Recently, five women, Maria Elena Garcia, Mayela Lopez, Isabel Aleman, Samantha Gomez and Melissa Batista Limon formed BELLA (Benévola, Exitosa, Líder, Libre, Apasionada) with the goal of fighting domestic violence and empowering the women affected by it. The group offers classes every Tuesday to two shelters, Dame la Mano and La Posada. The classes encompass a variety of subjects, such as leadership, self-esteem, nutrition, and beauty. The women of the Regional Economic Development Association signed on with BELLA to teach a basic finance class in the two shelters.

On Tuesday, March 30, Alejandra Hernandez, Elisa Samaniego, Margarita Ortega, and I taught the first financial literacy class in Dame la Mano. Accompanied by the women of Bella, we were allowed entry into the shelter. The curriculum for the class is divided into three parts. The beginning consists of basic bank terminology, such as the different types of bank accounts. The second part was budgeting with the essentials of making of budget. The final part reviewed the pros and cons of debit and credit cards and demonstrated how to balance a checkbook. As a supplement to our discussion, we provided handouts for the women, including checkbook transaction registers.

When we arrived at the shelter, we first intended to teach the class as a whole and ask for questions after each section. However, the class began with about six women, so we divided into groups so we could answer more personal questions and help at different paces. This way, we could also speak English or Spanish depending on what the women wanted. Because women came and left, it became more of a counseling session than an organized class.

Since there were also many children, we took turns helping with childcare and entertaining the children so the mothers could have more time to themselves. With our first class being a success, we plan to have our next one on Tuesday, April 6, at La Posada shelter.

BELLA is constantly looking for volunteers to help look after children and for monetary and materials donations. To learn more about BELLA, email malena@las-americas.org or call (915) 544-5126 Ext 28. You can also join their Facebook group BELLA to learn more.