Priming the Pump

It's never been more important to use money wisely. "The Connection's" "Priming the Pump" will feature money-saving tips available to UEA members. Find highlighted NEA Member Benefit products or services, Access merchants offering great discounts or other pointers to help UEA members save money and manage personal finances.

In addition, to help our members achieve financial peace of mind, the UEA's website will feature monthly tips and useful forms and templates at www.utea.org/benefits. Be it developing a family budget, saving for special occasions, paying off debt or planning for retirement, UEA members will find all kinds of resources to help them achieve financial goals.

Smart Living

NEA Member Benefits shares the common mistakes that cost you money. For more information visit http://www.neamb.com/.

Mistake #1: Saving money instead of paying off high-interest debt. If you have savings but are also paying off high-interest debt, like an auto loan, use your savings to pay off the debt first. You'll save more in the long run. Here's why: You're paying a higher interest rate on these debts than you can earn on most investments. Of course, if your only savings is your emergency reserve, paying off your debt first can be risky.

Learn from Francesca's mistake. Francesca had a $2,000 loan, but she also had more than $2,000 in her bank account. She had to pay an annual interest rate of 16 percent on the loan, and the savings account paid her 2 percent on her $2,000 worth of savings after taxes. After a year, she had paid $320 in interest on the loan and earned only $40 in interest from the $2,000 in her account. That means she lost $280! If she had paid off the loan instead, she wouldn't have earned any interest - but she would have saved herself $280. Even if she had put the $2,ooo in a high interest investment, she couldn't have expected more than a 10 percent return (or $200) - so paying off her debt would still have been the smarter choice.

Bonneville UniServ Mourns The Loss of Local Educator

The Utah Education Association and Alpine Education Association Mourn The Loss Of Heather Christensen. Utah Education Association President Kim Campbell issued the following statement today on the death of American Fork High School teacher Heather Christensen:
“Someone once said, ‘To teach is to touch a life forever.’ Today, as we all mourn the loss of a fellow educator, Heather Christensen, band instructor at American Fork High School, we remember her for not only touching lives as a dedicated teacher, but for saving the lives of her own students in an act of incredible bravery.
“As the news reports and eye witness accounts verify, Heather was a hero whose quick thinking and sacrifice prevented the loss of additional lives.
“On behalf of Utah Education Association members statewide, our thoughts and prayers are with Heather’s family, her colleagues, her students at American Fork High School and all those whose lives she touched.”