In the summer of 2007, a group of 10, 14 to 15-year olds from the Beans and Rice, Inc. Summer Program, toured one of Truliant’s Member Financial Centers located in New River, V.A. Melissa, who works at the center, recalls the groups initial reaction, “they looked as excited as a brick. We looked at them and they looked at us.”
Then, she decided to think outside the box and bring them into her office and showed the teens the loan process for buying a vehicle. “Of course, they wanted a $35,000 Hummer,” she said. However, when she showed them how much they had to pay each month on an 84-month term, their eyes widened as they were blown away by the figure.
Recently, a student from the Beans and Rice Summer Program returned to get her very first auto loan and had saved $500 for a down payment. She told Melissa that she remembered the mock loan experience and was back to reap the harvest from the seed that was planted.
Truliant is here to provide financial literacy to all students across the communities we serve, with the hope that they will learn money management skills and know that Truliant is a credit union that is here for them.
