Photo: Volunteer Nick Costa, Financial Service Specialist, Muncy Office, Service 1st, helps students choose their entertainment budget during the financial reality fair.

(Danville, PA) – Throughout July, Service 1st Federal Credit Union partnered with the Foundation for Free Enterprise Education and PALCO Federal Credit Union to host five financial reality fairs at Lycoming College and Penn College for Pennsylvania students.

“Service 1st was excited to be approached by the Foundation for Free Enterprise Education to be a part of the programming for PA Free Enterprise Week (PFEW),” said Ben McDuffee, Assistant Vice President of the Muncy Office, Service 1st. “We knew it would be a huge undertaking, assembling volunteers from so many different organizations. I was blown away by the support we got in offering this Financial Reality Fair to the students at PFEW. We had over 130 different volunteers, many coming back over the course of multiple weeks.”

The reality fairs, held on July 2, 9, 23, 30, and 31, allowed students to choose a career and receive a starting salary before challenging them to make decisions on essential and non-essential items such as clothing, housing, transportation, entertainment, and more. After simulating a real-life financial scenario, students concluded the event by meeting with a financial advisor to review their budget. With the support of 130+ volunteers representing various businesses and organizations across the state, the financial reality fairs provided a mock budgeting experience to 1,900 Pennsylvania students.

“Service 1st has always embraced our core value of supporting our community through our local schools. We know that financial education and real-world application is something young people sorely need before they are sent into the real world. We hope that this experience helps equip them to make those smart financial decisions,” added McDuffee. “Service 1st conducts Financial Reality Fairs throughout the school year in many of the school districts in our market footprint. This five-week adventure was by far the largest fair we’ve ever been a part of. We look forward to being a part of the programming at PA Free Enterprise Week in the future!”

For more information regarding organizing a Financial Reality Fair, call our Contact Center at 800.562.6049, or visit www.service1.org and select the chat icon.