I'm just going through some of the more than 50 letters we received from readers in May and June when we started this series as we prepare for a talk tomorrow night about the series at Melrose United Church.
The one emotion that is the common thread through all of these letters is anxiety.
There is just so much worry tied up in money. Some examples:
"I pray that there is someone out there who can help us better our lives. It will be a big challenge."
"We live pay-to-pay, never able to save money, pay bills on time or just get ahead of the game."
"We don't have any realistic financial goals, as we would need to have to have savings to accomplish this. we are not only getting nowhere, but each year we get further in debt."
"We own our home but feel like we are constantly relying on overdraft to make it from paycheck to paycheck. We have about $11,000 in credit card debt. I don't know how we would survive if something major went wrong with the house or car and we were faced with a large expense."
"Our biggest financial challenge right now is our day-to-day living ensuring the mortgage is paid, paying our utilities and hoping there is enough for groceries without even mentioning the other bills."
The other common thread here is not knowing where or how to start tackling debt. Patricia Hamilton, one of our families said she was so stressed about her credit card bill and her lack of retirement planning that she couldn't think about saving. But once she faced her fears, it wasn't nearly the mountain she had carved out of that anxiety.
There is hope. Your bank does have plenty of tools and people to talk to. So does Catholic Family Services. Please sort through our stories and tools on our website here - there is so much out there. To make sense of the credit counselling industry, check out our story which ran on Nov. 19 about that. Next week, our last (!) we will have a story about how to pick a financial advisor.
The one thing we hope our readers take away from the series is that there IS hope, there IS a way forward, the only question is are you brave enough to take the first step?
- Lisa Grace Marr
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