Greenville mom wins big in national savings competition sponsored by EARN.org & Commonwealth
June 25, 2018
Single mother is awarded $5,000 Grand Prize by EARN.org and Commonwealth, nonprofits that empower financially vulnerable Americans to take charge of their financial lives
Savers Win, a nationwide tax season savings program run by nonprofits EARN and Commonwealth, has named Greenville resident Jessica Butler the winner of the Grand Prize Story Competition.
Savers Win, a limited-time promotion, was created to encourage more Americans to save part of their 2017 tax refund. Participants entered to win cash prizes for saving their refund and continuing to save in the subsequent months. In addition to these prizes, savers were eligible to submit a photo and caption to enter the $5,000 Grand Prize Story Competition.
Photo: Greenville resident Jessica Butler, center, was named the Grand Prize Winner in a nationwide contest sponsored by national nonprofits EARN and Commonwealth. Jessica was selected from among nearly 10,000 who pledged to save their most recent tax refund and continue to save. Pictured with Jessica are her four children, Jaiden, Haven, Bailey and Kennedy. Presenting the check were Grace Boorstein (left) with EARN, an organization focused on creating prosperity for working families by helping them save and invest in their futures and Brian Gilmore (right) with Commonwealth, a nonprofit whose mission is to strengthen the financial opportunity and security of financially vulnerable people.
“The powerful response to Savers Win was a resounding endorsement of the expansion of our SaverLifeTM program,” said David Derryck, CIO of EARN. “Savers Win creates a unique opportunity to find instant gratification in saving with prizes, so it was inspiring that so many people pledged to save with SaverLife.”
Jessica’s photo and story were chosen by a panel of judges. Entrants were asked to share their motivation for saving their tax refund and the impact that saving had on their life. One judge, Tiffany “The Budgetnista” Aliche, a best-selling author, speaker, and passionate teacher of fun, financial empowerment was “moved by the dedication and the triumph of the Savers Win entrants – many of them have overcome great obstacles to save for life-long goals. Savers Win and the SaverLife program are compelling saving incentives, even for people who’ve never saved before.”
Tax season is a prime savings moment, with 76 million households with incomes of $50,000 or less receiving over $177 billion in federal tax refunds, an average of $2,330 per filer in 2015.
Savers Win is supported by a grant from the Intuit Financial Freedom Foundation. “Tax time is a unique opportunity – one where you can take stock of your finances and where many receive the largest influx of dollars in an entire year,” said Susan Mason, Director of the Intuit Financial Freedom Foundation. “Matching the power of that moment with a program like SaverLife can be a truly empowering combination. We are proud to support this program and bring awareness to tax time savings opportunities so those like Jessica can save for the future.”
Critical to the success of Savers Win was nonprofit partner Commonwealth. Commonwealth has five years of experience operating a successful prize-based tax time savings campaign, and helped guide the design. “Stories like Jessica’s remind us of the powerful impact that having even a little money set aside can boost people’s confidence and sense of security,” said Tim Flacke, Executive Director of Commonwealth. “We know that tax refunds provide a unique moment of opportunity for many, and we’re thrilled to work with EARN to bring SaverLife members extra motivation through prizes at tax time.”
About EARN
Founded in 2001, EARN is a national, award-winning nonprofit, whose mission is to create prosperity for low income families by helping them save and invest in their futures. EARN works at the intersection of financial technology and financial inclusion to develop online programs that empower low-income Americans to take charge of their financial lives. In 2016, EARN was identified by the Center for Financial Service Innovation’s Financial Solutions Lab as one of the most promising innovations to help increase savings and manage financial shocks. To learn more, visit earn.org and follow us on Twitter @earn.
About SaverLifeTM
SaverLife empowers Americans to take charge of their finances by providing digital financial coaching content, access to resources, and small-dollar cash incentives for regularly setting aside savings.Designed to serve consumers making an average income of $25,000, SaverLife seeks to transform the way low-to-moderate income Americans can use financial technology to save money. More information is available at SaverLife.org.
About Commonwealth
Commonwealth is a national, mission-driven organization that strengthens the financial opportunity and security of financially vulnerable people by discovering ideas, piloting solutions and driving innovations to scale. We collaborate with consumers, the financial services industry, policy makers and other mission-driven organizations to build solutions that make wealth possible for everyone. To learn more, visit buildcommonwealth.org and follow us on Twitter @buildcommwealth.
