Build for Tomorrow kicks off at Everett Station

On July 13 at the Everett Transit Station, 24 people opened savings accounts, some for the first time. These savings accounts are just one of many steps each participant will take as part of Build for Tomorrow, a new Individual Development Account (IDA) program for low-income Snohomish County residents.

 

Funded by a grant from the United States Department of Health and Human Services Assets for Independence program, Build for Tomorrow is a new initiative of the Snohomish County Workforce Development Council and United Way of Snohomish County. Build for Tomorrow will assist fifty investors, many of whom will be WorkSource Snohomish County clients, to transcend poverty by simultaneously acquiring the skills they needed to obtain living-wage employment and build assets to create wealth. 

 

A matched savings program, Build for Tomorrow allows program participants to save earned income to be matched 2:1 for the purpose of funding a post-secondary education or starting a small business. Investors in this savings program will also complete comprehensive financial literacy training as well as asset specific training for educational or entrepreneurial goals. This program has been made possible through the partnership with United Way of Snohomish County, the Snohomish County Individual Development Account Collaborative, Washington Mutual, and Cascade Bank. 

 

It was through the generosity of partner Cascade Bank that the WDC and United Way were able to host the kick-off event, catered by a former Snohomish County IDA program graduate, which offered the opportunity for new enrollees to open their savings accounts on-site as well as to learn from the experiences of graduates from past Snohomish County IDA initiatives.

 

Advice given by past graduates included the importance of setting goals and doing whatever it takes to meet those goals as well as helpful hints like using direct deposit to make monthly contributions to savings accounts.

 

Build for Tomorrow small business investors are saving to open painting, cable installation, pet styling, and auto repair businesses. Those saving for post-secondary education include a future pharmacy technician, registered nurse, and a paralegal. No matter what their personal savings and investment goal, these Build for Tomorrow participants have already made their first step—opening that savings account.

 

For more information about Build for Tomorrow, contact Amy Persell. Also, click here to read a story published in the Everett Herald about this exciting initiative.