Maui Economic Opportunity will be providing money management education, credit counseling and debt management assistance to those impacted by the
August 2023 wildfires with a grant from the American Red Cross.
The $1.4 million grant, which runs through July 2025, includes two other nonprofits – Texas-based Money Management International and Oahu-based
Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement. MEO’s portion of the grant isabout $300,000.
Twelve youth learned about budgeting, saving, credit and getting a job at MEO BDC’s Financial Literacy for Teens class Tuesday and Wednesday at the J. Walter Cameron Center.
The goal of the grant is to provide financial education and housing counseling to ensure that those impacted by the wildfires have the tools to recover and rebuild, the Red Cross said in a news release.
MEO’s Business Development Center (BDC) has been offering adult and youth financial literacy classes for years, covering money management, personal credit and basic investment information. BDC staff also are certified credit counselors with debt management skills.
Workshops and services are offered on Maui, Moloka‘i, and Lana‘i at no cost to participants.
Instructor Jaimie Dukelow discusses the cost of buying a vehicle at Maui Economic Opportunity’s Financial Literacy for Teens Workshop on Wednesday at the J. Walter Cameron Center. Twelve youth completed the two-day class
taught by Dukelow, Manager of the Kehalani Foodland Branch of American Savings, and MEO Business Development Center specialist Lianne Peros-Busch.
Earlier this week, 12 youth completed the two-day Teen Financial Literacy workshop at the J. Walter Cameron Center. The instructors were BDC specialist Lianne Peros-Busch and American Savings Bank Kehalani Foodland Branch Manager Jaimie Dukelow. The teen workshop is typically offered during fall and summer breaks; BDC specialists also have taken the workshop to Maui High and will be offering the curriculum at King Kekaulike High.
“This grant from the American Red Cross taps into a strength of our Business Development Center with financial education and credit counseling,” said MEO CEO Debbie Cabebe. “In addition, we have worked with
the American Red Cross on relief efforts in Lahaina and Kula.
“Partnerships are an integral piece of MEO’s work in the Maui County community. Grants such as this broadens MEO’s reach. We are gratified that national organizations, like the American Red Cross, trust MEO and work we do.”
Whether to buy a new truck or a more affordable sedan was the discussion at MEO’s Financial Literacy for Teens Workshop on Wednesday. Instructors Jaimie Dukelow and Lianne Peros-Busch presented a number of factors to
consider, including cost of the vehicle, gas and vehicle registration.
