Wells Fargo recently hosted a series of free interactive and educational cooking classes, Sabor y Sabiduría: Flavorful Lessons in Financial Literacy, at e.terra Kitchen in East Harlem as part of its Banking Inclusion Initiative, their 10-year commitment to accelerate access to affordable mainstream bank accounts and financial education for the more than 5.9 million unbanked and 18.7 million underbanked U.S. households. These households are disproportionately Hispanic, and many call East Harlem home and face challenges with financial mobility.
Francis Montoya (@slingshotmenace) Courtesy of Wells Fargo
Participants were guided through a step-by-step cooking demonstration by Harlem’s Frances Roman, owner and head chef at Cocotazo, and a discussion on the essential “ingredients” (i.e., how to establish credit, reduce debt, and build savings) that can set people up on the path toward financial success and address their own barriers to banking. Presenters included Patty Juarez, executive vice president and head of Hispanic & Latino Affairs at Wells Fargo; Victoria Leandra, award-winning journalist and speaker; and Wells Fargo’s Operation HOPE financial coaches Terry Peña and Melody Maisonet.