Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 19, Number 11, 1 November 2002 — Ways to Work [ARTICLE]

Ways to Work

For O'ahu families who live payeheek to paycheck and who rely on a car for transportation to work, a broken-down car could mean finaneial disaster. The Consuelo Foundation's Ways to Work family loan program provide loans that help parents on O'ahu to keep their jobs, get better jobs, or stay in school. Ranging from $500 to $3,000, the loans may be used to help qualifying low and moderate-income families purchase a used car, or pay for car repairs, child-care, or certain other needs. To qualify, customars must: have enough disposable ineome to make monthly loan payments; be employed at least 19hours per week for 6 months prior to application, or be a post-high school student with verifiable ineome; have ahousehold ineome below 80 percent of Honolulu area median ineome; and be a custodial parent andOcahu resident. Borrowers repay the loan at a modest interest rate, and all loans are funded, closed, and serviced by American Savings Bank. By maintaining a good payment history, borroweis ean build or rebuild their credit history, thereby improving their ability to obtain credit in the future. The program's strategy is to offer parents tools and resources thatthey ean use to achieve employment and ineome security. For more information, please eall Dave Washburn at Consuelo Foundation at 532-8008, washburn@consuelo.org