No child’s financial education is complete without an understanding of the value of helping others, and gohenry is proud to announce a new feature that helps kids learn about charity.
We’ve teamed up with the Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) so your family can help children in need realize their dreams. A little bit goes a long way, not only in helping BGCA with their work, but also in helping kids learn about compassion and develop a love of sharing. Giving allows your child to set aside a small amount each week for donation. Parents can donate too!
To understand why the Giving feature and our partnership are so valuable, we’ve asked Kathleen Palmentiero, Director of Corporate & Cause Partnerships at BGCA, and gohenry’s Head of Product , Neil Gardiner, to tell us a little bit more about our new feature and partnership.
Q: What does the Boys and Girls Club of America do?
Kathleen:
Our mission is to enable all young people, especially those who need us most, to reach their full potential as productive, caring, responsible citizens. BGCA serves more than 4.3 million kids annually in 4,300 Clubs around the world (both urban and rural).
I’ve spent the majority of my of career in non-profit. But when I entered the doors of BGCA, I felt a sense of belonging, that I was joining an organization who was truly making a lasting difference in the lives of these kids. To listen to these kids and hear about the obstacles they’ve had to overcome–it’s heartbreaking, yet astounding at the same time. Their strength, courage and conviction is inspiring.
Q: What makes a partnership between BGCA and gohenry such a natural fit?
Kathleen:
It really is about kids helping kids. Our missions are aligned – to serve, educate and empower youth – and help to educate kids about the impact of giving to others in need and helping young people develop a sense of social responsibility. gohenry has the unique opportunity to reach kids at a very early age and teach them about empathy and compassion – life lessons that will stay with them as they grow up and learn to become caring adults.
Neil:
We wanted to partner with an organization that allowed our community of kids and teens help other kids and teens. A big part of our decision to partner with BGCA was their focus on building life skills and how they help the next generation achieve their dreams.
Q: Why was Giving a priority feature for gohenry?
Neil:
No child’s financial education is complete without learning how money can help others. We also know that generosity comes naturally to kids as they were already using their gohenry cards to give to causes they care about before we launched the feature and we wanted to continue to foster that. We want children and teens to feel empowered to help others
Q: What else can parents do to set a good example around giving?
Kathleen:
It’s about instilling values at an early age and essentially practicing what you preach – set a good example by volunteering or giving back as a family; encourage your kids to think beyond themselves and being grateful for what they have, but also celebrating how good it feels when they help someone less fortunate.
Neil:
Giving is an opportunity to teach our kids to be generous not only with money but also with love and kindness.
Q: How can kids use the Giving feature?
Neil:
When your child logins to the gohenry app and visits the Giving feature, they’ll be prompted to take a tour of the new feature.
From there, they’ll be able to set a small weekly sum between $0.10-$0.25 per week to donate. After they start donating, your child will see a running tally in the app that shows how much they’ve given in total.
Q: How can parents give to BGCA?
Kathleen:
We welcome parents to give to BGCA within the app as well as gohenry is supporting donations from parents and kids. Every donation helps kids who need it the most.
