April 07, 2014
Monday, April 7, 2014
DETROIT – Gov. Rick Snyder today served as a guest reader the Money Smart Kids Read event at the Detroit Public Library Campbell Branch, bringing to life the financial education book The Berenstain Bears’ Trouble With Money to an audience of children and their families.
The reading event was one of more than 100 story-time programs taking place across the state from April 5-12 as part of the annual Money Smart Week, a nation-wide program that promotes financial literacy to consumers of all ages.
“Making smart financial choices is an essential skill that that is best learned at an early age,” Snyder said. “Consumers armed with financial knowledge make stronger choices that allow them to build wealth and avoid incurring unnecessary fees that hinder the ability to save for a home, car, or retirement. A financial literate society leads to stronger communities and a better quality of life for all.”
In addition to story time events for children, Money Smart Week features more than 300 programs in 35 counties throughout the state. The various classes, seminars, and events feature programming for all ages with topics ranging from saving for college, budgeting, and avoiding scams to investor education, retirement, and estate planning.
“Money Smart Week is a great program that both raises awareness and takes action towards increasing financial literacy in the state,” said Department of Insurance and Financial Services Director Ann Flood. “We very much appreciate the opportunity to work with other organizations to help Michiganders of all ages with critical life skills such as how much to save, how to avoid crippling debt, and other crucial financial pillars."
Money Smart Week is a public awareness campaign designed to help consumers better manage their personal finances. This is achieved through the collaboration and coordination effort of organizations across the country including businesses, financial institutions, schools, libraries, not-for-profits, government agencies and the media. These groups come together once a year to stress the importance of financial literacy, inform consumers about where they can get help and provide free educational seminars and activities throughout the week. More information about Money Smart Week, including a calendar of events, is available at www.moneysmartweek.org.
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