Financial Empowerment Archives

Listen for Good

By Theresa Myers in Financial Empowerment, Success Story | Posted November 8, 2019

As part of our strategic goal to provide high-quality programs aligned with community needs, we conduct evaluations to understand the measurable impact of our programs on our participants, and to identify areas for improvement. Developing assessment tools that effectively capture participant feedback is always a challenge, thus we were fortunate to partner with Fund for Shared Insight and Sand Hill Foundation to adopt the Listen for Good program. The Listen for Good model provides a…

Best Nonprofits to work for in SF Bay Area

By Theresa Myers in Early Learning, Financial Empowerment, Older Adult Services, Success Story | Posted September 6, 2019

Peninsula Family Service (PFS) has been featured as one of twenty-seven best nonprofits to work for in the SF Bay Area per the job search website Localwise. The staff at PFS are thrilled to be featured on the list. Bert Valerio, a treasured staff member, summed up our reaction best, “Something in our work culture makes it unique to stand out among the best in the Bay Area, as in this listing of top non-profits…

A Tale of Perseverance, Teamwork, and Positivity

By Theresa Myers in Financial Empowerment, Older Adult Services, Success Story, Uncategorized | Posted August 27, 2019

Timothy is a big man towering at 6’6” and his presence can be intimidating. However, when he speaks we quickly see that he is a soft-spoken gentleman with a kind demeanor and good attitude. Timothy found Peninsula Family Service (PFS) by applying to the DriveForward auto loan program. As Aileen Ochoa, our financial empowerment coordinator, worked with Timothy, it became clear that he should enroll in our Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP), to gain…

New Partnership Rewards DriveForward Program Participants

By Theresa Myers in Events, Financial Empowerment, Grants | Posted February 15, 2019

A new partnership between Peninsula Family Service and Peninsula Clean Energy enables qualified DriveForward program participants to increase vehicle affordability, decrease annual costs, and help our regional environment. Participants who are approved for a DriveForward car loan, and meet the criteria to purchase a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV), will have the cost of their car reduced by $4,000 through a grant provided by Peninsula Clean Energy. Examples of eligible, affordable vehicles include the Chevy…

Join our Upcoming Credit Building Workshop

By Theresa Myers in Events, Financial Empowerment | Posted July 9, 2018

For many Americans, establishing, building or maintaining their credit is a daunting task. Student loans, credit card debt and the high cost of living makes it very difficult to make ends meet. According to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, the average credit card debt per household is $8,683 for those of us who do not pay our credit card balances in full each month. At Peninsula Family Service, we believe that financial education…

DriveForward: James’ road to a brighter future

By Theresa Myers in Financial Empowerment | Posted March 22, 2018

When James, a 52-year-old mechanic, found it difficult to qualify for a car loan due to his credit, Peninsula Family Service’s Financial Empowerment program was there to help. The training helped James create a plan to manage his money and slowly build up his credit. As James’ credit went back up, he was able to qualify for a car loan with a reasonable interest rate through the DriveForward program. “I had never dreamed of buying…

Helping Our Neighbors DriveForward: Francis’s Story

By Theresa Myers in Financial Empowerment, Success Story | Posted October 23, 2017

For 30 years, Francis has dedicated her life to providing for her family, working long hours at multiple jobs and has never once taken a vacation. Though her other children have moved on to begin their own lives, her son Juanito has a developmental disability and requires careful attention. Francis is on-call 24/7 to care for her son’s needs. “Every time Juanito gets sick I need to leave work quickly and come and check on…

Regina’s Story

By Theresa Myers in Financial Empowerment, Success Story | Posted October 2, 2017

For Reggie, a life-long resident of the Bay Area, having a car is everything. “I need to be at work at 5 a.m. If I did not have a car, I would simply be out of a job.” Reggie’s story with Peninsula Family Service started two years ago with her participation in a financial education workshop. Today she is one of the many success stories of our DriveForward program. Thanks to her participation in Peninsula…

Introducing DriveForward, Our New Vehicle Loan Program

By Theresa Myers in Financial Empowerment | Posted July 29, 2016

After nearly 20 years of partnership with Ways to Work, we are excited to launch our own vehicle loan program, DriveForward. With this new program, we are expanding eligibility to serve more of our community and structuring loans to ensure the program can be successful for decades to come. In years past, our vehicle loans were available to parents who had been employed for at least three months. With DriveForward, we are opening our program up to…

Success Story: An Open Road

By Theresa Myers in Financial Empowerment, Success Story | Posted March 26, 2016

“I was working two jobs when the transmission went out on my old car,” Kenya explains. A single mother of two, she relied on that car to get to work, drive her children to school, and shop for groceries. Kenya couldn’t afford the expensive repairs and her low credit score only qualified her for loans with double-digit interest rates. Living paycheck to paycheck, the broken-down car pushed Kenya’s tenuous hold on personal and financial stability to…

Category: Financial Empowerment