Emma’s Story

Since then, she has taken advantage of several resources offered by the Resource Center, including free tax assistance, financial coaching, credit counseling, and employment resources that have been added since the Resource Center expanded last year to become the SparkPoint American Canyon Center.

Emma is a great example of someone who is on track to achieve her dreams by taking advantage of SparkPoint’s “bundled” services. SparkPoint gathers the region’s best programs at one convenient location, then encourages clients to utilize two or more integrated services to more effectively address the complex issues facing low-income households. SparkPoint clients, like Emma, who use more than one service are three times more successful in achieving financial goals than clients who use only one.

Here’s how SparkPoint is working for Emma:

• Last spring, Emma saved $150 by getting free tax help at SparkPoint through the Earn It! Keep It! Save It! program. SparkPoint American Canyon is one of the eight Earn It! Keep It! Save It! free tax sites located in Napa County. Emma and her husband had a tax refund of $3,000. These funds came at the right time and were used to pay bills; some of the money was set aside in savings.
• Emma and her husband are eager to purchase a home. SparkPoint coach Shandra Thomas is helping Emma get her credit in tip-top shape so she can obtain a mortgage loan at a good rate. Shandra is an employee of LifeOnTrak, one of several partner organizations that collaborate to serve clients at the SparkPoint American Canyon Center. She advised Emma to fix an inaccurate late payment on her credit report, which boosted her credit score by 68 points, bringing it above 700.
• Emma also took advantage of the SparkPoint employment program, offered through DreamCatchers. Emma was employed as a hotel housekeeper and knew she needed to boost her income in order to make her dream to buy a home a reality. She had previously completed received training as a phlebotomist (medical professionals who draw blood from patients for various lab tests and procedures), but had been unable to secure work in that field.
• SparkPoint coach Stacy Lopez helped Emma improve her presentation skills and her resume, and encouraged her to promote her bilingual language skills as an asset. Last summer, Emma landed a job as a medical assistant in Benicia. Emma has been working hard and just recently had her hours increased to 32+ a week and has been transferred to a medical office in American Canyon, close to her home.

“Emma is a hard worker and always follows through with SparkPoint activities”, said SparkPoint coach Alma Munoz. “She and her husband are working hard to achieve their goal of purchasing a home for their family. They have participated in many of our programs and her family’s life has improved immensely. Stacy, our SparkPoint employment counselor, will continue to work with Emma so that she keeps her job at the medical office. We will also continue to offer support services by providing one on one coaching and credit counseling. Emma and her husband still have some work before they are eligible for homeownership but we know that they are committed for the long term.”