service Financial Readiness Program office offers several money management options as part of their Financial Literacy Month kick-off.
Classes on money management are available at the ACS building, beginning Wednesday, through the end of the year.
The Financial Readiness Program office encourages Soldiers and their Families to take the Financial Literacy Challenge on its Facebook page in April.
To take the challenge, Soldiers need to "Like" the Fort Belvoir Financial Readiness Program's Facebook page and then visit FinancialLiteracyMonth.com and take the pledge to take steps toward improving their financial well-being.
"It's a 30-day pledge that takes five- to seven-minutes of reading, each day, small bits of information that might give Soldiers other resources they can use," said Erica Drame, Financial Readiness Program manager. "They will learn skills to better manage their money, savings and investments. They could have debt liquidation issues, but this will help them start dealing with it."
Those who complete the 30-step challenge will be entered into a drawing to win an iPod Touch at the end of April.
Finance management classes like Dollars and Sense, Basics of Investing and Car Buying and Leasing are among the classes available for Soldiers and their Families.
Drame recommends Soldiers on their first enlistment take the classes First Termers Money Management and Liquidating Your Debts.
"It teaches them the basics on budgeting, concerns about savings and how to manage a checking account," said Drame. "The Liquidating Your Debts class gives tips like working with your creditor and having a budget so you know how much money a month you have to put towards your debt. Once you know that information, it's easier being able to stay committed to paying that amount each month to pay the debt off."
Lunch and Learn is a new option Financial Readiness introduced in January. The program offers the same finance management classes already available, but from 12-1 p.m. for Soldiers who are busy after work.
"We are trying to have classes at convenient times for Soldiers and their Families to attend," said Drame. "They can bring their lunch and learn something for an hour."
Drame is also excited about Ric Edelman visiting Fort Belvoir to tape an episode of his "The Truth About Money" television show on April 16. Edelman has been ranked by Barron's as the number one Independent Financial Advisor for the last three years.
Edelman will hold a question and answer session with Soldiers and their Family members while taping his show on April 16.
"He will answer any questions Soldiers and their Families have," said Drame. "'What investments do I need to invest in? How do you suggest I take the money I have to invest in Dell, Microsoft or another stock?' He will answer those questions."
To register for any of the Financial Readiness classes, call (703) 805-4590. To schedule an appointment for financial counseling, call (703) 805-1833.
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