The Whatcom Dream

The Whatcom Dream is an incredible mission, run by an amazing group of inspiring people that have made a huge difference in my life, and no doubt in the Whatcom Community! I've taken a series of their classes and continued to receive ongoing support even after I graduated. Their Financial Literacy program is so eye opening and I know I will take what I learned with me for life. They also offer a scholarship for program graduates who attend Whatcom Community College, Bellingham Technical College and other schools in the area. Trudy Shurvaloff is an absolute angel and it is so obvious how much she cares about the work she's doing and each person that comes through their programs! She has connected me with some resources that were above and beyond what I expected! John Walstad was the facilitator for the class I took, along with Trudy, and it's been great getting to know him too! His approach in class made it really fun, and he also has a super solid sense of how to help people through their journey to financial well being, at whatever level is needed. He is very down to earth and has helped me wrangle the details of my confusing financial situation, along with practical advice about life in general! He helped me make the difficult decision to repair my broken down car and get it back on the road instead of selling it for very little and taking on a new car with a payment or another unpredictable used car. I would recommend the Financial Literacy program to anyone that wants to better understand their relationship with money, understand the perspective of different financial cultures and people from different backgrounds, gain knowledge about local resources available to us, and learn practical ways to get a strong handle on personal finances, from building credit, getting out of debt, creating a budget, avoiding scams, buying a home and MUCH more! I can't thank them enough for how they've helped me and it makes me so happy to know what they're continuing to do in this area as they expand their reach throughout Whatcom County!