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Greetings!
Cash flow. Two simple words with tremendous impact on a person's life. If the timing of when your income arrives in your life does not line up with when your rent and bills are due, and you don't have cash reserves, you can easily fall into the trap of predatory lending or heavy use of overdraft protection to pay your obligations on time. For so many of our clients, out of synch cash flow causes a major drain on their finances. Sometimes they need a bit of "slack" provided by our opportunity loan to get out of the predatory spiral and get ahead of bills. Sometimes it takes some coaching help to change due dates on bills, negotiate a payment plan with a creditor or keep a budget. Sometimes it takes the encouragement and peer support found in our classes that helps people use a paycheck planner, plug their spending leaks and get on the upside of their cash flow.
Our opportunity loans, financial coaching and financial education classes have real impact for someone who has cash flow problems. Chances are you know someone who has a cash flow problem. We encourage you to send them our way. Our coaching and classes are open to the public. Our opportunity loans are made on referral, and if you are not yet a referring partner you can easily become one. Just contact us for details. If you would like to be a coach, we are offering an excellent coach training later this month. Please see below for more details.
Please join us in thanking Oregon Community Foundation, Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase and KeyBank for supported us so we can offer our financial education and services at low or no cost to the public.
All the best,
Nancy Yuill
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 Spotlight: Introducing Sailor Holladay!
Sailor joined our team in July as our new Financial Education Coordinator. She comes to IC$ with extensive workshop facilitation and writing experience and has worked in the domestic and sexual violence sector for many years, including serving as the Economic Justice Coordinator for a state-wide project. Keep reading to learn more about Sailor!
What will you be doing at Innovative Changes?
I am the new Financial Education Coordinator, so I am teaching financial education workshops around the Tri-county area as well as improving our financial education curriculum to better serve our constituents.
What drew you to this position?
The focus on community education and IC$ philosophies on grassroots leadership development.
What did you do before you came to IC$?
I've been working in direct service advocacy and education for fifteen years, but most recently was finishing my MFA in creative writing, working with college students on finishing their creative writing theses, and teaching urban middle and high school students how to make short films about their lives.
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 Spotlight: IC$ Intern Ian!
We first met Ian when he was volunteering with CASH Oregon helping Portlanders file their taxes. He reached out to us for volunteer opportunities and he served as our accounting intern this summer. Ian worked on a wide variety of projects, including our accounting policy manual! He has gone back to being a student, but Ian will continue to volunteer with Innovative Changes writing articles for our Innovative Connections newsletter. Keep an eye out for his writing. Continue reading about our wonderful intern!
What is your role at Innovative Changes?
As a volunteer for Innovative Changes I am pleased to take the on the role of the Financial Writer.
What about IC$ drew you to this position?
While interning for Innovative Changes I found that the organization is a wonderful resource for people from various backgrounds who are seeking financial hope and stability. I feel that my personal, academic, and work experience prepares me for the Financial Writer position.
Where and what are you studying in college?
Currently, I am working towards my Bachelors in Liberal Studies from Portland State University after which I plan to pursue a Post-Bach degree in Accounting at the same school. |
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Upcoming Workshops & Orientations
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The next Financial Household Resiliency workshops will be:
- Tuesday evenings, October 7th-28th
- Friday mornings, October 17th-Nov 7th.
This workshop series will be held at our office in 2010 Lloyd Center Mall. You can register for the classes here.
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Our next Credit Builder Orientations will be:
- - Wednesday, September 17th, 5:30-6:30pm
- - (Spanish only) Viernes, el 26 de septiembre, 1-2pm
- - Wednesday, October 1st 5:30-6:30 pm
- - Thursday, October 9th 1:00-2:00 pm
- - Wednesday, October 15th 5:30 - 6:30 pm
- - (Spanish) Viernes, el 24 de Octubre 1:00 - 2:00 pm
All take place at our office, 2010 Lloyd Center. Register here.
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Want to volunteer with IC$? Come to our Financial Coach Training!
Volunteer financial coaches will work one on one with low/moderate income clients to teach personal financial management skills as well as engage and motivate clients to stay on track toward their goals.Our next training will be on Saturday, September 27th, 9am-4pm.
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Get Matched up with a Financial Coach
Want to get in control of your money but aren't sure where to start? Do you know someone who would like extra accountability when working towards their financial goals? Sign up today to get matched up with a financial coach!
This year we are growing our coaching program to reach more people through trained volunteer financial coaches.
Get connected with a coach today or find out about becoming a coach yourself by contacting andrea@innovativechanges.org or visiting our website.
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As of 9/9/14
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Partners:
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51
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Loans:
Total disbursed:
# repaid:
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$299,758
424 | | Financial Education Clients: | 1,665 | | IDA Savers: | 108 | |
IDA Graduates:
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3
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About Us
Our inter-related programs of responsible lending, credit building, financial education and savings acceleration build people's financial capabilities and put them on the path to long term financial health. Join us in our work!
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You Can Help!
You care about helping people achieve and maintain household stability. Now you can join our efforts at Innovative Changes as we expand our reach to serve more clients. Your generous donation will be put to good use!
Whatever amount you can afford, you can set it up for monthly automatic payments to ease your cash flow. If you have bill pay service with your bank you can set up Innovative Changes to receive regular monthly payments. If you prefer, we can process a monthly ACH transaction on your behalf. Contact us at contact@innovativechanges.org to set up your monthly giving program.
Thank you for your support!
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