Local Community Food Centre offers budgeting workshop to help residents save amid rising costs

The Local Community Food Centre is holding a free tax and budgeting workshop in Stratford. The second Honest Budget workshop will take place on Sept. 29. Pictured is Jen Vredeveld, financial literacy and tax clinic coordinator at The Local Community Food Centre in Stratford.

By Alex Hunt

After positive feedback from the first “Honest Budget” session, the Local Community Food Centre is hosting another workshop to help residents better understand and manage their finances.

The Honest Budget workshop returns Sept. 29 at the Local Community Food Centre (612 Erie St., Stratford). The event is free for all attendees and will run for an hour starting at 3:30 p.m. followed by dinner at 4 p.m.

“This is meant to be in a non-judgmental way while we assess what we spend our money on,” said Jen Vredeveld, financial literacy and tax clinic coordinator at The Local Community Food Centre. “Let’s be real, I don’t care where your income comes from, I just want to help people budget.

“I want to help people see where the money is going when they work hard for that paycheck that they receive. I want this program to teach something that attendees may have not learned before and to feel more confident in making decisions with their money.”

Vredeveld says people often slip into a restrictive mindset, cutting out all spending to save. She hopes the workshop will show participants how to strike a balance between setting money aside and still enjoying life, while exploring ways to feel financially secure and reach their goals.

“I want to give people a sense of reliability. There was a time when I was only making $500 a month and rent was $500,” said Vredeveld. “I know what you have to do to get your rent paid and I haven’t forgotten that. It’s really important to remember that people are not choosing to live in poverty and have no money.”

Vredeveld said many systemic programs end up supporting poverty rather than solving it. She hopes the workshop will help shift the conversation toward long-term solutions, adding the Local is an ideal place to host it.

“Last time we did this in July, we had 10 people. I want to do this event on a quarterly basis. People are requesting help,” Vredeveld said. “If people don’t know where to start, we take a deep dive on what people are spending, how much they’re making and what’s getting them jammed up from a financial standpoint.

“Once people see what’s going on, something clicks. They become honest about it and then reflect on what they should be spending on. It’s to give people more decision-making confidence.”

Vredeveld said the program has launched a new service to help residents file back taxes from 2017 to the present, something not currently offered in town. While tax clinics in the community typically only go back two years, this service will run year-round to help people catch up outside of tax season. All services are free.