When her husband was unable to work due to medical treatments, Texas Children’s team member, Lisa Scott, was uncertain how her family would manage without his income. She turned to a resource she learned about from her co-workers: the Employee Financial Assistance Fund (EFAF).
Established and managed by the Human Resources – Employee Assistance Program, the EFAF provides financial help to eligible employees experiencing unexpected, unforeseen, or unavoidable emergencies. In a true example of what it means to live compassionately at Texas Children’s, the fund is maintained through generous donations from our employees – colleagues supporting colleagues in their time of greatest need.
While working with the EAP, Lisa learned of a new partnership between EAP and Fidelity to provide one-on-one financial counseling for employees. Participants meet with Fidelity Workplace Financial Consultants for 4-6 sessions and review their finances while working together to create a budget, pay off bills or debt, understand their credit score, and start an emergency fund.
Lisa enjoyed the program and would recommend it to others saying, “I had to create a budget, and it was certainly eye-opening to see what comes in and what needs to go out. Once you put everything down on paper, it becomes more real.” Talking through her finances with her counselor, Danielle, she felt like a weight was lifted off her shoulders. Lisa said, “After working on the exercises she gave me, I can see a light at the end of the tunnel. Danielle was supportive and did not make me feel like a failure.”
Fidelity is readily available to assist with any of your financial needs. To help you through your financial journey, we encourage you to schedule a free one-on-one financial consultation session with Fidelity.
For more information on applying for the Employee Financial Assistance Fund, please visit the EFAF page on the Sharepoint site. Additionally, if you are in a financial position to donate even one dollar to the Employee Financial Assistance Fund, all donations are greatly appreciated.