A Financial Literacy Expert Unpacks Skills Needed for Every Age
April 22, 2024
Hosted by Ron Roel
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Guest Information
Episode Description
On December 31, 1999, Ellen Smiley left the airline industry, after a career spanning more than 30 years with British Airways. She took a few interim jobs, eventually landing at a large credit union on Long Island, where she soon found herself in the business development department. It was there that first learned about financial literacy—a subject she knew nothing about. But It didn't take Ellen long for her to see the incredible value of financial literacy, and what a difference such knowledge could have in people’s lives. By the time she left the credit union in 2013, she was teaching between 125 and 150 classes a year. In today’s episode, as 45 Forward continues our recognition of National Financial Literacy Month, we talk with Ellen about her many insights and experiences as the owner of her own financial literacy consulting practice. Working with individuals and groups, she teaches commonsense basic skills—which many people lack—like setting up sensible budgets and how to improve their credit scores. She has worked with people across multiple ages and generations, from high school students to college students, to mature families and older adults. Financial literary provides knowledge that is increasingly necessary as the world gets more complex, and Ellen will explain how her programs and practices lead to significant stress reduction and free up money that can be used to improve their lives of families, no matter what stage of life they’re in.
45 Forward
Monday at 12 Noon Pacific Time on VoiceAmerica Variety Channel
Thanks to advances in medicine and health, most of us are just at half-life when we reach our mid-40s, with many potentially productive years ahead. But there’s no road map to prepare us for this period. That’s where 45 Forward comes in.
My show provides you with strategies to shift the traditional waiting-for-retirement model to a journey of compelling life chapters. Each show tackles an aspect of health, finance, family and friends, housing, work and personal pursuits as part of an integrated plan. Experts discuss topics like revitalizing relationships, creating mini-retirements, managing the maze of technology, finding your next homestead and caring for aging parents.
The show instills confidence, and hopefully some comfort, amid the stresses permeating today’s society. Fear of the future is not knowing how to prepare for it. 45 Forward does not proffer prefabricated answers, but helps you shape your life amid the daily anxieties of our time.
Ron Roel
I’m a veteran journalist who spent a wide-ranging career covering business, politics and social issues, the last two decades focusing on the blend of diverse life skills I call successful aging.
I have written extensively on aging topics, spoken at conferences, radio and TV shows, and launched several entrepreneurial ventures, discovering along the way that the path to aging well also requires an unexpected entrepreneurial vision. I spent 20 years as a writer and editor at Long Island’s daily newspaper, Newsday, helping to found Act 2, a weekly section for 50-plus readers. I created Roelresources.com, a website offering practical advice and inspirational essays for people ages 40 and above. I have been a volunteer and consultant to AARP Long Island, writing articles, advocating for seniors, and developing action plans for the AARP Age-Friendly Communities initiative.
I am active in programs and organizations that support seniors, such as the National Aging In Place Council and the Senior Umbrella Network. I have developed a special expertise in family caregiving, as one of four brothers who took care of their mother for almost 25 years. I regularly collaborate with many professionals who provide services and support for older Americans, and I am completing a book for caregivers on Long Island, “The Caregiving Navigator/How to Plan, What to do, and Where to Turn When Caring for you Aging Loved Ones. And Yourself,” scheduled for publication in early 2021.
Episode Directory
April 2024
- 4/29/2024: The ABCs of ADUs: How Accessory Dwelling Units are Taking Off Coming Soon
- 4/22/2024: A Financial Literacy Expert Unpacks Skills Needed for Every Age Listen Now
- 4/15/2024: Celebrating Earth Day through the Wonder of “Awe Walks” Listen Now
- 4/8/2024: Encore The Inspiring Tale of a Fulfilling, Changing—and Unretiring—Life Listen Now
- 4/1/2024: April is National Financial Literacy Month—for Both Young and Old Listen Now
March 2024
February 2024
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