TALLAHASSEE—Florida Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater has sponsored a resolution recognizing Jan. 17–23, 2013, as “Florida Thrift Week,” encouraging all Floridians to learn and implement the values of thrift and saving as steps toward long-term financial success.“Thrift and saving are integral components of any financial plan and the root of long-term financial success for families, businesses and individuals.” CFO Atwater said. “If we each make a daily choice of responsible financial habits, then we can battle the increasing debt and economic uncertainty facing our nation.”
Florida Thrift Week is hosted by The James Madison Institute (JMI), a Florida-based research and educational organization with the mission of keeping Floridians informed about their government and teaching our youth about the value of thrift.
“We are honored to have the Governor, CFO Atwater, and the rest of the Florida Cabinet recognize Thrift Week in such a way once again this year. It’s important for the next generation of Floridians to remember the founding principles and wise words that our forefathers wove into the fabric of America’s history,” JMI President Dr. Bob McClure noted. “Benjamin Franklin recognized that it is just as important for Americans to have economic freedom, from debt and dependency, as it is to have political freedom. JMI’s supplemental curriculum, All About the Benjamins, is built around Franklin’s time-honored ideas and we are excited to continue our efforts to keep these ideas alive and well in the years to come.”
JMI is a partner with the Department of Financial Services in the Florida $tudents Save Essay Contest, part of CFO Atwater’s Your Money Matters’ initiative. The contest encouraged high school students to write about important financial matters including the importance of saving money and planning for a strong financial future.
The thrift educational movement began in 1916 during World War I, and National Thrift Week became an annual celebration beginning each year on January 17 in honor of the birthday of Benjamin Franklin, America’s foremost thrift advocate. The John Templeton Foundation recently rallied a national campaign for the annual celebration to return.
As part of Florida Thrift Week, JMI and newspapers throughout the state have partnered to distribute a supplemental curriculum, All About the Benjamins: Understanding the Value of Thrift, to high school students. This practical publication shares success stories of people who have faithfully practiced simple acts of thrift and, as a result, are living their dreams.
The Florida Thrift Week resolution, signed by Gov. Rick Scott and the Florida Cabinet, along with information regarding thrift and the importance of saving can be found at www.MyFloridaCFO.com/YMM.
Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater, a statewide elected official and officer of the Florida Cabinet, oversees the Department of Financial Services. CFO Atwater’s priorities include fighting financial fraud, abuse and waste in government, reducing government spending and regulatory burdens that chase away businesses, and providing transparency and accountability in spending.
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