You can read part one of this post here.
As I mentioned in the last post, we’ve made some changes to our Savings Goals for this year.
The second update that I want to share with you is something that has been brewing in me for quite some time.
I have loved saving up for some big things like a mini van and a cruise, but I’ve also felt for a long time that I wanted to save up for something even more meaningful.
You see, using our money to give is something that my husband and I place a high priority on. We’ve been setting aside a certain percentage of our income to use toward giving to our church and to those in need for quite some time. It is very rewarding to be able to give back when a need arises in our community or among family and friends –especially since we were blessed many times by others who did the same for us when our need was great.
We want to continue to to do that, but lately I’ve been thinking that wouldn’t it be FUN to set a GIVING GOAL this year?
Something that likely wouldn’t happen if we weren’t intentional about saving toward our goal.
My husband and I have a special place in our heart for the work of World Vision. We currently sponsor a child in Africa through their program and have raised money with our youth group for years as part of their 30 Hour Famine event.
I was leafing through their gift catalog the other day and spotted the opportunity to donate a well that will bring clean water to a community of up to 150 people.
I thought, “That is what I want to do.”
I mentioned the idea to my husband and he loved it. It’s kind of humbling to think that we could help provide something so basic to us as water, but so life-giving to others?
So there you have it. Our new savings goal: Project Well. I’m not sure how long it will take for us to reach it, but I wanted to share it with you so you can join us on our journey!
So here our our current totals for our Saving on a Shoestring projects:
Project Well: 46%
Cha-Ching! Christmas Club: 10%.
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How about you? Have you been saving and scrimping toward a reward or are you a part of the Cha-Ching! Christmas Club? Then leave a comment or a link below telling us about it.
AND just to add to all the fun going on around here, I will give a $5 Amazon gift code to one person who leaves a direct link to their savings post or a comment sharing an update on their savings. (I figure it’s just one more way to help you save on that shoestring!)
The giveaway will end Tuesday, March 13 at 11:59 pm EST. I’ll randomly select the winning comment or link. Winner will be notified by email and listed on this site.
Love the idea of Project Well. We are currently saving for Project House, a larger home to accomodate our growing family. It’s been exciting every week to calculate the savings and realize how much we’ve added to our fund.
Could your readers (including myself) jointly donate to help your World Vision project? I envision personal and/or group donations. This way you night be able to donate more than one well this year. Please let me know if you like this idea.
I really like the idea, Cheri and how thoughtful of you to bring it up! I am not sure how I would work out the logistics of collecting money.
I will think about the idea and let you know if I come up with anything. Thank you!
We have a HUGE long term goal and that is to get out of debt. This is especially a big challenge for us since I stay home and we have 4 children. We sat down and discussed numerous ways we could cut back, although we use so many methods already. Now we are both on the same page and are starting to turn things around.
Congrats on all of your great successes!
What a wonderful idea for Project Well! Our church did a similar program last year with funds donated thru our Vacation Bible School. It means so much to those who need clean water.
We have started saving up for a new vehicle this year. We have always taken out a loan when we purchased a different vehicle and have decided no more. Our current van is 6 years old but I was front-ended last summer by a truck who backed into me. A medium amount of damaged was done, which was repaired but our van just doesn’t run the same, even though they did a great job with the repairs. We hope to save up enough to replace it within 3 years.
Project Well sounds amazing! When my husband and I hammered out a budget as part of FPU, giving was part of it. We give to our church and I use $40 a month (stretched out every penny with coupons and fantastic deals) to buy couponed/deal items which are given to my church and two local charities. It is amazing what you can do with a budget!
Awesome! I’ve been trying to give more and be more open to giving for 2012. It’s hard to give when you feel like you don’t have enough yourself, but I think it’s helped me to be more grateful for the things I’ve got. I think it’s amazing that you’re saving for a well! Congrats! We are trying to get our emergency fund back to $1,000 and also to pay off some debt! UG!
Since right after Christmas, I have been saving Amazon Gift Cards from Swagbucks and Superpoints to buy a rabbit cage and I am halfway there. The kids have never had a pet to call their own and they love everyone else’s pets.
i feel rather humbled that you are saving for a well. we recently bought a new to us, 2007 jeep as our new family vehicle. we took out a loan but our goal is to pay off the loan this year, through some temporary cutting back on retirement and focusing on our spending. we have come full circle and now are paying cash for many items and it is working wonders – we still have credit card bills (auto pay on the utilities including oil, target to get the extra 5% off groceries, online purchases, gas) but they are so low without all my husband’s lunches and my trips to weis. if all goes as planned, by 2013, we will own the jeep and have saved enough extra to fund our 2012 roth ira!