By Craig T. Kojima, Star-Bulletin
Anne Griffin, left, and Laura Crites opened the Women's
Financial Resource Center last month in downtown Honolulu.
A new group has set up shop
By Jerry Tune
in Honolulu to show women the way
to economic self-sufficiency
Star-BulletinIsle women who are vulnerable to money problems because of low-paying jobs, divorce, or changes in the welfare program have a new avenue to economic self sufficiency.
The Women's Financial Resource Center opened last month at 1111 Bishop St. in downtown Honolulu. The nonprofit center provides individual counseling, study groups, support groups, workshops, and will be co-sponsoring conferences.
"Women have always been economically vulnerable. They have tried to develop some security through their marriages but with over 50 percent of marriages ending in divorce, women must begin to be responsible for their own economic self sufficiency, which includes money for retirement years," said Laura Crites, executive director of the center.
"Women are socialized to not even talk about money very much. They are told that it all will work out when they get married," she added.
Crites and partner Anne Griffin, who started the Froggies book store in 1974, started talking about creating the center about a year ago as a way to help isle women become more independent.
Crites formerly was executive director of the Family Peace Center, which dealt with domestic abuse cases. Griffin worked with Angel Network Charities, which provides shelter for homeless families and a program for self-sufficiency.
Crites and Griffin used this experience to convince the Small Business Administration and American Savings Bank to support the center. American Savings Bank provided $25,000 in start-up funding and the SBA is providing office space at its new Business Information and Counseling Center.
"We believe there is great potential for the Women's Financial Resource Center to help women start and grow new businesses," said Anna Marie Springer, America Savings Bank's senior vice president for retail lending.
Crites said "women are starting new businesses at twice the rate of men and are more likely to still be in business three years later. Women have always been entrepreneurs selling their products to increase the family income."
The center already is helping about 15 women a week gain economic knowledge and start a business. "We want to work in groups and bring in women to share ideas," Crites said. "We are beginning a marketing study group and we are working with 10 mentors."
Dawn Krause, owner of the Calico General Store at Aloha Tower Marketplace, is one of the volunteer mentors. She opened her store in May 1996 to sell food, toys and kitchen items.
"We're there to show them the way," Krause said. "There is a lot to starting a business and the mentors are gathering a resource list with the right people to contact."
Krause, a flight attendant for Pan Am for 10 years, started in retailing 20 years ago, working at home and making gift baskets. "I've talked to one woman who is between 60 and 65 years old who wants to start a business growing herbs for alternative medicine," Crites said. "Many of the women we see are into a healing, service-related business."
Crites noted that of the estimated 16,000 on welfare in Hawaii, 98 percent are women.
"It's scary to think about what's happening out there," added Griffin, referring to welfare reform, job losses, and the lack of information.
"These women are living for the moment without a plan for the future," Crites said. "They are not good at managing money because there are so many emotional issues involved."
For example, a woman will buy her children Nike shoes so they won't get teased rather than use the money for more important needs, Crites said.
By June or July, Crites hopes to have some sessions arranged to deal with such problems. These sessions will be organized with the help of Tammy Graham, who is doing a master's thesis at Hawaii Pacific University on financial management for women in transition from a divorce, death of a husband, job loss or change in welfare status.
On the calendar
The new Women's Financial Resource Center has a full slate of workshops and meetings scheduled for this month. All sessions are at the center at 1111 Bishop St., room 204. For information on the center call 522-8136. This month's schedule includes:
Getting out of debt, May 18 and May 20, noon to 1:30 p.m., free;
