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Consumer Action and Visa Inc. team up for Veterans Financial Coalition training programs

San Diego, CA – Veterans Financial Coalition partners Consumer Action and Visa Inc. yesterday hosted a “train-the-trainer” roundtable event as part of the Economic Survival Guide for Servicemembers and Veterans series. The program aims to educate nonprofits that serve veterans and is geared toward community-based organizations in cities with large veteran populations.

The Economic Survival Guide and this training were developed by Consumer Action for the Veterans Financial Coalition and made possible by a grant from Visa Inc. Each training session, led by Consumer Action’s outreach team, prepares representatives of participating local community-based organizations to conduct one-on-one financial education counseling and group presentations and workshops in their communities.
 
“There is a critical need to reach and educate San Diego’s veterans and to provide them with the knowledge they need to protect themselves and prosper financially. With proper training, education and access to appropriate resources, we believe veterans can make informed decisions about their financial futures,” Ken McEldowney, executive director of Consumer Action said. “These train-the-trainer roundtables give San Diego nonprofits the tools they need to assist service members and veterans.”

“Visa is deeply committed to increasing the financial inclusion and education of those who have served our nation,” said Nat Sillin, head of global financial education, Visa Inc. “We are proud to enable training programs like the Economic Survival Guide for Service Members and Veterans. Programs like this are an important piece of our commitment to supporting the financial needs of these heroes.”

About the Veterans Financial Coalition
The Veterans Financial Coalition (www.VeteransFinancialCoalition.org) is a clearinghouse of important personal finance resources provided by coalition members. The website serves as a hub of free resources, ranging from educational games and guides, consumer protection brochures, training program information, and research. The Coalition members are the National Military Family Association, Call For Action, the National Consumers League (NCL), the National Foundation for Credit Counseling (NFCC), the Association for Financial Counseling and Planning Education® (AFCPE®), Consumer Action, Consumer Federation of America (CFA), Military Saves (a component of the nonprofit America Saves and a partner in the Department of Defense’s Financial Readiness Campaign) and Visa Inc. All of these organizations bring unique and important assets and initiatives that will strengthen the coalition and its mission of improving the financial security and well-being of our nation’s growing population of veterans.