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Thanks for joining today’s episode of Small Talks for Big Change, where we help simplify financial topics to help with your financial wellness. My name is Michele Enriquez, your hostess here at Patelco Credit Union, and I’m super excited today because we’ve got two guests that are doing some great work out in the community.
And here at Patelco, we talk a lot about supporting our communities and serving the underserved and serving the underbanked. And Patelco does that really effectively Patelco team members that are on the ground. meeting the community where they are and providing education. They’re building trust, providing access to tools, and helping improve their financial situations.
And today we’re going to unpack what financially underserved even means and just break some stigma around access and affordability to products and services and financial education. We’ve got two Patelco wellness team members who are making a big impact. So, welcome to the studio, financial wellness partner, Ivonne Ortega and Leo [00:01:00] Rosales, Senior Community Engagement Specialist.
Welcome, guys. Thank you. We’re happy to be here. I’m so excited that you guys are here. I love that we get to do this work out in the community, so I really want you guys to share more about what that is. But let’s talk first about what we mean when we refer to the unbanked, underbanked, underserved. Ivonne, let’s start with you.
Help us understand what that means to us. So in my experience out in the field, I’ve learned that when it comes to unbanked and underbanked households in the U. S., there’s a lot of fear and mistrust with financial institutions. Some people never learn about finances until they were adults and had no choice but to use the first option available to them.
According to the 2021 FDIC survey of unbanked and underbanked households, an estimated 4. 5 percent of U. S. households, approximately 5. 9 million, were considered unbanked in 2021, meaning that no one in the household had a checking or savings account at a bank or credit union. Some of the reasons for not having a bank [00:02:00] account they don’t have enough money to meet minimum balance requirements, and the most cited reason, they don’t trust financial institutions.
People didn’t experience talking about money in their households or schools, so it’s the lack of access to financial services and financial education that made it difficult to learn about all these resources and options available, which creates more mistrust within financial institutions. There is a lot of stigmas around having blemishes in the past, as well as misconceptions about their immigration status and the ability to open accounts.
Predatory lending is prevalent in low income communities. And with check cashing services, exploiting individuals who rely on these services for their financial needs. Predatory lenders target those with limited access to traditional banking by offering high interest loans with hidden fees. This can trap borrowers in a cycle of debt and financial instability.
It’s important for individuals in these communities to be aware of predatory lending and [00:03:00] seek alternative, more transparent, affordable financial solutions. Oh, I hear that so much. Don’t you hate. The fact that check cashers charge to cash checks, but also those payday lending rates, they kill me. It’s terrible.
And it’s, it almost feels like it’s the only option available. But when it comes to financial literacy programs and the community organizations that can help and educate, empower individuals, it’s helping them make informed financial decisions. And that’s where we come in and play a big role in their lives.
Immigration status and banking have a unique connection. Understanding how they interact can help avoid financial pitfalls. There are myths about immigrants access to banking services that need debunking. Immigrants face challenges in accessing these services, but can combat predatory financial practices.
And empowering immigrants in financial decision making is crucial. So, understanding Um, and and it’s essential for [00:04:00] managing money effectively in a foreign country. So as a financial wellness team it’s within our role to assist the unbanked and underbanked households, overcoming these challenges with opening bank accounts, taking the steps to provide clear information through various channels, benefits, and bank account processes.
For us as a team, we do our best to go out and make connections with non profit organizations different Patelco at Work partnerships that really help us out. reach the masses, right? We want to know how we can help and be there, you know, frontline support. So for us, it’s really important to secure and help them find affordable solutions.
Yeah, thank you for that. We know that knowledge is power, right? That’s the whole reason we do what we do. And it’s not just new folks that are coming to the country, right? We educate students, we educate people with a lot of means. It’s people with not much means, but knowledge is power. And the more that we [00:05:00] can empower everyone about what their options are, the better in an effort to help with their financial wellness, right?
But when we do talk about immigrants and folks that are new to the country, you know, our banking system can be a lot different. A lot of cash based economies that you know they’re used to working in and just understanding the American banking system can be a lot. So that’s where the education really comes in and is really key.
Leo how about you? You’re on the ground around all our service area. We’re talking San Francisco, Sacramento down to the South Bay and you’re seeing all these different types of groups. What’s a common need that you see most? Yeah. By the way, Ivonne, all great points. Each one of those is what we, we see in the community.
What I see in the community is access to free checking accounts, right? Access to free products and services all around. I know what you guys are thinking. Free checking accounts? Like, a lot of places offer those nowadays. Like, why is that? Well, [00:06:00] having these conversations with people, they, they’re just financially unaware, like unaware that credit unions exist, unaware that there are better products, better rates out there, outside their banks, but also unaware that they can have multiple financial institutions.
I’m not saying close your, your, your big bank account, if they’re treating you well, go for it. Continue having them, having that relationship, right? But know that there are other financial institutions like Patelco Credit Union that are here to help you with, let’s say, creating a bigger savings account, refinancing your auto loan, refinancing your mortgage.
All these great products that we offer, not a lot of people are aware of it. Let’s take a break. I want to ask the host a question. Oh, no. Let’s go back seven years, Michelle. You’re 18 now. Yes. That was seven years ago. Yes. Let’s say you know what you know about credit unions and banks. Which one would you have chosen to open instead of, you know, whoever approached you first?
Oh man, if I had known, we just [00:07:00] recorded an episode about getting started with our first checking account and talked about the fact that The guests in the room all banked where their parents told them to bank. I didn’t really have a choice, but knowing what I knew now I would have chosen a credit union.
So would I. I would have saved so much on fees. I would have saved so much on fees. So this past weekend we were at the Cherry Blossom Festival.
I was having a conversation with a lady, , and her three little ones. By the way, great kids really well behaved, great manners, they love the Patelco Bubbles, the Piggy Banks, all of it, all of it. But I was talking to her about why we were out there, right? Why, why Patelco, in the middle of 200, 000 people, is out here talking to people about their financial needs.
Well, I was talking to her about the difference between banks and credit unions, and little by little, she started realizing that there are financial institutions like Patel Credit Union that are here to support those financial needs. She was, she’s not in the best [00:08:00] financial situation, but after having, you know, the rundown of what’s going on with her bank account, her, her auto loan, we’re actually putting her in a position where not only is she going to save 30 fees, monthly fees a month, but also some funds on her auto loan just, just by, you know, taking that one step of finding out what other products and services different financial institutions offer.
Luckily for us, we’re, we’re always out there in the community. We’re always talking to people. We’re always, like Iwane said, we’re, we partner up with different nonprofits, different organizations. My biggest thing is, is festivals. You You’re everywhere. If I see you at a festival, you better swing by.
There’s a good chance if you go to a community festival, you’ll likely see Patelgo and you’ll probably see this guy. Yeah, but that’s one of thousands of conversations I’ve had nowadays where people really just need a refresher or maybe some insight to what we have, to the, to [00:09:00] the difference of credit unions and bank.
As simple as that, right? If you get to determine yourself, Hey, I want to choose a credit union over a bank. That’s not because I told you to. It’s because you have all the cards. You have all the knowledge. You’re making the decision yourself, right? We sometimes talk about breaking barriers in the community.
Well, , I help the community break their own barriers, right? That mistrust. The, the, the misconceptions of financial institutions or check cashing plays like we spoke earlier. We, we don’t do that here. Yeah. We actually eliminated a lot of fees. Yeah, that’s what it’s all about, right? We’re talking about access.
We’re talking about knowledge, meeting people where they are, right? Ivonne, your role includes bringing education and access to employers and non profit groups. What strategies do you share with people? So for me, it’s important to educate people. And helping , people make informed decisions when it comes to managing their finances.
So, helping them understand credit [00:10:00] scores you know, what factors are influencing them today and how can we really help them compare products and services it’s really important for them to understand and maintain a good credit score and so we want to make sure that we’re educating them on all the steps that it takes to establish, rebuild and really just help them make a, an impact on their, you know, financial health as they’re continuing to build their, their goals and understanding, you know, their future goals.
It’s important for them to have a resource available to them. So credit’s a big one, right? It’s a big one. You know, we really want to make sure that when we partner with our companies with Patelco at work we’re educating their employees on credit management, on several different topics when it comes to, you know, all of their financial goals.
We help them make better financial decisions. At Patelco, we’ve developed products, especially for specific groups, that really help them highlight, you know, some of the programs that they offer. So for instance, we have a company that we work with that offers coaching financial [00:11:00] coaching. And so we support them by offering ScoreUp.
So at Patelco, we’ve developed products like ScoreUp to provide individuals with tools and resources. So, to help monitor and improve their credit scores.
ScoreUp Credit Builder Loan is here to help individuals with no credit, little credit, or may need some help improving their credit score. So, loan proceeds are deposited into a ScoreUp savings account. There’s no fee required to open or set up a loan, and the terms can be from 6 to 36 months, with loan amounts from 500 up to 5, 000.
With a fixed low interest rate. By making manageable monthly payments on time, they will be establishing a positive credit history, while also growing their savings. With Patelco Payment Assistance, individuals will never be late on the score up loan, and ITIN is also accepted. Typically, we don’t always offer or have the ability to announce it to partnerships, right, but, or create these specific products when we get the feedback from our partnerships.
But this is [00:12:00] something that we’ve received feedback from in understanding what their needs are and able to design a product that really does meet those needs. It helps them and meets their needs. Our score up credit builder loan is pretty amazing. When we talk about serving the underserved, the underbanked, the folks who haven’t had exposure to financial education and maybe have not started building credit yet, score up credit builders is really the best thing out there.
It’s award winning. You can find out more information about the score up loan on our website and it’s such a great tool for us out there, right? Have you really ran into anybody that didn’t? No, I haven’t. And I, I feel like every time I mention it, they’re just in awe. Like, really? This will never negatively impact my credit score?
Are you sure? Yeah. And we’re like, no, absolutely not. If there are any reason you have to, you know, stop making your payment, we will show it paid as in full. And you’ll always be positively reported to the credit bureau. So, it really just helps individuals make their payments. become empowered and knowing that they can build their credit.
Leo, let’s toss this question over to you. How about [00:13:00] you? What are your go to tools that you share with people? Well, financial education is important, right? But you, like you said, everybody, the tools needed to, you know, tackle what we’ve already discussed, maybe in our presentations or conversations, is just as important.
Products is probably my go to. All our products you guys just mentioned ScoreUp. I talk about checking accounts. I talk about our Money Market Plus. You know, these products and services, over the counter products and services, can create a really good financial plan. My go to when I’m on the road or when I’m at an event and I don’t have a rate sheet or you know.
A brochure is our website. Yeah. If I navigate through the website, if you navigate through the website, you can find our rates. You can find how to open an account. You can find where we’re going to be at our next events. But also there’s articles in there. You know, if you go through and find our, our Bonsai website Bonsai is, is one of our [00:14:00] partners.
And on there, there’s a lot of different articles. How to budget, how to save, how to build your credit. And that’s, you know, education. I think this, this whole podcast is, is about education. Doesn’t matter you know, your immigration status. Doesn’t matter where you’re at across the board.
I love that we can bring Patelco Credit Union to everyone in a lot of different ways. A few ways we bring Patelco Credit Union closer to the community is by attending large festivals, right? Partnering up with community events, that are held by schools and organizations. My favorite is partnering up with businesses and, and non profits, like a resource center.
We provide financial presentations. literature, and direct assistance to those individuals that need our services. Right now I currently lead a program I call CEP, which stands for Community Engaging Program.
CEP helps branches engage their communities and organizations to bring financial education, financial support, but most importantly, bring financial [00:15:00] empowerment to all members of any community. You know, shout out to all the branch leaders and all It’s beautiful to see so many of our team members that go into the community actively looking for these opportunities, right?
Ivonne, myself, the rest of the team can only be at a small amount of spots per day, per week, per month, but having all our branches, helping us out, helping their branch out, you know, helping spread the word, , is the Patelco difference. That’s why Patelco’s out there, making the difference,
I’ve met rich people.
I’ve met smart people. And, and, you know, financial education is, is basically the foundation of the American dream. Yeah, absolutely. So thank you both for doing the good work out there. Ivonne, how about you? Where can we find more information about some of these education tools that you’re talking about?
So, you can definitely go directly to our website at patelco. org slash financial wellness. You’ll find upcoming webinars as well as a library of on demand videos. We also have our YouTube channel that you can [00:16:00] access, our social media accounts, TikTok. We also have our podcast so you can always listen to us on your way to work as well.
We’re on TikTok. We are on TikTok. And also, for employers you know, we have our Patelco at Work link, so patelcoatworkatpatelco. org. You can reach out to us, any employers that maybe are interested in free education, contact us. We’d love to come out and support your employees and help them understand, you know, that Patelco is a resource for them.
So cool. I’m going to go right after this and go see us on TikTok. That’s exciting. Okay, Leo, where can we find some more about these tools that you’re talking about? You mentioned the website and learning about products and services. You mentioned Bonsai and then community events. Where can we find all that on the site?
Potelgo. org, same website. It’s a one stop shop. You hover over events, you’ll find us on our next event. Please stop by and say hi. Pick up a good Patelco bag, grocery bag, some bubbles. Take some pictures with the [00:17:00] team. But, you know, if you hover over to the other side, you’ll find savings checking accounts, home loans, heat logs products.
You’ll find you’ll be able to make an appointment with our team. By the way, that’s another great resource. If you guys haven’t taken the privilege of going into a botanical branch, our staff is well rounded with a lot of different product and services knowledges, right? Let’s say you’re in the, you’re in the market for your first car, they’ll be able to help you and hold your hand along the way.
Let’s say you’re in the market for your first house, they’ll be able to help you and hold your hand along the way. And there’s several different languages in our branches, right? Yes. So that’s always a great thing to know. I always say visit our, our patelco. org slash locations to make an appointment.
Cause if a branch is booked up, we do have virtual branch. Virtual branch is the branch of the future. You go onto virtual branch from the comfort of your house. And make an appointment or see someone right away, right? And it’s through Zoom, so you get a [00:18:00] face to face interaction.
I think that’s always fun. Yeah. Other than that, you can always email me directly at joinepatelco. org. I’ll take care of you guys. Alright, everyone. This was a lot to take in, so let’s try and recap. So, in serving the underserved, you know, Patelco’s really doing what we can.
You guys are directly doing what you can to just help inform folks. so much. Help educate them, help them assess what products and services may help them get to whatever goals it is they’re trying to achieve. We talk a lot in this studio about having advocates and financial institutions really serving as an advocate when you do need that support and you guys have the privilege and our members are so lucky to have you to be able to just talk through things as they’re You know, navigating life, trying to meet their financial goals too.
So thank you for that great work that you’re doing. Some of these great products and services and resources that you’re talking about can be found on our website. As they both mentioned, patelco. org is just chock full of great [00:19:00] resources and information. Leo was talking about product comparisons and the website is really great at looking at side by sides if you wanting to compare a checking account or wanting to compare a loan.
So patelco. org. You can find our products and services listed there. You can access Bonsai, the financial education tool, learn more about budgeting and credit. And then that great score up credit builder loan that you talked about, Ivonne, it can also be accessed there. And of course, if you want to enjoy a weekend out in the community, now that the weather is improving, you can go see Leo and his team just about every festival around the Bay Area, right?
The community tab on the patelco. org page under community events, you can find out where we’re going to be. Come out there and engage with us, you know, stop by and have some fun and figure out how we can help support with your financial wellness. So you guys, it’s so great to have you in the studio.
Thank you for all that great work that you’re doing, supporting our communities, providing education [00:20:00] and serving our underserved.
That concludes today’s episode of Small Talks for Big Change, where we help simplify financial topics to help with your financial wellness. We’ll see you next time. Patelco Credit Union is insured by NCUA.

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Thanks for joining today’s episode of Small Talks for Big Change, where we help simplify financial topics to help with your financial wellness. My name is Michele Enriquez, your host here at Patelco Credit Union. And today we’re going to talk checking accounts. And we know it sounds so basic.
Everybody’s got a checking account, right? But when was the last time you kept your checking account honest? We’re going to keep it fun today. Keep it real and talk with some experts who help our members navigate with checking account. Maybe best for them. We’re welcoming back one of our faves to the studio, Andrew Farrell who’s our community engagement specialist and wanted to give a warm welcome.
To Uslea Evangelista, who’s the assistant branch manager of our San Francisco main branch. You guys excited for today? I’m always excited to be here, Michele. Thank you for having me back. I’m really excited. It’s my first podcast ever. First podcast! All right, guys, let’s go. Let’s get [00:01:00] right into it.
Checking accounts. Andrew, we’re going to start with you. Tell us a little bit more about what you do for Patelco. What makes you a checking account? Oh, an expert. I like that. So I work as a community engagement specialist with Patelco, which sounds exactly like what it is. I go out into the community and I engage.
, I work with community members at local events. I do financial education with high school and college students. And no matter where I am out in the community, my main objective is just to listen to people’s individual financial needs, and make sure that I’m finding the right fit for their lifestyle.
So I’ve been a Patelco employee for about six years, and Patelco is also my primary financial institution. We’ve got four checking accounts at Patelco and I myself have actually used two of them. I’ve also had an auto loan with Patelco. I’ve had a personal loan. I’ve had a savings account. I have a line of credit.
The list really goes on and on. I am a Patelco lifer. , I’m pretty knowledgeable about Patelco’s products and services and all the benefits we have. Not only because of my role in [00:02:00] talking about these things when I’m out in the community, but also just because of my own personal use. Do you like to sample?
I do. I do like to sample. Yes. I like that. What makes you a checking account expert? So I am the assistant branch manager at our SS Maine branch. Been working for Patelco for almost five years now and in banking for a decade. Can’t believe it. I’ve worked for big banks and now credit union, , seen it all.
So I’m a little picky with where I bank, especially with my checking accounts. Patelco is definitely up there. I’m not just saying that because in the branches, I deal with people who are new with banking or have a lot of questions with what we offer. And it’s very important for me to listen, , to what fits their needs so that I make sure that they make informed decisions with opening accounts.
Well, I wouldn’t consider myself a checking account expert. That’s the reason I invited you guys to the studio today. , I want to talk about how you [00:03:00] guys personally got set up with your own checking accounts. , because I have a feeling a lot of people out there might have the same experience I do and just got started at the place where their parents told them to bank and go get a checking account.
I actually don’t mind the checking account I have currently. I still have the one I opened when I was 16 when my mom took me down, but it might be time to just reevaluate and see what other options are out there. So I’m going to pick your brains about that. That’s what we’re here for. That is what you’re here for.
Ready? This is really just For my own personal use. So what was your experience started Andrew? I had the exact same experience as you. So I got my first checking account with my dad when I was 16. He just took me into his financial institution and said, you’ve got a job now. We’re going to get you a. And I can’t open up, , luckily for me, my dad has always been a credit union guy himself.
So I myself have also always been with credit unions. Yeah, exactly. , so yeah, never paying like monthly fees or having to maintain [00:04:00] balance requirements or direct deposit requirements. For me, that’s always been the norm. I find that a lot of times when I’m out talking to people in the community, they tend to start with a big bank, , that may have some kind of requirements or fees to keep the account open.
And then they learn about credit unions or other checking accounts that are totally free. And it’s like a light bulb moment for them. Like, why haven’t I always been doing this? It was the exact opposite for me. I’ve always had that. Once I learned later in life that there are bank accounts out there that charge you a monthly fee just to have the account open.
I thought, well, that, that’s. That’s silly. Let’s not pay that fee. Let’s open up a free account and do it that way. , I feel like I, I still have my original, , checking account that I opened when I was 16. Also, it’s with RightPAT Credit Union in Dayton, Ohio. Shout out RightPAT. , but I also have my, my primary one with Patelco now as well.
Making the switch was super easy from RightPAT to Patelco as my primary. When you open up a checking account with Patelco, they give you your full account number and routing number right there. It makes setting up direct deposit and all your automatic payments super a breeze. But [00:05:00] both those accounts, both my original checking account and this one are totally free.
So they align with that value of mine of not having to pay money unnecessarily. , they’re both also super easy to navigate with the mobile app, with digital wallets, with online banking. I feel like in general, banking has really evolved, in the last couple of years, especially as far as like technologically it goes.
And so it’s really important for me that my checking accounts kind of also evolve with the growing trends that are out there. Yeah, and, let’s talk about convenience for a second. We just recorded a youth, a youth month episode where we were talking about youth accounts and getting kids set up, right, and it’s one of those things that might be on your list, but it might be on the bottom of the list, right?
It’s just not a life priority. We know it’s important, we know we should do it, we know we should switch to an account that doesn’t pay fees, right, but it’s just It’s a matter of time for a lot of folks. Okay, so you’re saying it’s easy. It’s easy, very easy, very painless. Okay, so I could come to your branch and I could make this happen like frictionlessly.
Yeah, of course. So how [00:06:00] did you get started? What was your experience? So my experience of getting started with a checking account was very similar to yours, Michele. Got my checking account pretty early, maybe when I was 14. , I remember it being so exciting because I can get my own card for purchases.
Having your first debit card is so cool. You just feel on top of the world. Yeah. It’s like, It has my name on it. I can go to the mall with my friends and buy things with my own card. Yeah, it’s awesome. Yes I still have that account too because it’s just convenient to have and everything’s already linked to it But i’ve added a couple more checking accounts since then One for my credit card bills and just automatic payments and then the other one for random purchases I like to have the separate checking accounts just in case there’s fraud.
I don’t care Need to do an overhaul and redo everything. I just it’s just easier to change that one checking account I’m a little extra about it. I know but it works for me And the most [00:07:00] important thing I think is to find what works best for you Yeah, no, absolutely. So first of all, I’ve never thought about having multiple checking accounts.
I have multiple savings accounts, but not multiple checking. The checking is more accessible. So that’s actually a better idea. But let’s talk about this idea of finding the right fit for you, right? So there’s a lot of options out there and we’re not just talking about competition and now there’s fintechs and all these other things, but there’s also multiple different accounts at Patelco Credit Union.
So Andrew, you’re the best at this. Person to kind of just simplify break down all the options So help us understand all the different checking accounts options. Give us the lowdown I will give you guys the lowdown. So like I said earlier, we have four different checking accounts I’m gonna break down all four of them real quick.
So, you know strap in Number one if no fees are what’s most important to you. I think that first Free checking is probably going to be the best way to go. It’s a totally free checking account, and that doesn’t just mean there’s not a monthly fee. It also means there’s [00:08:00] not a minimum balance requirement.
There is no direct deposit requirement. No requirements at all to keep the account open. It’s the account that I currently use. I love it. I’ve had no issues with it. It’s fully compatible with Zelle, with Apple Wallet, so I can, you know, use it. Put my, put my thing in Apple Pay and it’s easy to use that way as well.
We also have an interest checking option that is also free if you maintain an average daily balance of 500, or if you have a direct deposit of, I believe, 100 a month, otherwise that has a 5 a month fee. The interest that you earn for that is 0. 05 percent annual percentage yield. So if you are able to organically achieve that 500 daily balance, that could be a good option for you.
Why not, you know, get a kickback of a few extra bucks a month? Why not some extra fluff in the checking account? If you do want even more perks or more benefits in your checking, we also offer what’s called Plus Checking. So Plus Checking has a 6. 95 fee, and that gets you all kinds of extra perks and benefits.
Lots and [00:09:00] lots of things you can get with this. You get EasyShield Identity Theft Protection, so a nice fraud protection partnership that we have. You’ll get cell phone protection with that. You will get two free ATM rebates per month, and it doesn’t matter how much the ATM fee is. I’m going to Vegas for a couple of weeks for my birthday.
I’m very excited. It’s my first time, but I’ve heard out there that a lot of the ATMs, especially like in the casinos in Vegas, sometimes charge you 10 just to pull your cash out with plus checking. If you do that in an ATM, we will reimburse up to two of those per month for you. It doesn’t matter if it’s a 2 fee, a 20 fee.
We got you covered. You get free credit monitoring with that. You get your quarterly credit score, your quarterly credit report, you get roadside assistance. The list really goes on and on. If you want more information about all the benefits you get with Plus Checking, patelco. org. Go to our checking tab and then Plus Checking.
It has it all broken down right there, but you get a lot for that 695 fee. We’re not just charging it for you for a maintenance fee. We want to make sure that the value is there. Our [00:10:00] last checking account option is going to be student checking. This is another totally free account, so no minimum balances, no monthly fees.
This is geared towards students ages 13 to 17. It’s going to have lower ATM and daily purchase limits, so we want to make sure that we are teaching responsible habits. But the cool thing with this is that no parent is required to be on the account, so it does give the youth some kind of financial independence as they sort of start to.
Transfer into adulthood with their finances a parent can be on the account if that’s the preference But if the kid wants to have some kind of you know, financial independence, they’re able to do so by themselves Okay, lots of great option, but just depends on you know, what you value most about how you want to do banking So we’ve got a free checking account option, right?
Like everybody has yeah, I say is gonna break down For us in a second some additional features of that free checking account this interest account is interesting we talk a lot about our money market accounts, but I think we sometimes forget about that interest [00:11:00] checking account And that’s not a terrible rate.
No and then the plus checking we hear a lot out in the community about the cell phone insurance being really cool along with the identity. Yeah, theft feature So that is great to know about and then the student account is very specific Right, my son is gonna be 13 this year. He’s already looking forward to opening his first account.
Getting that Apple Pay set up. He’s getting the Apple Pay set up. And he’s really looking forward to that debit card that you were talking about. It has his name on it. It’s more about the tap feature. It has nothing to do with the name. The tap is pretty cool. The tap is pretty cool. I think it is, it is pretty cool.
So, okay, thank you for breaking those down for us. Of course. I think free checking is probably the most popular of all the four. It’s what most people recognize. Right, but there’s some other cool things about it too and some cool new things, right? That’s why I tell us about those. We’d love to. Okay. So the checking account, the free checking account is what I use here at Pataco too.
Like what Andrew said, it’s completely free. So no hassle, no keeping track of balances. You don’t have to make [00:12:00] sure that you have direct deposit. So it’s a really great checking account for everyone. , so some cool new features want to talk about, , are roundup and prize out really. Excited about these things.
So prize out , you can get bonus of up to 20 percent by just buying gift cards to places You’d normally go to through the patelco mobile app using your checking account So let’s say you’re taking the whole family to the movies. You can buy a movie gift card for a hundred dollars and that 20 bonus it gets added to that gift card.
So you’re actually getting 120. So I pay for a gift card for 100, but I get a gift card for 120. That is crazy. Because of the bonus feature. That’s awesome. Yeah, it’s really cool. It’s a great way to get more bang for your buck. Full disclosure, though, it’s not always 20%. It just depends on the retailer’s deal at the time.
But there are a lot of retailers to choose from. Target is also in there, which I love. [00:13:00] We love a target run. Everyone loves a target run. And then there’s Roundup, which is an optional feature you can add to your checking account that helps you save money without lifting a finger. So what it does is it rounds up your purchases to the nearest dollar and puts That’s the change in your savings account.
So for example, you use your debit card to buy coffee for 4. 50. It will automatically round up that purchase to 5 and put the 0. 50 in your savings. Nice. Right? And if you want to get extra aggressive with it, you can choose to multiply your automatic savings either three times or five times the original roundup amount.
So if you opt into the five times roundup option, for example, instead of rounding up The 0. 50 change on that cup of coffee, it’ll move 2. 50 into savings automatically. So you don’t even have to think about it. You’re just purchasing stuff and then saving money. That sounds great. So cool. Okay, let’s go back to this prize out thing because, , you had me [00:14:00] at Target.
You had me at the movies too because a movie trip nowadays for a family of four is over. Pricey, pricey. Okay, so I go into the mobile app, the feature is totally free. So I go in there, , and then every day there’s new retailers and they can include, yeah, I was just scrolling on the app actually this morning, and there’s just so many, I’m just kept scrolling.
Theres Alta, there was Target, there was a MC, there’s Adidas, Nike, all of the big brands. Okay. So this could be a good gift too, well it’s an electronic gift card, but it’s, it’s. So I find a deal that I like, this almost sounds similar to Rakuten and some other things out there. So I go on there, find a deal that I like, I can purchase it directly from Rakuten.
My checking account. Exactly. That’s amazing. And then you get the gift card via email So if I wanted to gift it or send it to somebody I could also Mm hmm. It’s like an electronic gift card. You can you can just [00:15:00] share that with whoever you want to get It sounds like for every birthday. I have an option.
Extra money. Right at my fingertips I’ve also heard that Safeway is a retailer that’s on there too and with grocery prices where I could use some extra money Extra bonuses for, , food purchases and grocery purchases. Yes, stretch that dollar. Absolutely. Everything’s so expensive right now. So this roundup feature sounds really cool too.
Without naming the bank that I still have from when I was 16, they have a feature very And the, , within my app, it’s pretty cool. It shows you how much you’ve saved in a month and then over a year or two. I think that’s a new feature through the Patelco app too. But for me, it’s an average of about 250 I save every year.
And it’s one of those things that’s just out of sight, out of mind, right? In your example, the 50 cent roundup, you’re not going to miss that 50 cents. And would I have probably saved that 50 cents without the roundup feature? Probably not. And it [00:16:00] accumulates so quickly. It’s just an easy way to save, and 250 doesn’t sound like a lot, but you know, at the end of the year, when Christmas rolls around, it’s helpful.
And you can choose to put that money into the money market savings account, so you can get more interest. Grow interest on top of that, too? Yes. It’s wild. That’s why you guys are here today. Ok, so last question. Andrew, when you’re teaching financial education in the classroom, what surprises you most about your understanding of checking accounts and how to choose one with our young people.
So I think a lot of the young people, , the youths, if you will, are in the same position that we spoke about earlier, where all they know about checking accounts, if they even have one, is just whatever they opened up with their parent when they, you know, first got the account open. , I think a lot of the young people don’t know there are different types of checking accounts that are out there.
They just stick with what they do know. , I will say a lot of them are really interested in, Like the digital banks and the fintechs and all the new ones that are popping up and fintechs are great because they don’t have physical branch [00:17:00] locations. They’re able to pay a little bit more in Interest rates and lower fees and things like that and fintechs are are for sure a good way to go but I do want to reiterate that brick and mortar banks are still cool, too.
They’re still fun, too financial institutions that have physical branches, especially credit unions, they can still offer the same great rates, but they’re also totally full service, so if you ever need a mortgage, or a home loan, or a personal loan, or any of those other cool things that I mentioned at the beginning of this podcast, you have all that under one roof.
Plus, you get the face to face access,, so I, I’m still, call me old fashioned, but I still like a good old fashioned, four wall financial institution. And we love people visiting our branches, you know, we like to see faces. Well, I was just going to say too, you get the opportunity to go sit down with somebody like Islea and just have a conversation and maybe weigh those options where you might not have that, , if you’re sitting behind a computer screen trying to figure it out yourself.
Okay, let’s go around the room one more time. Let’s share one littlest known fact about any one of [00:18:00] those checking accounts. Islea, we’ll start with you. I have more than a couple because it’s just a lot. Go for it. , this really surprised me when transitioning from big banks to Patoco, we print debit cards in branch and they are free up to two cards for the year.
So if you lose your card and need a new one right away, head to one of our branches. , I also love that our checking accounts are Zelle compatible because I hate having to wait for transfers to hit my bank account. Yep. And with Zelle. That’s instant. And speaking of not having to wait for money to hit your account, direct deposit with the telco checking account, it can hit your account up to two days earlier.
, so if you get paid on a Friday, it can hit your account as soon as Wednesday. So that’s really cool. That’s awesome. You know, sometimes we forget about those in branch card, , options, right? I think , a lot of times now, , We’re a little fearful of having debit cards mailed to our house, number one.
I don’t want to wait for seven days or, you know, minimum seven to ten days, too, so just another advantage of brick and mortar, to Andrew’s [00:19:00] point. And if you’re going on a trip, you, you can just. Go to the branch and get a card. You don’t have to go on a trip with no card. No card. Andrew, how about you little is known fact about our checking account?
So I want to talk about the co op shared branch network because I personally use it myself a lot Like I said earlier, I have my other credit union account with right pack credit union and I have one with patelco credit union , and it’s cool that I can use both of those interchangeably. So how that works is I feel like Yeah One thing I hear from a lot of people is they are maybe a little bit more trepidatious about moving their accounts from a large bank to a credit union because they hear that, you know, I can, yeah, yeah, I can find a bank account ATM anywhere in the country.
I can’t find a Patelco ATM anywhere. , Patelco is actually a part of this co op shared branch network that is, I would say like 99 percent of all credit unions are a part of, meaning you can use any of those credit union ATMs completely interchangeably [00:20:00] without any fees. It is the largest ATM network in the country, so larger than any individual bank’s ATM network.
We’ve got over 30, 000 completely fee free ATMs that you can use. , many of them are also full service as well, so you can do deposits and withdrawals and do a lot more. Transactions and just pulling out some cash And there are other fee free ATMs that are also in this network like 7 eleven, Circle K, Dunkin Donuts, Costco is in there Yeah, girl, Costco Next time you’re getting your rotisserie chicken go pull out 20.
Why not? You can find all of them on co op. org is what I go to so just C O O P dot org on their website, there’s an ATM branch locator. You can click that and just put in your zip code and it’ll tell you all the ATMs you can use on there. There’s also a feature where you can put filters as well, so if you want to find an ATM specifically that like takes check deposits or one that is ADA accessible or whatever, you can filter in what your needs are and it’ll pull up exactly what [00:21:00] ATMs you can use in the locations you’re going to be traveling to.
Great stuff, you guys. I always tell folks, if you can’t find an ATM, find a 7 Eleven. There’s gotta be a 7 Eleven nearby. You always get cash back, too, at a lot of retailers. , I don’t think many people are still using ATMs and getting cash, but, you know, when you need it, you need it.
I’m gonna thank you guys so much for coming into the studio today. I think I need to make a move. I think I have everything I need to make a decision now. Let’s do it! And for everybody out there wanting to see all the features, all the details and the rates, you can find more information at patelco. org slash checking and see all of the options out there that Andrew and Uslea were talking about today.
Thank you guys so much for being here today. That concludes today’s episode of Small Talks for Big Change, where we help simplify financial topics to help with your financial wellness. Botelco Credit Union is insured by NCUA.

[00:00:00]
Thank you for joining today’s episode of Small Talks for Big Change, where we help simplify financial topics to help with your financial wellness. My name is Michele Enriquez, membership development manager here at Patelco Credit Union, and greetings out there, everyone. It is youth month for us, folks.
at credit unions around the globe. It’s a time of year when credit unions teach and encourage kids to develop strong financial habits. And today we’ve got an expert in supporting youth with financial education with us today. I’ve had the pleasure of working alongside her for many years and had to get her in the studio today to talk about youth month.
Kristi Longoria, member experience and financial well being. program partner. Welcome back to Small Talks for Big Change. Thanks so much for having me, Michele. That new title is so long. It’s a lot. So long. Kristi, we’ve been at this credit union youth financial empowerment thing for over a decade now. Tell us a little bit about some of the [00:01:00] work that you’ve done with Credit Union specific to supporting youth. There’s a lot that we’ve done over the past decade, but I think one of the most important sort of themes and things that I’ve learned over the years is that Credit unions exist in this really unique space between providing the financial products and services that are responsible for members no matter where they are starting their financial journeys and where they’re headed and being responsible for educating and providing support to their communities.
This is a space that when I first joined credit union industry did not know existed. And I kind of felt like at the time when I’m really just thinking about how do I develop content? How do I partner with nonprofit organizations? How do I work with the schools? How do I do this? How do I do that? There was no script for it.
It was really [00:02:00] just take it, do something, change it. And then we’ll see where we are. And that organic process of being able to just do that makes credit unions so unique on both being able to provide for their communities in ways that they specifically need it, and for the educator to be able to make something that truly matters.
And that’s why every credit union’s, you know, program. It’s so unique because it’s reflective of the communities that they’re serving. And that’s so important. It’s so critical to be able to go out, teach something, realize, wait, maybe that doesn’t make sense. I remember one of my first experiences when I was teaching financial education was going out and talking about budgeting and savings.
Right? We always have those core components, budgeting and saving, [00:03:00] credit, identity theft, when we’re working with youth, we talk about scholarships, and I remember going out and talking about why it’s so important to budget and save, and here are the products and services that you can utilize to do those things, and realizing that wasn’t even the right question to be answering because how do you teach somebody to budget and save who’s on a very limited income?
How do you provide a product or a service to someone who has nontraditional forms of identification? So how do you really teach financial education alongside the products and services? And sometimes you can’t. Right? Sometimes you have to really just take a step back and think, What am I trying to accomplish here?
And it’s well being. Right? How am I going to be able? To talk to a group of 20 different people. One person’s never stepped foot in a bank or a credit union before. And somebody else had credit [00:04:00] and life happened and now they’re rebuilding. And then you’ve got a youth here who’s, you know, whose parent is still a firm believer of keeping their cash in, you know, underneath the mattress or in a drawer and all of these things.
And then you’re met with the challenge of what our teachers are faced with every day, is different populations at different levels coming from all of these different places. And one of the things that really I think what makes credit unions so special is that you have a team usually, or at least an individual, going out into the community and seeing what do they need?
What does the school in this city need versus the other cities need? And what does this population need? And then you bring that back to the powerhouse that is financial literacy. Institutions and make that change. So, you know, when we ask like, what are the things that you’ve been able to, to do? All I’ve really done is just listen.
Our members have the answers. They have what it is, that they need. They just need that outlet. They need [00:05:00] somebody to tell, they need somebody to trust to say like, Hey, you know, I really think that it is super important to budget and save. Sure. Wish I could have a, a bank or a credit union to help me do that.
And then you have the conversation, well, what do you have? What information are you needing? You know, and then you start connecting the dots. And then you can create something that’s really powerful for your communities. We’ve been able to work with our incarcerated youth, our pregnant teen moms. We’ve created specialized, you know, education for these groups because they need it.
This one size fits all idea that, you know, you can just go out and do budgeting and saving. If you’re doing that, it’s great. But you can always do more, you can always listen better, you can hear between the lines, even 10, 15 years down the road when we’ve been doing this, I learn something every single time I go out and I talk to the youth, to our at risk populations, to our high need members.
And if you’re not learning, you’re not asking the right questions. And that’s, that’s really, what I think I’ve, I’ve taken away from how [00:06:00] much power education is. You’re so amazing. I just feel super lucky to have been kind of riding your coattails along this journey. We’ve had so many classroom encounters.
Stories and classroom experiences, you and I, that we’ll save for another, podcast episode. I think there’s one consistent theme that we always heard following, , presentations and it’s, I wish I had this when I was younger. Every time. Right? And we know how important it is, right, to teach, teach kids young and still these financial principles, understand the importance of credit, understand the importance of credit and its connection to employment.
, understanding student loan debt implications, consumer loan debt implications, the list On and on, right? When you started working with youth, you understood all of these things, right? The importance of instilling these principles, the fact that it’s really lacking in our educational system and we know the state of [00:07:00] California is working on implementing some legislation, right?
But now you’re a mom of two little ones, so now that you’ve got kids, has your viewpoint changed at all? It has, I think, on both ends. So what it means to educate our littlest littles, right? So I have a 2-year-old, just turned 2-year-old, and I just turned 5-year-old. Crazy. , and for the parents and family members that are supporting those kids too, what, what does it mean to be financially educated as a parent?
And it’s always that last descriptor that we miss. It’s, it’s like financial wellbeing. For a lot of different things, for being a parent, for being, you know, a teacher, for being, you know, whatever it is. There’s always something specific to who you are, how you identify yourself, that you can learn and tie back into financial education.
A lot of people don’t think that you can teach financial education to the [00:08:00] littlest of the littles. And, I think it’s a, it’s a common misconception because, well, they don’t even know numbers, right? They don’t understand, you know, quantity of things and how do you teach them about money. But that’s already sort of the basis of the problem when we teach financial education is that we think it has to start there.
It’s actually starting like 20 feet back. We’re talking about values, family values. What’s important to you? What do you think is interesting about your community? What is community? How does the fire station and the police department and your school and all of these communities come together to provide support?
And then on top of that, you start thinking about value in terms of a monetary money kind of mindset. But none of that is important right now for them. And it’s really just about knowing when to ask questions, understanding who your resources are, All of those things, if we’d really focused on youth [00:09:00] education, financial or not.
If we teach how to ask a question or recognize when you don’t know for sure what an answer is, none of the challenges that we run into with our members and ourselves, I’m not excluding myself from from, you know this as well, but if we teach people how to do that, then we don’t run into this issue that we see in the communities with adults who.
You know, they’ve made mistakes. They don’t feel like they’re on the same playing field as everybody else. And it’s so easy in concept to go into a community space and break down those barriers. You can pretty much level set immediately by putting our own stories out there. You know, we teach and we’re in these spaces, not because we’ve never made mistakes before.
I’ve said this all the time. It’s because we’ve literally made all the mistakes. So there’s really nothing, you’re not going to surprise me with [00:10:00] anything, these days. And you present yourself as somebody who can Solve problems, whether you’re one or two years old, 30, 40, 50, seniors, it doesn’t matter.
We’re all problem solvers, and I think if we start really focusing on financial education and well being in that space first, then as adults, it’s just about connecting you to resources. , But I think for parents, too, nobody could have prepared me for what it means to budget for having two little ones.
Although Michele did try to warn me. She did. She gave me, she told me, she said, oh, here’s your girl. I was a little bit ahead of you. I tried to warn you. We talk a lot about, on the show, , about just education and communication. Right? Early intervention, communication along the way, having advocates when you need them.
, let’s talk about some of these kids expectations, right? Do you remember that little kid that I used to bring to classes and events, that little [00:11:00] boy? Who used to eat all the oranges. He did. All the oranges. That little boy is going to be 13 and getting his debit card soon. I cannot believe it. Crazy, right?
I did some research. I grabbed an article from the Wall Street Journal, titled, What, Young People Want from Banks. Let’s talk about it in a minute. It reads, , that young people in the future are going to be looking for their financial institution to be engaging, to understand, what their needs are, in real time.
They’re expecting us to be trusted and sophisticated. To be appreciative of consumers trust and rewarding of loyalty, grounded in science and algorithms, and sensitive to human emotions, and then finally be modern and frictionless, just aware of banking activity on any platform, everything automated, invisible if possible, and you know this, instant gratification, right?
I need it now. What are your thoughts about this and, have you thought about this in connection with your kids and some of their behaviors and expectations [00:12:00] with money? Yeah, these, it’s really interesting to see how youth growing up now don’t know any other way. They don’t, they push buttons and stuff happens, like that is literally their entire lives.
So, you know, the expectation that they will have as that carries over into everything school and banking alike, right, is, is fast. And it works, and in principle, it’s kind of, it makes sense, right? It’s just, does the thing that I need, that’s really what they want. , so I absolutely agree. Fast, easy, and emphasis, too, on trusted.
I think this generation has, so much information, so much access to information, that it’s very easy to, Fact check. Is this accurate? Should this have happened? You know, I thought or expected this product or service to work this way, and it didn’t. So they’ll tell us. They’ll tell us. And I think [00:13:00] it’s great because we’ll get that feedback.
We’ll make sure that, you know, from Patelco’s standpoint, that we are listening to the members and, and they are the answers to the test, right? We hear this question over and over and over again, like, what can we do better? How can we make sure that our, our members needs are met? Ask them. And then listen.
It’s really what we do here, right? And I think that’s what makes the availability of our products and services, how they work, so unique because we’re asking, Hey, did this work as intended? No. How do we do it better? And we’re part of those meetings. We go to those meetings and we say, Hey, we heard from the members this, that, and the other.
How do we make it better? That’s. It’s such a powerful tool, I think for all of, all of our members, but especially for our youth to feel like they can engage, , in that way. So yes, absolutely, engaged. I love the fact that we’re able to take real life experiences from the field and bring it back to the [00:14:00] roundtables here and, and share what it is we’re hearing from our young people and all members alike.
, let’s talk about more about this first point from the article, the fact that our young people are needing, their financial institution to be engaging. Tell us about this cool resource Banzai that looks like youth would really enjoy, , regarding financial education. Yeah. Patelco has a lot of different, , resources that we can connect our members to, to provide education.
And what I love too about Banzai and Balance and all of these other, vendors that we partner with is that there’s a mode for learning for everything. So. You can be the kind of person that wants to just read. I just want to sit and read and digest and think about, you know, what it means to truly budget and save.
Then there’s, you know, the doer group, where that wants to print out something and write it down and think it through. And Michele is definitely that kind of person. She’s, she, I know for a fact, she likes to [00:15:00] write. , I’m not the best writer. I like to use my phone or whatever to take quick notes, those kinds of things, and, and Bonds is a really great tool because it can offer all of those things.
There’s small videos, , they’re bite sized, which is really great, , sometimes when there’s just too much information, especially about a topic like financial wellness and well being, it takes a certain, you know, kind of motivation to do it. to crack open that egg. I think we’re very, you know, resistant sometimes to thinking about what our actual challenges are, from a financial standpoint day to day because it’s overwhelming.
And so when you have something like Banzai where you can go small bites of reading, watching things, listening to things, It’s just whatever you need it to be, right? It doesn’t have to be groundbreaking and you don’t have to, you know, have a whole lot of time to dedicate to it. But interactive is really important, especially for our, our students.
And everybody has a different [00:16:00] mode of learning, everyone prefers, just like I like my paper and pen and my paper calendar that you’re roasting me about, you know, everybody has a different preference in the way that they, they consume information. Let’s talk about this modern and frictionless need.
From what we believe our young people to need from financial institutions. This is not part of our outline, but I want to ask you about our student checking account because you were, you brought a lot of those needs from the community to the round table back here and said, Hey, we really need to fix our student checking account to make it more modern and frictionless to give easier access for our youth.
Tell us a little bit about the Patelco student checking account. Yeah, student checking is really great because it’s a safe way for Our students to learn how to actively monitor their money, just the basics, right? All you really need and all our students really need is to learn card safety. Right? Debit card safety, to be able to turn your debit card off and [00:17:00] on is a huge benefit because kids lose stuff all the time.
And we have that technology to support them at a younger age. So, our student checking account is available for students that are 13 to 17. A lot of times we get questions like, oh, 13 seems kind of young. And it’s definitely a family decision, you know, and it’s, , it’s a personal decision on when somebody is ready for a checking account.
But if the product is safe. Safe and secure, and provides the student with the ability to turn it off if it’s lost, have alerts turned on if it’s used somewhere unexpected, set the limits responsibly. , it gives them the freedom, honestly, sometimes to make mistakes. It’s really about how you recover from those mistakes, and student checking is a really great way to establish that financial independence without too much concern about, you know, something potentially bad happening to them.
Because fraud, we know, is a huge problem for every person, [00:18:00] basically. It’s, it’s, you know, something that’s going to be unavoidable, honestly, no matter where it is that you bank, you’re going to run into some of those challenges, and one of the things that I’m a huge proponent of is operating in that safe space.
Where can you learn these things in a place that, isn’t gonna, you know, hold you responsible for the, you know, things that are out of your control? So student checking is really great. 1, you know, to join as a member, 10 to fund, , the account. And you’re on your way. My almost 13 year old, that little boy, he’s so excited to get it set up.
His birthday’s in October. We’re having conversations about it. His first question to me, does it have that tap capability? So tell us. Yes. Can you get a debit card? And does it, can he tap it? Yes. To pay? Yes. And he can add it to his Apple Wallet too? Yep. He can add it, to Apple Wallet. Like, how empowering is it to see a card?
And for us, it’s so simple. It’s just kind of like, Eh, it’s another Debra card. But [00:19:00] for that student, for the first time, having this really cool card with their name on the bottom, like, it’s empowering, right? So you have to be able to, we want to be able to make sure that they are, Empowered to use it, empowered to ask questions, and really make sure they’re reaching out if they, , ever find themselves in some trouble.
So the product is flexible too, right? So, you know, a parent guardian can be joint on the account, but they don’t have to, right, for students that have, you know, Challenges or would prefer to be on the account alone, they can, but when I set this up, I’ll definitely be joining the account and helping them monitor it and have conversations along the way.
But he can get that Apple Wallet feature, get his first debit card. So we’re talking a lot about that. All right. So, you made the mistake of telling me that for your little one, you haven’t set up her youth account yet. So for your two year old. So, do I have to take you down to the branch and help get that open?
What’s, what’s been holding you back? [00:20:00] You know, you would be proud of me. I actually did open my daughter’s account. You did because, because I sent this to you a month ago and you’re like, I’m not gonna get on this podcast, ever. Yeah, no, that was, You know, I really feel for all the families and the parents out there, the first two years of, you know, that, it’s just, whew, there’s a lot going on there.
And it’s so funny though, because with my son, it was like, before he was even, you know, here, I was like, oh, we’re going to plan and we’re going to do this, that, and the other. And, you know, the account’s going to be open and then ready to go. And then the second one was born and she, you know, like the second ones usually are through a, you know, a wrench in my plans, came a couple months early, really, and then I blinked and she was two.
I don’t even think I got her birth certificate until like six months ago or something like that. And one of the biggest. benefits [00:21:00] was being able to sign up for her savings account virtually. This is really the power of having a financial institution that meets you where you are because any other place could have just been like, well, you got to come into the branch.
You got to come in and you got to do this. You got to bring this and you got to bring that and fine. We have our little checklist of things that we have to bring. But like, when am I supposed to do that? She’s getting out of daycare. The other one’s gotta be picked up from aftercare. And then there’s sports.
And then there’s this. And then, and then like, oh, like, have time now. And it’s like peak traffic time and I can’t make it over. To the branch. So I was able to finally get her savings account. I can’t leave you alone. I can’t leave you alone. So now, I can be. We definitely hear it all the time, right? Is this like getting a passport for my kids where I’ve got to gather all these documents?
And you know, they’ve got to be present and I’ve got to do all these things. It was pretty frictionless, right? Easy. The easy, [00:22:00] and the thing is, if it wasn’t easy like this, It wouldn’t have happened. Honestly, it would not have happened. I would have just been like, it would have been like nine. Or if it wasn’t the fear of me getting you in the studio and giving you a hard time about it.
Well, I’m glad you got it done. But I also want to encourage everyone out there. It’s one of those things that’s Just the last on your priority list. We know it’s important, but it really truly is easy, right? So at 36 branch locations you can visit, but you can also take advantage of virtual branch and get it done virtually.
So you already had an account here, so they have your information. It’s just a matter of you giving your kids info. So easy. Okay. So you’re giving hope out there for all of our listeners out there. It can’t be done. It’s last on the list, but make it your first priority. It just takes 15 minutes. Yeah. Easy.
Lunchtime. A lunchtime task. All right. Well, we know how important it is. It is Youth Month and we’re encouraging everyone out there to just take this time to focus on financial [00:23:00] education and empowering our little ones. With everything financial education, want to go back to some of these resources that Kristi shared today.
Our Banzai financial education platform can be accessed at our website, patelco. org slash financial wellness. You can find the Banzai platform out there along with balance, spring four, and a ton There’s a ton of other financial education resources, but Banzai is really that really cool tool, , that our youth are really into just because it’s gamified and it just, it’s just cool looking.
Student checking information can also be found on our website under the checking tab. Find student checking information and then how to get signed up there too. Well, happy youth month, Kristi. Happy youth month. You are my favorite person to talk about all things youth and all things youth. All things, empowering our youth education and the like.
Get them started early, folks. Let us help educate them along the way. That concludes today’s episode of [00:24:00] Small Talks for Big Change, where we help simplify financial topics to help with your financial wellness. We’ll see you next time. Patelco Credit Union is insured by NCUA.