FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 31, 2020                                             

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Washington, D.C. – Military Saves Month is taking place April 1-30. The event is an expansion of the widely popular Military Saves Week, which was historically celebrated in last week of February since 2008 and by tripling the length of this important event, Military Saves hopes to encourage the military community to save money even more effectively and to reduce their debt.

Over 220 organizations are participating – including military installations, financial institutions, the private sector, and nonprofits. Together these participants will host a national conversation around financial capability and literacy while encouraging the military community to pause for a financial check-in and evaluate their savings behaviors. 

"It's important for service members and their families to know that it's never too late to start saving for the future. Small steps in building a savings habit can make a big difference over time, and the secret to saving is simple," says Angela Caban, Director of Military Saves. "People with a plan are twice as likely to save successfully, whether they are saving for an emergency, retirement, or another goal, Military Saves Month is the perfect opportunity to set a savings goal, make a plan, and learn how to save the most effective way – automatically."

"The 2019 Military Saves Saver Survey reported that unexpected expenses are still the biggest challenge when it comes to saving (57 percent). The COVID-19 pandemic is an unfortunate situation that is currently impacting military families and their finances. The timing of this campaign will help us to spearhead the conversation in April around saving during a national crisis and help service members and their families take action toward their savings plan."

Military Saves and participating organizations, like Navy Federal Credit Union, AmeriForce Media, Armed Forces Bank, the National Credit Union Foundation, Association for Financial Counseling & Planning Education (AFCPE), and Zeiders Enterprises are committed to empowering military families on their financial journey.

 Throughout the month, the joint initiative will share resources, tools, and tips to motivate service members, veterans, retirees, and their families to build or increase their personal savings, and to do it the easiest and most effective way possible, which is automatically.

 “Military Saves Month is unique in that it provides the opportunity for all of us to support a community that sacrifices for us daily," says George Barany, director of America Saves. "We know from talking to our military savers – and through our own data and research – the unique challenges that military families face, such as constant moving and deployments, making it harder for them to save effectively. Those life changes often affect their credit ratings and deplete any savings they've managed to accrue. Military Saves Month allows us to collectively encourage and support our service members and their families while they take positive actions toward better financial health," Barany concluded.

 To follow the Military Saves Month conversation, follow the hashtag #MSM2020.

 Learn more about Military Saves Month.

Military Saves is an initiative of America Saves, a campaign managed by the nonprofit Consumer Federation of America that uses the principles of behavioral economics and social marketing to motivate, encourage, and support low- to moderate-income households to save money, reduce debt, and build wealth. Military Saves encourages active duty service members, veterans, retirees, and their families to take the Military Saves pledge and organizations to promote savings year-round and during Military Saves Month. Learn more at militarysaves.org.