How do you go from having little experience preparing tax returns to being a volunteer tax preparer who helps hardworking families get the tax refunds they deserve? Just ask Jeanne Lucke.
Jeanne is a finance manager at Frito-Lay and became a United Way supporter and volunteer through the annual Frito-Lay campaign for United Way. She says that she LIVES UNITED because “I have been very fortunate in my life. I want to give back to other people who haven’t been so fortunate.”
In 2008, Deb Gibbins—a member of the United Way Executive Committee and one of Jeanne’s colleagues at Frito-Lay—recruited Jeanne to help recruit and train volunteers for the first year of Earn It! Keep It! Save It! This United Way program helps low- to moderate-income families achieve greater financial stability through financial education and free tax preparation.
“We have a lot of diverse expertise at Frito-Lay. What was unique about Earn It! Keep It! Save It! was the opportunity to use our financial and computer skills,” Jeanne says. She was one of nearly 20 Frito-Lay volunteers who together spent 145 hours at tax preparation sites helping families.
Jeanne adds, “I would recommend volunteering with Earn It! Keep It! Save It! because you can have a significant impact. Plus, you get to work face-to-face with people who are very appreciative of the service you provide. Don’t be intimated by process—even if you have no experience, the training is so organized that you’ll be prepared. All you need are computer skills and willingness to get certified.”
In addition to her work with Earn It! Keep It! Save It!, Jeanne has volunteered at The Family Place, a United Way partner agency that provides support for women and children who are victims of domestic violence. She says, “Going through the training, I began to understand the impact of domestic violence and how it’s everywhere—in every community, at every income level.”
Jeanne appreciates that these volunteer opportunities allow her “to really make an impact. That’s also what makes supporting United Way so important: it’s a way to touch so many people’s lives.”
If you’re interesting in making a major impact in the lives of hardworking families, consider joining Jeanne as an Earn It! Keep It! Save It! volunteer—and help us spread the word.
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