Make the pledge to save

Published Feb. 22, 2016
By The Military Family and Support Center
87th Force Support Squadron

JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST -- Today marks the first day of military saves week, which promotes the importance of saving, investing.

"Military Saves is a social marketing campaign to encourage service members, families and civilians to focus on savings. Often, savings is an 'oh by the way' and we want savings to be an everyday part of your financial plan.   Set a Goal, Make a Plan and Save Automatically" said Mr. Tim Simmons, Military Family and Support Center, Military Saves coordinator.

"By taking the Savers Pledge, you are making a conscious effort to put savings first. Taking the Pledge is the first step, but having a Financial Goal increases the likely hood that you will continue to save, especially when the financial "wants" in life get in the way. Write down what you are saving for. It can be anything that will help you to focus on your savings plan," said Simmons.

Ask most financial advisors about a having a goal and they will tell you it is a process not an event. History shows that those who make a conscious decision to reduce their debt, increase savings and do it with a sound written plan most often succeed.   Having money in a savings account and not having debt hanging over our heads allows us to focus on our family and the mission, and see a bright future where we'll reach our financial goals.

Service members, retirees, Department of Defense civilians and their families are encouraged to take the Savers Pledge that can be found at www.militarysaves.org. The pledge urges participants to set and keep financial goals and provides planning and debt reduction tips in a monthly e-newsletter.

This year the MFSC is excited to offer many financial workshops designed for families, single folks and children. Andrews Federal Credit Union will conduct classes as well as provide a Document Shredder Truck on site at the Support Center.   Armed Forces Bank and Wells Fargo Bank will also participate with classes to benefit the entire base population on topics from Savings, Investing, Car and Home Buying to Thrift Savings Plan. These classes can benefit the entire base population and provide useful information and tools. We encourage everyone to participate.

To learn more about finance classes available at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, call the Military Family Support Center at (609) 754-3154 or (732) 323-1248. Not able to attend classes during our Military Saves Week ? No worries, contact the Family Support Center to schedule for classes in the future.

To learn more about Military Saves Week, visit www.militarysaves.org.