LOBO TALK presents Good and Bad Credit

The recent LOBO TALK featured Jill Alley, Eastman Credit Union regional director. She spoke on an especially important financial topic –CREDIT. She started out by defining credit. According to Ms. Alley, credit is your credit history or how you use money.

She gave these examples:

1. How many credit cards do you have?

2. How many loans do you have?

3. Do you pay your bills on time?

Alley said, “How you handle your money and how you pay your bills, help lenders and others decide if they want to do business with you.” Hence, if you pay your bills timely, lenders are more apt to do business with you. Another financial plus of timely payments is the interest rate you get when borrowing money for any purchase.

Secondly, she explained to students who uses credit history. They are as follows: financial industries.

1. Lending institutions such as banks and credit unions.

3. Landlords and insurance companies. Furthermore, she delved into credit report.

According to Alley, credit report is a person’s credit history. There are 3 credit bureaus that collect credit information. They are TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian.

Furthermore, she explained to students what a credit score is. It is a number between 300-850 based on one’s credit report. A larger number on the credit score rewards the person with borrowing power and lower interest rates. Conversely, a lower credit score penalizes a borrower. They will have to borrow with high interest rates because the person is deemed high risk. Students participated asking various questions about borrowing and credit.

Sam Jackson, a 10th grader has a good knowledge about credit. His father Worth Jackson is a banker. Sam says he learned from his father to pay bills on time.

Avery Gonzalez, another 10th grader is not in the dark about good credit. “Good credit is something you build up. You get a credit card; you use it wisely and pay your bills in a timely manner.”

Addison Martin was excited to attend the LOBO TALK. She has limited knowledge about credit and borrowing but she is willing to learn from the presentation.

In addition, Alley discussed rules for using credit.

She told the students to do the following :

1. Pay credit card balances in full to avoid paying any interest.

2. Be aware of early loan payoff penalties. Besides that, pay loans off quickly by paying more than the minimum payment.

3. Keep debt to income ratio (DTI) below 28%. Be aware that borrowing too much in one swoop is not a good idea.

4. Pay 20% down for large items such as homes or cars. it helps the borrower not to borrow the full amount of the purchase and pay it off with assurance and ease.

Alley concluded her presentation by reminding students that credit has a big effect on their lives since it is one of the determining factors for borrowing in the future.

LOBO TALK is patterned after the worldwide motivation and education program, TED TALKS: where various experts visit college campuses and theatres to educate their audience. Longview ISD community relations created LOBO TALK with a similar format. Once a month, they invite community experts to Longview High School to speak to at-risk and business students.

Take this Super Quiz to a Ph.D. Score 1 point for each correct answer on the Freshman Level, 2 points on the Graduate Level and 3 points on the Ph.D. Level.

Subject: HISTORY

(e.g., He led expeditions that caused the fall of the Aztec Empire. Answer: Hernan Cortes.)

FRESHMAN LEVEL

1. Which battleship was not raised after being sunk at Pearl Harbor?

Answer________

2. Adolf Hitler was born a citizen of _____.

Answer________

3. He was proclaimed “El Libertador.”

Answer________

GRADUATE LEVEL

4. Who was the most famous prisoner held at Devil’s Island?

Answer________

5. When first elected prime minister, whom did Winston Churchill replace?

Answer________

6. What was the date “... which will live in infamy”?

Answer________

PH.D. LEVEL

7. Name the first company to issue stock.

Answer________

8. This captain sailed 4,000 miles in a small boat to reach safety on the island of Timor.

Answer________

9. His predecessor was Sun Yat-sen.

Answer________

SCORING:

18 points congratulations, doctor; 15 to 17 points - honors graduate; 10 to 14 points - you’re plenty smart, but no grind; 4 to 9 points you really should hit the books harder; 1 point to 3 points - enroll in remedial courses immediately; 0 points - who reads the questions to you?

Super Quiz is a registered trademark of K. Fisher Enterprises Ltd. © 2017 Ken Fisher North America Syndicate Inc.

Men and women who want to make this Valentine’s Day extra special can forgo store-bought chocolates in favor of homemade confections. The following recipe for Swiss Mountain Ice Cream is from Maxine Clark’s Chocolate: Deliciously Indulgent Recipes for Chocolate Lovers (Ryland, Peters & Small) is a great way to end a romantic holiday dinner.

Makes about 2 quarts

2 cups whole milk

1 cup sweetened condensed milk

3/4 cup granulated sugar

2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa

14 ounces premium milk chocolate (over 32% cocoa solids), chopped

1 teaspoon pure vanilla essence

11/2 cups whipping or heavy cream, chilled

61/2 ounces white nougat, roughly chopped

1 ice cream maker (optional)

1 freezer-proof tray or container

1 mountain-shaped mold (optional)

Put the milk, condensed milk, sugar, and cocoa in a pan, bring to a boil, then simmer gently for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Stir in the chocolate and let melt, stirring occasionally. Let cool completely, then add the vanilla essence and refrigerate for about 1 hour. Stir the cream into the mixture, then churn-freeze in an ice cream maker in two batches. This will take 20 to 30 minutes. It will increase in volume as it thickens and freezes. Stop churning when thick and smooth, add the nougat, and churn to mix, then transfer to a chilled freezer-proof tray, cover, and freeze. If you don’t have an ice cream maker, put the mixture in a freezer-proof tray or container and freeze until it is frozen around the edges. Mash well with a fork and return to the freezer. Continue mashing with a fork and freezing the mixture until thick and smooth, about 2 hours. Stir in the nougat. At this stage, you can pack it into a mold and return to the freezer. Drizzle with White Chocolate Sauce and serve.

White Chocolate Sauce

Makes about 21/2 cups

1 cup light or heavy cream

6 tablespoons milk

8 ounces white chocolate (over 25% cocoa butter), chopped

Put the cream and milk in a small pan and bring to just below boiling point. Remove from the heat and let cool for 2 to 3 minutes.

Add the white chocolate and stir until completely melted. Serve warm.