Travis to begin Military Saves Campaign Published Feb. 7, 2007 By Mike Wade Airman and Family Readiness Center TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- Travis will begin its first Military Saves Campaign Feb. 26. The campaign is a national awareness campaign sponsored by more than 1,000 government and non-profit organizations at the local, state and national levels with overall management by Consumer Federation of America. The DoD announced Military Saves will be an annual campaign designed to encourage the building of wealth, instead of debt. "The goal of the program is to persuade organizations to put out messages that healthy financial behavior is important," said Ms. Sarah Shirley, Military Saves director. According to Ms. Shirley, on average, Airmen graduating from technical school report to their duty stations already $8, 500 in consumer debt. In addition, more than 90 percent of people who she counsels say financial stress adds to their problems. Many of the financial problems can be traced back to credit card companies' marketing strategy, Ms. Shirley said. "Before, we only bought things we could afford and saved for things we want," she said. "Now because of credit cards, we have become a nation of debtors versus a nation of savers." The Military Saves Campaign encourages Wingmen and their families to establish savings goals and develop positive financial habits like setting money aside for emergencies and saving for the future. The campaign goal for Travis is 100 percent contact at the unit level where all are encouraged to save and prepare for the future. For more information, visit http://www.militarysaves.org or call the AFRC at 424-2486.