Rohulla's Story

Rohulla, 19, heard about Momentum when he was in high school, although he did not look into what Momentum had to offer until after his first year of university, when he had begun to think more seriously about his future, about his career, and about saving money. For a young man still in his teens, Rohulla had a good job (he worked as an administrative assistant in a busy downtown housing office) but he still remembered Momentum and finally decided to look them up.

The Momentum program that caught his eye was Youth Fair Gains, but that was mostly because he couldn’t believe what he was reading. Rohulla laughs about it now: "I remember thinking, ‘They will give me money just for saving my money?’ Man, I thought, that sounds too good to be true!" But it was true. Youth Fair Gains is a money management program directed toward young people to teach them about managing and saving their money. The incentive side of the program is what Rohulla had trouble believing: At the end of one year, Momentum will match three times what you save, up to $50 a month. So if you managed to save a $600.00, Momentum would provide an additional $1,800.00, for a total of $2,400.00. (Sure, saving $600.00 sounds like a lot, but really, it would involve saving just $12 per week.) The program’s main stipulation is that you must spend the money on something related to work or education. Of course, this was fine by Rohulla, who was working and going to school anyway, and would likely be doing both until he realized his goal, which was a degree in engineering. But that was still a few years off.

So for now, for Rohulla, spending his Youth Fair Gains money on bettering his work prospects or continuing his education is what he’d be spending money on anyway. "One of the great things about the Youth Fair Gains program," says Rohulla, "is that while you are saving money, at the same time you are learning about money. Learning about different types of financial transactions, budgeting, investing. It may sound complicated, but it’s not. The instructors and the guest speakers break it down to a very basic, easy-to-grasp form. In fact, that’s one of the reasons why I would recommend this program to young people everywhere — because it’s designed with us in mind. And not many course like this are."