I was also surprised to find that Meetup.com sent me nice box of chocolates along with a card congratulating me on the interview. When I saw that the box came from them I got kinda mushy inside because I admit that I like to be recognized for good work and I feel as though they really appreciate the Meetup we have on their site. So while the interview was totally awesome, as were the others, taking the time to send a gift with a personalized note really meant alot to me.

Yah I go for stuff like that! LOL!

Here are pics of the package:

I was also named Meet.com Organizer of the Week! Check out the interview here:

HQ Blog

Ginger – Meetup Organizer of the Week – July 9, 2008

This week we’re in the Capitol City with a super Organizer who has taken her personal financial debacle and turned it into a thriving network of women on the path of positive cash-flow.

Her Meetup has garnered national media attention over its four years on Meetup.com along with her companion blog, Girls Just Wanna Have Funds.

Without further ado, its my pleasure to introduce you to our Meetup Organizer of the Week for July 9, 2008, Ginger and her Meetup group, Girls Just Wanna Have Funds

“I want women to know that they can indeed be in control of their money and know that it just shouldn’t be left up to Prince Charming to come in and save the day.  We are here to break financial ceilings, and we’re doing it one stiletto at a time!“

- Ginger Borgella

Thanks, Ginger!

I love the honesty and flat-out candid analysis of your life on your blog, “Girls Just Wanna Have Funds”.  Which came first, the blog or the Meetup?
Thank you!    I love the honesty of our members and we encourage that because it removes the shame and secrecy behind our individual financial situations.  The blog came before the Meetup.  GirlsJustWannaHaveFunds.com existed before the Meetup site.  I figured that it would be great to be able to connect with other women who wanted to take control of their money, but maybe weren’t certain just how to do that.  I’ve been a member of Meetup now for about 4 years and so it was the natural choice for a group like ours.

Has your Meetup group helped solidify the sense of community you sought during your odyssey for financial solvency?
Yes, indeed it has!  I’ve been able to connect with women of all walks of life through this Meetup.  We are really supportive of one another and keep each other accountable while teaching each other how to save money, especially now.  We’ve shared information on coupon books, how to keep the electric bill down, debt reduction strategies, debt reduction/budgeting spreadsheets etc etc.  I’m especially happy that every woman in our group is an expert on something they’ve done with regards to their money and in having Meetup.com as a platform we’re able to share and support in different areas.

“Girls Just Wanna Have Funds” has received a fair amount of national media exposure (WSJ, GMA and NBC Nightly News) how did this come about and what kind of results have you seen in the membership or interest in your blog/Meetup.
We’ve also been featured on the Weekend Today Show and Fox News DC- WTTG!  With the last airing we had a surge in membership on Meetup.com and I have received quite a bit of reader mail from other women all over the country in the same position as we are here in DC.   So the national exposure has been helpful and overwhelming at times because now more than ever I realize that this isn’t just about our group here in DC, but there are women all over our country that want help with their finances but don’t know where to start.  While I am not a financial adviser and in debt myself I want to be able to share resources because we are all on the same journey.  So the results have been nothing but positive and I welcome the possibility of expanding to different areas as we move forward.

As a successful Organizer, what three tips would you suggest to a new or struggling Organizer?
1.  Connect with your members  via email, message board or better yet, an off topic happy hour.  People want to know that their leader is just like them and here’s a secret, they want to be just like you-but want to know that you’re just like them.  So being aloof and distant doesn’t work if you’re in the business of being a Meetup Organizer, you have to be able to connect with your members and be truly invested in their success.

2.  Invest in your members.  Take the time to respond to their emails and give helpful and useful information when possible.  You don’t have to be an expert on your topic or Meetup purpose but I believe that when you invest in others, they will invest in you as well.  People can tell the difference between an organizer who is there and one who is involved.

3.  Last but not least-get in tune with the direction of where your members want to go.  We have varied needs in our Meetup and I am working to address those interested in not only debt reduction, but saving, investing, frugality, stocks/mutual funds, retirement and homeownership.  I make sure to listen to their concerns because after all they drive the success of the Meetup and without them this Meetup wouldn’t be as successful as it has been.  So if they say jump, I’ll probably say “when and where?!”  LOL!

How do you find the topics and speakers for your extremely well-attended events?
Well our membership is pretty vocal with me around what they’d like to see and again they say jump I ask “when and where!?’  So if they want a topic on retirement planning I start planning Meetups around that.  If there’s a need for saving money and investing then we plan Meetups around those topics as well.  I’m pretty in tuned with their needs as a whole so I wouldn’t plan a Meetup around real estate investing when most members are struggling with crippling student loan debt or needing to learn how to create a budget.   Baby steps!!!  This is more about them than it is about me.

Thus far we have been fortunate to have Velma Colfack be our speaker on a wide variety of topics and that has worked well.  As we move forward I will be asking members who are experts in certain areas for example, Coupon Queens, Saving Divas etc etc present at a Meetup sharing their tips and advice in this area.

Through this entire experience, what changes or enhancements have you noticed as a result in yourself?
I am working to remain cognizant around my financial situation because I have a rather large group to keep me accountable.  I’m not some personal finance guru touting a new book, but I’m just like my Meetup members so I try to be as good with my money as I implore them to be daily.  I also want to share every piece of good information I get because my motto is “Each One Teach One” and if I have it then I want you to have it as well.  So if I know something would be helpful then I’m more than willing to share that with the group.

What are your hopes for the future of “Girls Just Wanna Have Funds”?
Oh wow, huge!  I can’t share everything in the works just yet but ultimately, my goal is to end up one day on the same stage as Oprah, Tyra Banks and Suze Orman along with the backing of a prominent financial planning organization who’d donate their services to Meetup groups via a Certified Financial Planner in every state while a national bank gives our members a savings rate of 5-6% or more for at least 1-2 years.  So, not much! 

I want women to know that they can indeed be in control of their money and know that it just shouldn’t be left up to prince charming to come in and save the day.  We are here to break financial ceilings, and we’re doing it one stiletto at a time!

Please believe me when I say that none of this is possible without my wonderful readers and Meetup participants. Thank you all for making the meetup and thie blog what it is today in 6-7 months! I’ve learned so much from each of you and I hope to continue on through the year with even bigger things in the works!

Per FNBO:

FNBO Direct (www.fnbodirect.com) recognizes the challenges consumers face to save money — as costs for gas and food surge and credit card debt climbs to new highs. Our answer to help struggling consumers is the Pay Yourself First Challenge – and we think that the Challenge may be of interest to your readers.

Pay Yourself First is a national challenge to encourage people from across the country to save money. We’re inviting prospective challengers to create and post a one-minute video on YouTube about how they save — or don’t save. The first 500 entrants will receive a $10 gift card. The top 20 finalists will receive $500 in cash. And everyone who submits a video has a chance to win a portion of the $45,000 prize package, a free vacation and, more important, acquire money-saving tips they can carry with them long after the close of the challenge. FNBO Direct will judge the video submissions and select five finalists — maybe even some of your readers — who will move on to participate in the actual six-month Challenge. If selected, America will watch them try to save as much as possible by depositing their money into an FNBO Direct Online Savings Account.

Throughout the challenge, participants will get advice from the Internet’s most-read personal finance columnist, Liz Pulliam Weston. She’ll weigh in on the challengers’ progress and offer tips we all can use.
Participants have until July 31 to post their video on YouTube. In the meantime, visit www.pyfchallenge.com to check out video entries, post a video yourself or learn more about the contest.

I may just bite the bullet and submit a video, there’s lots of cash here at stake and its a WIN WIN situation!

Start saving and submitting videos!

The interviews went great and our meetup was really productive. Meetup members and attendees, Nikki and Nicole were able to tell their stories to Amy Robach while the producer scurried around trying to tie everything together. She was great and I enjoyed working with her over the last few days.

We really got a chance to see how these segments are produced. Velma, our financial advisor as always was awesome and informative in how she broke everything down for members asking questions and we were able to tie in the importance of debt reduction as a way to increase retirement contributions. Remember, no amount is too small be it debt reduction or retirement contributions.

We set some goals moving forward and we now officially have our first debt support group!

Our meetings will consist of the following:

• Weekly check ins
• Weekly assignments
• Message board discussions around challenges and triumphs
• End of Week check out

As you can see, we will be starting weekly assignments where we check in at the beginning of the week, list our goals and then communicate throughout the week on our challenges and triumphs. On Friday we will have a check out and discuss what happened and list all of our expenses, purchases etc etc.

If you’re in the DC Metro area feel free to drop by one of our meetings!

The interview will be aired, June 28 on the morning NBC Weekend Today and the NBC Nightly News that night.

(Photo)

The Today Show would like to interview anyone involved with the Girls Just Wanna Have Funds meetup here in DC to discuss debt support groups amongst women. The interview day and time is this coming Tuesday 6/24 in DC at Bar Louies at 6pm. Please let me know if you are interested.

Please note that this will be a television interview which will air a few days afterwards so the producer has asked that you be comfortable being on TV with discussing your personal financial situation as it relates to debt. They will be interviewing us as a group. If you have questions and/or want to be included let me know.

We will make this our first debt support group meetup called Girls In The Red as I’ve had so many of you contact me about having monthly meetups regarding supporting each other around eliminating debt as we move through the recession. I have also contacted our resident financial advisor Velma to see if she will be able to make it and once she confirms I will update this meetup regarding the time and location in addition to things we will discuss during the interview.

The meetup information is posted here.

Questions? Comments? Concerns?

Shoot me an email!!!