Nonprofit Spotlight: Asset Builders

Wausau Pilot & Review

Editor’s note: Nonprofit Spotlight is a sponsored feature that shares the story of local organizations working to make Wausau a better place to live and work, highlighting the services they offer and the ways they contribute to the metro area’s sustainability. Learn how to feature your nonprofit organization by emailing [email protected].

This week’s featured nonprofit organization is Asset Builders of America, which has been instrumental in teaching financial capability and economic empowerment to youth and families for more than 20 years. Asset Builders will be hosting a family-friendly Financial Wellness Conference on Oct. 14 in Wausau, together with the Get Smart Wausau Coalition, to help people to avoid financial pitfalls and create economic stability in their lives.

Asset Builders has a mission of promoting financial education and wealth building strategies to enhance the quality of life of youth, families and communities. Get Smart Wausau is a group of volunteers representing area organizations with a goal of helping people make better financial decisions. 

Here’s a bit of background. Founders Richard Entenmann and Robert Wynn were both working in financial investor protection—Entenmann with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Wynn with the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions, when they both saw the damage that financial illiteracy was creating for millions of Americans. Together, they founded Asset Builders with a simple goal: to proactively educate the public while at the same time teaching a better way to create personal wealth and stability.

Along with dozens of instructors, hundreds of volunteers, and numerous sponsors and donors, Asset Builders has spent the last two decades empowering communities through education and financial literacy. To date, they have taught more than 20,000 people with a range of programs for youth, young adults and families.

Entenmann tells Wausau Pilot & Review that many community partners are key to planning and conducting each conference, including financial institutions, community-serving nonprofits and city officials in Wausau.

The conference is a nonprofit event and is a great opportunity for area residents to learn personal finance basics, Entenmann said. There is no selling or pressure to buy anything – the goal of is to teach participants how to  improve their finances.

“The Conference offers high-quality education in  an unbiased and fun atmosphere,” Entemann said. “Things that people learn here can have substantial ‘pocket-book’ results in the  short term, and can set people up to reach higher net worth and income levels in the future.” 

The Conference features 12 classroom workshops for adults. A sampling of the classes includes: How to Read Your  Credit Report and Improve Your Credit Score; Budgeting Basics; Estate Planning – Why This is Important for YOU; How to  Maximize Your Social Security Benefits; Proper Vehicle Maintenance: How Paying Pennies Today Can Save Dollars Tomorrow;  Putting Scammers Out of Business – One Educated Consumer at a Time!; Got Medicaid, Got Medicare, Get More Benefits; and more. 

In addition to workshops for adults, the Conference includes age-appropriate classes for students ages 6 and up, and also features: 

• Free childcare for children over the age of 2 (call to reserve space) 
• Continental breakfast and lunch 
• A free copy of each participant’s credit report with credit score 
• The opportunity to meet one-on-one with a credit expert 
• Door prizes throughout the day 

Advance registration is $2 for adults and free for youth between the ages of 6 and 18. Registration at the door is $4 for adults and free for youth between the ages of 6 and 18. Scholarships are available.

Registration is open  through Oct. 14, but to guarantee breakfast and lunch, please register by Oct. 6. 

Past registrants have said they found the monthly budgeting and finance information exceptionally valuable, with inspiring guest speakers. Participants say what they learned at the conference helped them make positive changes in their lives.