Money Matters

I know how to stretch a dollar.

Years ago I was a lowly journalist with an equally lowly paycheck. I learned how to make twenty bucks stretch until the next payday.

Sometimes that stretching had to cover a week or so - more like some extreme ashtanga yoga than a little bit of stretching, huh?

I figured it out quickly. Bread, eggs, cheese and milk - I could get all of these things for about five bucks or less and feed myself some hearty meals over the course of a week. Breakfast, lunch and dinner was always some variation of those groceries and whatever I had left in the pantry and freezer (usually a can of beans, some ramen noodles and frozen veggies. Frozen chicken breasts if I was lucky).

Meal time was always a creative endeavor when I had to make ends meet.

Or is it Ends Meat?

For all my bellyaching, I was grateful I knew I could make it to a payday.

There are lots of folks out there who aren't as lucky. They don't have a steady income, or they don't have enough money to put food on the table while they're stretching to payday.

United Way tries to serve up a one-two punch to help people battling low income struggles.

First, United Way supports programs that help keep food pantries open in Cincinnati, Covington and other Tri-State communities.

The other, perhaps more enduring effort invests donor dollars in programs that help people gain more job skills. This helps people in need seek better jobs with higher wages and health benefits.

If these folks have more assets, they'll be better able to support themselves and their loved ones.

And maybe, someday, they won't have to stretch to payday. Maybe someday they'll be able to save some cash, invest and have some assets for retirement.

Isn't that what we all want?

If you'd like to support the annual United Way campaign, please click here to make a donation of any denomination. Every little bit helps support someone else seeking the basic things for a better life.