Hawaii County this week is opening its newly established Financial Empowerment Centers.
Created through a partnership between the national nonprofit Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund, Hawaii Community Foundation, Hawaiian Community Assets and Hawaii First Federal Credit Union, the centers offer free professional, one-on-one financial counseling and coaching as a public service to residents.
Counseling sessions can range from 30 to 60 minutes, with no limitation to the number of free sessions an individual can participate in.
“The FECs are staffed with professionally trained financial counselors who can help residents 18 and older, regardless of income, manage their finances, pay down debt, increase savings, establish and build credit, and access safe and affordable mainstream banking products,” according a news release announcing the centers.
Financial counselors also can make referrals to other services and organizations as needed.
“Financial empowerment will play a key role in how we begin to build back from the COVID-19 pandemic and return to a vibrant and thriving Hawaii Island,” Mayor Mitch Roth said in the news release. “We encourage everyone in our community to take advantage of this free service, regardless of their income level.”
Interested residents can schedule an appointment by visiting https://tinyurl.com/5h9kfzvr.
Appointments can be scheduled to convene in person or via Zoom.