5:35 a.m., October 13, 2013
Boys and Girls Clubs of the Tennessee Valley receives $15,000 grant from Fifth Third Bank (TN)

Left to right: Lisa Hurst, President & CEO, Boys & Girls Clubs of the Tennessee Valley; Esther Martinez, Boys & Girls Club member; Wayne Hunter, Boys & Girls Club member; Meiahja Moore, Boys & Girls Club member; Jonathan Godfrey, City Executive, Fifth Third Bank

KNOXVILLE – Fifth Third Tennessee has announced an investment of $15,000 in the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Tennessee Valley’s Money Matters program. Jonathan Godfrey, City Executive at Fifth Third Bank presented a check to Lisa Hurst, President & CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs at the organization’s Montgomery Village Club on October 11th, 2013.

The Money Matters program uses interactive activities to educate teens, ages 13 to 18, on critical aspects of financial literacy, including managing a checking account, budgeting, saving, avoiding debt, investing and paying for college. The program aims to arm teens with the tools they need to become financially savvy adults.

Results from a recent teen survey conducted by Boys & Girls Clubs of America and Charles Schwab Foundation underscore the need for financial literacy education. Only 17 percent of survey respondents said they were very or extremely knowledgeable about how to manage debt, only a little more than a third (36%) were extremely or very knowledgeable about how to open a savings account, and 35% of teens said they were not very or not at all knowledgeable about how to balance a checkbook.

Hurst emphasized the importance of Fifth Third’s contribution. “Fifth Third Bank’s investment in our teens will benefit them for their entire lives,” she said. “We hope that when they are ready to open a savings account or apply for a loan, they will remember what they learned at the Boys & Girls Club and know how to make wise financial decisions.”

The investment is made possible by Fifth Third Bancorp’s CRA Enterprise Investment Fund (EIF), which is designed to strengthen Community Reinvestment Act lending, investment and service performance across the Company. Fifth Third (Tennessee) worked with the Boys & Girls Clubs to identify the community need and applied to the EIF to support the project. Grants were recently rewarded and will be put to immediate use.

Contributions from the EIF must directly benefit low- and moderate-income individuals and/or geographies, designated disaster areas; or distressed or underserved non-metropolitan middle-income geographies. They must also have the primary purpose of community development.

Fifth Third Bancorp is a diversified financial services company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. The Company has $121 billion in assets and operates 18 affiliates with 1,325 full-service Banking Centers, including 104 Bank Mart® locations open seven days a week inside select grocery stores and 2,440 ATMs. Fifth Third operates four main businesses: Commercial Banking, Branch Banking, Consumer Lending, and Investment Advisors. Fifth Third also has a 28% interest in Vantiv Holding, LLC. Fifth Third is among the largest money managers in the Midwest and, as of March 31, 2013, had $318 billion in assets under care, of which it managed $27 billion for individuals, corporations and not-for-profit organizations. Fifth Third Bank was established in 1858.

Boys & Girls Clubs of the Tennessee Valley is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting academic success, healthy lifestyles, and good character and citizenship in a safe and caring environment. Membership is open to boys and girls between the ages of 5 and 17 years. Fourteen Club facilities in Knox, Blount, Loudon, and North Anderson Counties serve over 5,200 area youth each year. They benefit from trained, caring, professional staff and volunteers who help young people take control of their lives, envision productive futures, and reach their goals. Learn more at facebook.com/bgctnv and twitter.com/bgctnv.

Published October 12, 2013