New Volunteers, Round 1

jose

Eight people joined the ranks of our Master Financial Education Volunteers on August 16th. The newbies include an affordable housing developer who speaks both Arabic and Vietnamese, two Spanish speakers and a mix of young professionals and retirees.

While their motivation for volunteering varied, these individuals had one factor in common: prior professional or volunteer experience in financial counseling and or money management instruction. For the first time, we offered an expedited volunteer training for finance-minded professionals.

jay. dinan and jose

Please welcome: Tom Hoopengardner, Donna Di Felice, Eric Miller, José Olivas, Diana Yacob, Katrin Kark, Jay Dowling and Thu Nguyen.

Thu and Katrin

Of course we don’t require prior financial experience to volunteer with Extension. Our regular, 2-day volunteer training is slated for Sept. 6 and Sept. 13.

Donna, Tom and Eric

Upping Our Financial IQs

shauna

Do money smarts really pay? We think so, and plan to prove it through an exciting new program.

We are combining classroom instruction with one-on-one coaching to better help people establish positive financial habits through a program we’re calling Money Smarts Pay.

In 3 months, Money Smarts Pay participants will tackle:

  • Goal setting & budgeting in class 1
  • Credit & debt management in class 2
  • Strategies for saving & choosing financial services in class 3.

Robert and Femia

During the weeks between classes, participants meet with the same financial coach for in-person cheerleading and over the phone check-ins. We hope this extra encouragement will help people make the lasting changes they learned about in class.

We inaugurated Money Smarts Pay last week at Arlington Mill Residences, the first of six places where the program will be introduced. Arlington Mill Residences is a rental complex owned by our Money Smarts Pay partner, the nonprofit affordable housing developer Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing (APAH). APAH serves individuals and families earning between $20,000 and $60,000 per year.

Jay and Joan

Money Smarts Pay at Arlington Mill is being taught in English, and an English session will be offered at Buchanan Gardens starting in November 2014. Money Smarts Pay will be offered in Spanish at Columbia Grove starting in September 2014.

The materials we are using for Money Smarts Pay is a mix of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s new Your Money, Your Goals toolkit and the FDIC’s Money Smart for Adults curriculum.

Our 2-year partnership with APAH is possible through a generous grant from the Arlington Community Development Fund, which awarded the program a total of $27,000.

A very big thank you to our Master Financial Education Volunteers who are making the Arlington Mill series possible: Femeia Adamson, Roger Brown, Shauna Dyson, Nichole Hyter, Desiree Kaul and Joan Smith. Another thank you goes to APAH’s Arlington Mill staffer Carla Marin for the heavy lifting on-site, including classroom setup.

If you would like to coach a participant or teach a class in an upcoming series, please send an email to Megan.Kuhn@vt.edu.

desiree

Master Food Volunteers Presented Alternative to Sugary Drinks and Salt at Arlington County Fair

By Sue Gonzalez

Master Food Volunteers (MFVs) joined Master Gardeners, Master Naturalists and 4-H Program Leaders to present a group of Virginia Cooperative Extension educational exhibits at the annual Arlington County Fair, August 8-10, at Thomas Jefferson Community Center.

The MFV display featured two hands-on activities that appealed to fairgoers of all ages. To promote reducing sodium intake, fairgoers were invited to make their own spice mixes to take home. Dill, oregano and basil were among the available herbs and spices.

The other activity was a Rethink Your Drink Ring Toss game created by MFV Mike Perel. The game board included empty containers of sodas, a sports drink, milk and water, filled with 1 sugar cube for every teaspoon (4 grams of sugar) in that beverage. The goal of the game was to get the rings around the two beverages that have zero added sugar – milk and water. While the youngest children enjoyed the challenge of tossing the rings, older children and adults discussed the message of the game with MFVs.

“While we encourage people to read nutrition facts labels and choose foods and beverages with less added sugar, there’s nothing quite like seeing one of your favorite beverage bottles filled with a pile of sugar cubes to drive the message home,” said Jennifer Abel, Arlington County’s senior extension agent, Family and Consumer Sciences, Virginia Cooperative Extension.

  Grams of Added Sugar Equivalent Teaspoons or Sugar Cubes
Pepsi 69 17.25
Coke 65 16.25
Sprite 64 16
Ginger Ale 59 14.75
Gatorade 34 8.5
Milk No added sugar 0
Water 0 0

Thanks to MFVs Nancy Broff, Sue Gonzalez, Joe Missal, Yoko Moskowitz, Mike Perel, Bruce Pittleman, Claudia Scott, and Sharon Simkin for working the exhibit and helping to make this year’s fair a success.

Arl. Co. Fair 2014

Volunteer Spotlight: Marie Baumann

Each month Extension’s financial education program is profiling an outstanding volunteer. To nominate someone, please email Megan Kuhn at Megan.Kuhn@vt.edu.

Name: Marie Baumann
Lives: Arlington
Works: Retired nonprofit administrator

Marie Baumann has served as a Master Financial Education Volunteer since 1992, making her our longest-serving volunteer. She recently provided one-on-one financial counseling for two individuals.

Q. What is something people would be surprised to learn about you?
A. I’m an artist. Finance and art is an odd combination. A lot of people think the two skill sets are totally different, which they are. But I do both

Q: What kind of art?
A: Watercolor painting mostly.

Q: Who is your favorite painter?
A: Right now, Andrew Wyeth. I just saw an exhibit by him at the National Gallery, and I loved it. He used very little color. A lot of it was black, white and gray. He did a lot of landscapes, scenes, buildings, interiors. He used a very spare palette and spare details.

Marie Baumann is our longest-serving Master Financial Education Volunteer. She has volunteered with Extension since 1992.

Marie Baumann is our longest-serving Master Financial Education Volunteer. She has been volunteering with Extension since 1992.

Q. How did you become interested in financial literacy?
A: I became interested at first for my own financial planning and education to better manage my own finances. I was not taught financial literacy, and I don’t think people these days are adequately taught either. So, I wanted to try to help somebody who has not been taught.

Q. After 22 years of volunteering in financial education, what observations can you share?
A. People never cease to surprise me with the range of financial illiteracy and financial problems.

Financial problems seem to go hand in hand with other problems such as emotional, legal and personal relationships. Often when you address the financial side of it, you’re not treating the whole person. You can’t. I usually say, “I’ve done what I can for you. You need to seek legal help or therapy.”

The rare client I have that is motivated and makes real changes in his or her life, that’s what keeps me motivated.

Q: What client success are you most proud?
A: The most interesting client I had. I worked with her for at least four years off and on. Her husband died at an early age and left her a lot of money. We worked through how she would invest the money and provide for herself and her child.

Q: What challenges have you had with clients?
A: People don’t follow through. One person couldn’t keep appointments, and she would not always reschedule. I would show up and sometimes she wasn’t there. I had to drop her. That was disappointing because she really needed help.

Q. We have training sessions for new volunteers in September. What advice do you have for the newbies?
A. A lot of them are tentative and unsure of themselves. You undoubtedly know more than your client does, so don’t be afraid. If you don’t know, say “I don’t know, but I’ll find out.”

Forgetfulness is Costly

I re-learned an expensive lesson last week.

Regularly reviewing credit card statements and other financial accounts is a good habit to develop. If I followed my own advice, I would not be out $70.

I sold my home in June, but forgot to cancel the home warranty until July. Had I been reviewing my statements, I would have thought about the automatic debit sooner and canceled the home warranty on time.

I first learned this lesson right out of college when a restaurant double charged me for dinner. It was a simple fix, but if I had not been reviewing my debit card transactions, I would have never noticed the error.

What financial lesson have you re-learned?

Wrapping Up, both Figuratively and Literally

 

July is almost over, and for me that will end my internship experience with the VCE of Alexandria city. The season brought new experiences in dealing with scores of summer camp kids, as well as honing my container garden skills and knowledge. The kids learned how to plant, water, and tend their container gardens, along with identifying new plants and of course getting their hands dirty!

The pizza garden idea was very admirable; however, the amount of kids and lack of a bountiful harvest proved otherwise. At home base in the Nannie Lee Center, I experimented in harvesting the loads of basil that grew with three different methods: The first was air drying several leaves at a time by hanging them from the stems inside a perforated paper bag. The microwave also proved successful in drying the herb; and the final method was simply freezing the leaves (which hasn’t been tested yet).

At the Arlington-Alexandria Coalition for the Homeless leadership academy, the kids have been slowly coming alive as we traveled to the Natural History Museum last week, and are making welcome baskets for the carpenter shelter this week. The B2i summer program will also finish up this next week, before joining the other members once school starts

photo (6)

Summer Vegetables Are Finally Here

Summer Vegetables Are Finally Here

I’ve been waiting for this time of year since the winter, you go to the farmers’ market or you planted vegetable plants and have been waiting for them to ripen so you can eat from all those fresh seasonal vegetables.  While almost all vegetables are available year round now, there’s something special about eating them so fresh.  The idea of a fresh picked tomato or sweet corn; who needs to do much to them to satisfy your taste buds?  I can have them constantly all summer long and never tire of them.  Some vegetables, however, need a little more preparation for their best flavors to appear, but the variety of vegetables available now gives me an opportunity to mix them up and get just great flavors, and such healthy nutrients to boost.

I only have room to plant a few things in my tiny garden, and for some reason, I always choose eggplant and tomatoes, as well as pots of herbs.  Although I never get many tomatoes, and I’m always fighting with the squirrels for my share, I just can’t give up trying to grow them.  As for eggplant, well I do love them, and they don’t take much room, so they’re a good choice.  The problem is, once the eggplant plants begin to produce, you never get just one.  And they keep coming!  Unlike tomatoes and sweet corn, I need to vary my eggplant recipes to keep me interested in eating them.  The grill comes in handy, because I’m not big on turning on my oven when the temperature reaches 90.  I love grilled eggplant in a sandwich, and there’s so much else you can do with it.

To grill an eggplant, I usually slice it lengthwise in about half-inch slices.  I use a pastry brush to coat both sides of the slices with olive oil, because the eggplant absorbs the oil quickly.  Then I just sprinkle them with salt and pepper and put on the grill at medium heat.  The slices need to be watched carefully, because they can burn easily.  Once they are soft, they are done.

I love to use the grilled eggplant slices in sandwiches.  Often, I grill zucchini or yellow squash in the same way at the same time, and add them to a sandwich as well.  I find crusty breads best for these sandwiches, a slice of grilled eggplant, a slice of grilled squash, sliced mozzarella, and sliced tomato.  Great summer sandwich!  If I have any around, I also smear some hummus on the bread, adds more flavor and an added shot of nutrients.

Another favorite recipe of mine is a variation on caponata, an Italian eggplant dish.  This dish uses many of the summer vegetables and can be varied to your own taste.  Here’s a simple way to make it.

Olive oil

1 medium eggplant, sliced lengthwise in ½ inch strips

1 zucchini, sliced lengthwise in ½ inch strips

1 yellow squash, sliced lengthwise in ½ inch strips

1 green or red pepper, seeded and quartered

1 medium onion, sliced into ½ inch rounds

1 or 2 tomatoes, depending on size, sliced into ½ inch rounds

6 or 7 black olives, chopped (optional)

1 TB capers (optional)

1 TB tomato paste

2 TB red wine vinegar

1 clove garlic chopped

1 TB chopped parsley, basil or both

Salt and pepper

With a brush, lightly coat the eggplant, squash, pepper, onion, and tomato slices with olive oil and salt and pepper.

Heat the grill to medium.  Lightly oil the grates on the grill so the vegetables won’t stick.  Place the eggplant and squashes on the grill.  Put the pepper, onion, and tomato slices on a lightly oiled piece of aluminum foil and then onto the grill.  Cook for about 3 to 5 minutes per side.  Once the slices are soft, they are ready to be removed from the grill.

If you don’t have a grill, all of this can be done in an oven set to 4000F and all the vegetables spread in 2 large baking pans lined with parchment paper or lightly sprayed with cooking oil.  Cook for about 20 minutes or until soft.

While the vegetables are cooling, in a small pan, warm the tomato paste and vinegar at medium heat.  Add the garlic and cook for about a minute until you can smell the aroma of the garlic.

Once the vegetables have cooled to the touch, chopped them all up into about one inch chunks.  Put them all in a big bowl, add the capers and chopped olives if using.  Pour the tomato paste, vinegar, and garlic over, add chopped parsley and or basil, salt and pepper and mix.  Let the caponata sit for a bit, so the flavor can meld.

The caponata is great to eat as a side for a main meal, with cracker or on toasted bread slices as an appetizer, with feta or another cheese as a light meal, or mixed with pasta.

Enjoy!

–Susan Pollack, Master Food Volunteer

Volunteer Spotlight: Desiree Kaul

Each month Extension’s financial education program is profiling an outstanding volunteer. To nominate someone, please email Megan Kuhn at megan81@vt.edu.

Name: Desiree Kaul

Lives: Annandale

Works: part-time merchandizer, full-time mom

Master Financial Education Volunteer Desiree Kaul

Master Financial Education Volunteer Desiree Kaul

Desiree Kaul has volunteered as a Master Financial Education Volunteer since April 2014. She and Donna Brazier recently provided training for social workers. The training provided case workers with information and materials to use with their clients as they help them to resolve their financial problems.

Q. What do you do to relax?

A. I like to read.

Q. What’s on your summer reading list?

A. Mysteries and children’s finance books.

Q. What’s your favorite thing to save for?

A. I’m saving for retirement. It would be nice to have the option to retire earlier.

Q. What’s your favorite splurge?

A. I don’t splurge for myself, but I’m willing to spend more on an item that will last a long time, like a nice pair of jeans. If I do splurge, it’s probably on my kid.

Q. How did you become interested in financial literacy?

A. I got into trouble when I was in college. I was one of those people who only made minimum payments, and I had 10 credit cards. I bought things for other people. Half the things I owed money on I didn’t own anymore. I was using credit cards to pay for other credit card bills.

When I got married, my husband and I looked at our credit reports. He said, “What’s going on?” and I went to a financial counselor. I enrolled in Power Pay to pay off my credit card debt.

[Editor’s note: Power Pay is a free, self-directed debt elimination plan from Utah State University Extension. It is an especially helpful tool for clients with multiple credit cards because the client can enter information about multiple debts in one place, and the system will generate a payment schedule in order of highest interest rate.]

I’m one of those people who like to set goals. Power Pay made it easier to see how fast I was paying things off because it was more of a visual tool.

Q. What advice would you give to a client who is in a similar situation to when you were a newlywed? 

A. If you’re willing to put in the time to repair your credit, it will benefit you greatly. If you spend the year or two to get things in order, it is amazing what you can do later. I was debt-free in two years. I was lucky that my husband paid for housing so I could pay my debt.

 

 

It’s July—But Wait, You Can Still Plant From Seeds—How About Your Own Baby Lettuces!!

By Susan Pollack, Master Food Volunteer

The heat of the summer is setting in and it may be a little late to get your vegetable garden started from scratch, but wait, you can still plant lettuces from seed and harvest the leaves and create your own “spring lettuce mix.”  And it couldn’t be simpler.  All you need is a sunny location—inside or out, a windowsill, a table by a sunny window, a patio.  Don’t fret about having a flower pot, any container will do.  If you don’t have a flowerpot, cut a milk carton or gallon container to four or five inches from the bottom.  The only things you’ll need to purchase are soil and some lettuce seeds.  Don’t be afraid to experiment with the seeds, now is a great time to try the mixes and you can find out what you really like, try arugula, mache, any of the lettuces.

Fill the container to an inch from the top.  Scatter the seeds over the soil (don’t worry about thinning—that will be your baby lettuces!).  Cover the seeds with a thin layer of soil, just to cover, not too thick or the seeds may not germinate.  Then, using a spray bottle or something similar, spray water over the soil, making sure the top half inch or so is moist.  That’s it, just keep spraying the soil every day to keep it moist and wait for the seeds to germinate.  It’s important to keep the soil moist, not saturated.  As the leaves begin to appear, just cut them when they get to about an inch and a half, two inches tall, rinse them and they are ready to eat.  You have your own salad mix and for a fraction of the cost.  Continue to reseed the soil throughout the summer and early fall and enjoy.

salad

What about the salad?

While you’re waiting for your salad greens to grow, don’t forget to check your farmers’ markets for lettuces or get some from the grocery store.  A salad is a great accompaniment to any meal or a great meal in itself.  Don’t just stick to your standard salad of tomatoes and cucumbers; try fruit and other vegetables in your salad.  Try some of the wonderful stone fruits that are appearing now in the market: peaches, nectarines, plums, and apricots.  Slice the fruit into slivers and add to your greens.  Add some slivered nuts, seeds such as chia, sesame, flax if you’d like, and dress.

Wait, don’t use that bottled dressing—way too many calories, and your own dressing can be so refreshing.  The idea to a dressing is one part acid, such as any kind of vinegar—try red wine, white wine, balsamic, apple—or use fresh lemon or lime, to two parts oil.  Again, try different oils.  Olive oil is very popular in a salad dressing, but if you’d like a milder oil, try canola, grapeseed, or safflower.  Then add a few shakes from the salt shaker and the same with black pepper.

To make a side salad for two people, in a bowl add:

  • Two handfuls of lettuce (baby lettuces or tear up full leaves).
  • Cut up a peach, nectarine, or plum into small wedges, or whatever you prefer,
  • One tablespoon of slivered almonds or any other chopped nuts
  • One teaspoon of seeds

Directly to the bowl, add one teaspoon of flavored vinegar or squeeze a quarter of a lemon or lime (careful of the fruit seeds), two teaspoons of oil, salt and pepper and mix all together.

If you want to make your salad into a meal, add some protein, such as cheese, a hardboiled egg, some canned beans that have been rinsed, or left over chicken or turkey.  The great thing about a salad is there are unlimited variations so they never need to be boring.

Enjoy!

Arlington County VCE Summer Intern

Hello everyone!

First off, I would like to introduce myself… My name is Van Do, and I am a rising senior double majoring in Human Nutrition, Foods, and Exercise and Psychology at Virginia Tech. I am the current summer intern for Virginia Cooperative Extension in Arlington County. 🙂 I will be blogging through the summer about all of the experiences I am going through during my 10-week internship.

I began my internship at the beginning of June, and one of my tasks that I have been working on the past few weeks is creating lessons and short activities to teach at AFAC food distributions! One of the first boards I made was a lesson on sodium, and I attended a food distribution last Wednesday and helped out the volunteers to present the lesson. Look out for future lessons on fats, fibers, and sugar, etc…

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Stay tuned for future posts on my experiences!