More than 3,100 high school students got a bite of reality from Redwood Credit Union on October 14
SANTA ROSA, CA (October 17, 2019) — Many financial institutions were closed for the federal holiday on October 14, but Redwood Credit Union (RCU) was closed for a different reason: to send all 700 of its employees out to teach practical financial skills to more than 3,100 high school students across three North Bay counties.
Provided exclusively to credit unions by the Richard Myles Johnson (RMJ) Foundation, the Bite of Reality program has been presented by RCU at local schools since 2013, but never on such a large scale. This year, on one impactful day, RCU sent its entire workforce to educate students at 15 Sonoma, Marin, and Napa high schools, welcoming local officials and school administrative staff to attend.
“We’ve been thrilled to receive many positive responses from the community about this event – what we’re calling our Day of Impact,” said Brett Martinez, RCU President and CEO. “Money management is an essential life skill for young people to learn, but because it’s not a graduation requirement, financial education differs greatly between schools. The Bite of Reality program helps fill in gaps. It also offers an opportunity to show how credit unions care and are here to support our communities now and into the future.”
Participants in Bite of Reality receive a fictional occupation, salary, spouse and family, student-loan debt, credit card debt, and medical insurance payments. Then they visit various table-top stations to “purchase” housing, transportation, food, clothing, household necessities, day care, and other essentials. The interactive program also includes a credit union station to help with financial needs if students overspend.
For more information about the Bite of Reality program, visit RCU’s website.
Brett Martinez and RCU employee chat with students at Bite of Reality event.
About Redwood Credit Union
Founded in 1950, Redwood Credit Union is a full-service financial institution providing personal and business banking to consumers and businesses in the North Bay and San Francisco. With a mission to passionately serve the best interests of its Members, team members, and communities, RCU delivers many ways for its Members to save and build money through checking and savings accounts, auto and home loans, credit cards, digital banking, business services, commercial and SBA lending, and more. Wealth management and investment services are available through CUSO Financial Services L.P., and insurance and auto-purchasing services are also offered through RCU Services Group (RCU’s wholly owned subsidiary). RCU has more than $8.5 billion in assets and serves more than 465,000 members with full-service branches from San Francisco to Ukiah. For more information, call 1 (800) 479-7928, visit redwoodcu.org, or follow RCU on Facebook, Instagram, X, and LinkedIn for news and updates.
