AMERICA SAVES HONORS MOST FINANCIALLY IMPACTFUL ORGANIZATIONS WITH THE 2023 MILITARY SAVES SAVINGS CHAMPION AWARD

For Immediate Release: July 31, 2023

Contact: info@militarysaves.org

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) July 31, 2023 — Today America Saves unveiled the 2023 recipients of their annual Military Saves Champion Award, an award recognizing organizations that made the greatest financial impact throughout their communities during Military Saves Week. Thanks to the nearly 500 organizations that partnered with America Saves for the week, collective efforts impacted nearly 16.4M individuals across the globe, reaching as far as Germany, South Korea and Japan.

“Helping your community navigate money matters in an economic era with inflation and housing crises compounded with the very unique challenges of the military and veteran lifestyle—like PCSing, military spouse unemployment and under-employment, and food insecurity—is no easy feat,” said Kia McCallister-Young, Director of America Saves. “We are excited to honor nine organizations with the Military Saves Champion award for their extraordinary work in doing just that. As an organization, America Saves’ approach to building financial confidence is one of inclusion; one which acknowledges that Savers have to be in a very specific mindset and position before saving is a possibility. We are honored to join forces and recognize organizations that understand and agree that there are many ways to mobilize and positively influence the financial habits of military families.”

Military Saves Week 2023 took place April 24-28 and included activities like forums, workshops and more to encourage service members and their families to pause and do a financial check-in. Of the individuals reached throughout the week, 76,500 reported making positive financial behavior shifts during the week, including opening savings accounts, choosing to automate their savings or increasing the amount they were saving automatically.

2023 Military Saves Savings Champion Recipients

USO (United Service Organization), Armed Forces Financial Network, Harris Financial Coaching, Ohio Tuition Trust Authority/CollegeAdvantage/Ohio529, AAFMAA Wealth Management & Trust, AAFMAA, Connecticut State Library, DC Department of Insurance Securities and Banking, FINRA Investor Education Foundation, First Command-Las Vegas

“The USO is honored to receive the Military Saves Week Savings Champion Award,” said USO Vice President of Transitions Programs, Lisa Elswick. “We all want to be in a position of financial wellness. The men and women who serve in our military and their spouses experience a unique set of challenges, both the expected and unexpected. Our USO Transitions program provides personalized financial wellness support throughout their journey. Setting solid financial goals is key to the long-term success of our military families and we are proud to partner with Military Saves on this initiative.”

Many Savers also took the Military Saves Pledge, a digital tool that guides Savers through setting a savings goal and making a simple plan to reach that goal. The top three savings goals identified through the pledge—25% choosing to save for General Savings, 24% choosing Emergency Fund and 12% choosing to save for Housing, including homeownership, repairs, or renting—give insight into how inflation, housing cost increases, PCSing, and the pandemic inform what matters most to military service members and their families financially.

America Saves also unveiled its newest initiative—Veteran Saves—during the week. Veteran Saves will hone in on ongoing Military Saves efforts to focus even more on the unique needs facing veterans and their families. For more information on Veteran Saves, please visit veteransaves.org.

About America Saves

America Saves is an initiative of the nonprofit Consumer Federation of America that empowers individuals—especially the most vulnerable and marginalized populations—to build financial confidence through realistic and easy-to-implement strategies that allow for saving, reducing debt and getting on a path to building wealth.

Using a Personal Values Led™ approach, America Saves provides resources, training, content and campaigns such as America Saves Week and Military Saves Week that motivate and encourage individuals to take action toward positive financial habits. Since its inception, nearly one million individuals have been impacted by America Saves and each year, almost 12,000 organizations partner with America Saves to utilize and amplify resources and programming. Learn more at americasaves.org.