EDMOND-While there weren’t any free samples passed out, “Money Camp” gave residents of Boys Ranch Town and some other area students something far more valuable than a complimentary dollar bill July 16-20-it taught them how to make their money work for them.
“Money Camp is a financial literacy camp for teens, college students and adults,” said instructor Kelly Barnes, executive director of Money Camp OK. “The primary focus is to offer the basics of financial knowledge in a fun and interactive way.”
The camp, which also featured instructor Casey Kennedy, president of Money Camp OK, began at 8:30 a.m. each day and ran through 3:30 p.m. Both Barnes and Kennedy are licensed and certified money coaches. It was the first such camp held in Oklahoma. The curriculum was developed in Santa Barbara, Calif.
“Education for our children doesn’t stop when school is out,” said Tony Kennedy, president of Oklahoma Baptist Homes for Children (OBHC). “In fact, in many ways, it intensifies with our Leadership Training Conference and a variety of other educational experiences. I am very pleased with our boys’ participation in Money Camp. Many of them come from situations where there were great difficulties caused by the mishandling of money.”
Billed as a event in which “Financial Literacy Meets Entertainment,” Money Camp’s goal is to provide “lessons that last a lifetime” through interactive, hands-on training.
Casey, a BRT resident who will be a freshman at Edmond Memorial High School this fall, said, “It’s really helpful and fun. It helps you learn to make your money work for you. We played money games. We got a paycheck each day and used it to pay bills like rent and car payments, and invested in real estate.”
DeJuan, a BRT resident who will be a sophomore at Edmond Memorial this fall, said, “It showed me how to invest my money and put it in different accounts like savings, fun and a financial freedom account. We learned how to make interest on our money.”
While Money Camp was fun, campers received invaluable knowledge on a variety of topics, even at the very basic level, where they learned how to define money and wealth and were taught the history of money. They learned basic money terms, how to balance a check book, how to manage money and how to be a wise consumer, in addition to examining investment options, such as stocks and bonds, CDs, savings accounts, mutual funds and insurance.
Campers took a field trip to Legacy Bank at N. May Ave. and Memorial Rd., July 20, where they toured the institution and met with several bank officers for a question-and-answer session.
“Our mission at OBHC is to help children become capable, caring Christian adults by sharing Christ’s love and providing hope and homes for children,” Tony Kennedy said. “We feel that participation in Money Camp will help us accomplish that mission.”
