I was blessed with having loving and caring parents who taught me the meaning and value of money by introducing me to financial literacy when I was very young.

I earned a weekly allowance by helping with household chores (and maintaining good grades, of course), which is how I first gained an appreciation for earning money. Fast forward, for many years I have helped many family members and friends with starting a budget, opening a savings account, building or restoring their credit, and purchasing their first car or home. 

Lolita's Rainy Day came to light when I was assigned a class project while attending Bay Path University. The six-week assignment required me to plan a project on a topic I was passionate about and put it into action in the community. 

As I reflected on the project, I recalled how I learned about earning and saving money as a child, and the lifetime impact it had on me. I soon made the decision to introduce children to financial literacy in the form of a children's book. It was then that my personal story came to life in my children's book, Lolita's Rainy Day. 

You see, Lolita is a character of me when I was six years old.  Just like Lolita, I saved my money in a sock and kept it underneath my bed.

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When I was in elementary school, a local bank gave me the opportunity to open a savings account. Each week, a bank representative came to the school to collect the money to deposit in my account. When I realized how quickly the quarters, dimes, nickels and pennies added up, it motivated me to keep my savings growing. 
 

The illustrations for the project were the work of art of my dear friend, Michele. And, with the support of my mentor, Jean, Lolita's Rainy Day scrapbook was completed. I then put my project into action at a local charter school and read the story to an engaging and enthusiastic group of first and second grader students. My experience with the children, and how they connected with the story affirmed that my project could not end there.

Soon thereafter, I began pondering on how to publish the book, and questioned how I would find the time to accomplish such challenging task, as well as how much it would cost. However I soon came to realize that what mattered most was to continue introducing children to financial literacy through my own personal story, just as I did for my project. And so Lolita's Rainy Day book came to fruition.

This is my story. Lolita's Rainy Day is a story for the children.