Success Story of the Week – Mona and Travis

Success Story of the Week – Mona and Travis

“We first met in high school. When we went to college, we were not prepared for the financial needs that a college education required. We tried our best to support ourselves through working multiple jobs, scholarships, and tuition waivers. It wasn’t easy being a neighbor island student because we had to find the means to pay for our education AND living expenses. Then the economy tanked.

Student loans were incredibly difficult to get and we relied on credit cards and the generosity of our family just to get by. We dreamed of having our wedding our way, but thought it was impossible because we couldn’t justify the means to pay for it. So that dream was pushed back, year after year after year. When we returned home to Maui, we were so far in debt not only with student loans, but with credit cards, auto loans, and personal family loans. We struggled paycheck to paycheck, and we were very afraid of letting our family down as we sunk deeper into the hole each month.

We knew something had to change.

When we were introduced to 101 Financial, we quickly regained the control and confidence we needed to start our new life together. We not only paid off some of our family loans, but took care of our credit card debt, auto loans, and now ended up in the positive at the end of each month. At this point, we were so relieved that we weren’t paddling backwards. Since then, we have made giant leaps towards our financial and life goals. As of today, we have smashed an additional $130,000 in student loans.

The cool thing about this is that we haven’t even hit our two year mark with 101 Financial, and we are ON FIRE!!!

After 14 years together, we are FINALLY planning to get married by next year and also have most of our debt completely paid off. We definitely look at our finances differently and are able to dream big, knowing that these dreams are NOT impossible.

As a bonus, we have greatly improved our credit scores, strengthened our relationship, and are excited about our life together.

We cannot thank 101 Financial enough, not just for the financial education but for teaching us about life.”

— Mona Umetsu & Travis Kea, Maui

Financial Education & the 101 Personal Finance system saves you money, gets you out of debt fast and gives you financial peace of mind.