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“I didn’t understand why I needed a checking account and why I couldn’t just carry around cash,” he said.
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Associated Bank personal banker Ramazan Balci delivers a presentation on banking options to a mostly hmong audience Tuesday at Western Technical College.
PETER THOMSON photo |
Balci soon learned about the importance of checking and savings accounts, and took an interest in banking. He graduated from Western Technical College in 2003 with an associate degree in finance and then earned a bachelor of science degree in finance from Winona State University.
He now is a personal banker at the Woodman’s branch of Associated Bank in Onalaska, Wis.
He sees others struggle to understand finances, as he did at first. At the bank, parents who don’t speak English will bring their children to translate.
“I understand what it is like to be in their shoes because I was once one of them,” he said.
Which is why Balci gave a presentation Tuesday on banking and financial literacy to a group of primarily Hmong students in English language classes at Western Technical College.
He also brought along a co-worker from Associated Bank who translated to Hmong. Associated Bank allowed them to give the presentation on company time, he said, as a community service.
Balci talked about checking accounts, savings accounts, debit cards, direct deposit, the importance of saving for children and more.
“I emphasized how the bank and bank products such as checking accounts and savings accounts are important in people’s lives,” he said.
“We believe we should educate our customers so that they will understand all the things we do at the bank, so they can make the right decision and establish a relationship with the bank that will last a long time.”
Diane Withers, an English language learning and adult basic education instructor at Western, and Balci even put on a skit — Balci as the bank teller and Withers as the customer who didn’t speak much English. They pointed out key terms and phrases to use while at the bank.
See Vang, originally from Thailand and a current Western student, said she learned a lot from the session.
“When you come from another country, you don’t know everything about banking,” she said. “This was very good.”
The presentation helped her see the importance of starting to save for the future of her six children, she said.
Lang can be reached at (608) 791-8226 or klang@lacrossetribune.com.
