One of the hardest parts of getting out of homelessness is getting a bank account, learning to budget and re-establishing credit.
Without these, a person with felonies or bad credit cannot get a bank account, which is necessary to rent an apartment or buy a home.
Mark Tufte, branch manager of Country Bank in Cottonwood, is a community member who helps out these individuals trying to get out of homelessness and poverty.
By Greg Nix
Larson Newspapers
One of the hardest parts of getting out of homelessness is getting a bank account, learning to budget and re-establishing credit.
Without these, a person with felonies or bad credit cannot get a bank account, which is necessary to rent an apartment or buy a home.
Mark Tufte, branch manager of Country Bank in Cottonwood, is a community member who helps out these individuals trying to get out of homelessness and poverty.
A trainer for the Arizona Saves Program, he teaches budgeting, credit, making smart money choices and general money matters. People who successfully complete his training courses can then open a savings account with his bank, and their felonies or credit score will be overlooked.
Tufte learned about the program after reading about it in the Arizona Republic. He decided to look into it and became certified as a trainer about a year ago.
Right now, he is the only trainer in the Verde Valley, and would be very happy to have more people sign up to teach the classes.
The reason he decided to teach these classes was because of his daughter. He wants her to grow up in a good community.
He hopes to start a series of classes in the middle and high schools in the area to start teaching that money matters at an early age.
“These are the future leaders, and they will be going to college where they will suddenly get all sorts of preapproved credit card offers,” Tufte said. He wants to teach them to be wise about accepting any of those.
Tufte had not planned on being in banking. When his father was stationed at Ft. Huachuca, he applied for jobs in the area, and the only call back he got was from a bank. He found he liked helping people with their financial problems and moved up the ladder.
The current classes he teaches are at the Boys & Girls Clubs in Cottonwood. The classes are for everyone regardless of their income level.
If anyone has ever had questions about budgeting or their financial standing, then this is a great opportunity to learn some new things.
“You are your most important investment,” Tufte said.
The biggest part of the class is his way of involving people in the conversations and to share personal experiences with everyone. They discuss creative ways to save money and fix their credit.
One other benefit of the classes is for first-time home buyers. There are first-time home buyer’s programs which help with the down payment or closing costs. To qualify for the program they must complete a series of financial classes, and his classes will do the job.
Another great thing about the program, Tufte said, is the free dinner and child care for participants. People attending the classes will also get a personal Wealth Coach who will follow up with them on their goals and help them work through any problems they run into.
Anyone interested in learning more about the Arizona Saves Program can contact Mark Tufte at 639-0020 or e-mail markt@countryaz.com.
Greg Nix can be reached at
282-7795, Ext. 122, or e-mail gnix@larsonnewspapers.com
