Dr. DeForest B. Soaries, Jr. and the dfree® Global Financial Freedom Movement Expands its Reach to Connect with Youth and Young Adults

SOMERSET, N.J., Oct. 9, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Since 2005, the dfree® Financial Freedom Movement has traveled the world, teaching and leading churches, community organizations and individuals to financial wellness. To date, dfree® has connected with more than 3,100 churches, 100 chapters of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated, and tens of thousands of individuals between the ages of 25 and 60. This week, the organization officially launched its first-ever youth and young adult initiative, dfree® Young Money.

"Finance is a topic that is too rarely discussed in many households," said Dr. DeForest B. Soaries, Jr., CEO of dfree® and author of Say Yes to No Debt: 12 Steps to Financial Freedom. "Yet, when you think about how millennials are raised, with parents sacrificing so much so they could be spoiled with luxuries, even when living in their parents' homes, millennials today are some of the most broke and lacking in knowledge about how to find and maintain financial freedom."

About 1 in 4 adults under the age of 30 have student loan debt, and those with a bachelor's degree owe a median of $25,000, according to the Pew Research Center found. "We're determined to not let the most prosperous generation become the poorest generation," continued Dr. Soaries. "We're using popular culture as our financial textbook with economic explanations while using dfree® principles. It's monumental."

dfree® Young Money, developed by a group of the organization's very own talented, creative millennials, is designed to infiltrate and leverage urban culture by using symbols of pop culture to teach age- and interest-appropriate financial lessons through relevant mediums. Targeted for youth and young adults ages 12-27, dfree® Young Money plans to partner with schools, colleges, churches, sororities, fraternities, and community organizations to reach 1 million youth and young adults through both virtual and live events by the end of 2019.

"We've reached tens of thousands of people with dfree®, and so many of them have 'money stories' and financial habits that started when they were young.  It's time to break the cycle and start teaching money matters at younger ages," said Tamika Stembridge, Esq., Executive Director of the dfree® Global Foundation. "The adults at home aren't modeling good financial behaviors, and kids aren't taught about money and lifestyle basics in school.  So this is such a pivotal time for dfree® Young Money to fill in the gap, especially in the urban community."

To commemorate its launch, dfree® Young Money will debut its all-new YouTube web series entitled, The Black Money Series, on Tuesday, October 9. BMS will tackle lifestyle and financial habits of millennials with a fun twist and will feature dfree® Young Money's very own seven-member team. The series will air weekly, exclusively on the dfree® YouTube channel - @mydfree. In addition to the web series, dfree® Young Money will release its all-new curriculum at the dfree® National Homecoming Conference, October 25th-28th in Somerset, NJ.

"We want to really deliver financial literacy through ways that interest, US, millennials and Gen Z, and we know that we have to break all traditional barriers to do so," said Nia Baskerville, dfree® Youth and Young Adult Engagement Specialist. "Our dfree® Young Money programming and curriculum does just that. This is literally for young people like us, by us because too many of us are drowning."

Already off to a great start, since the beginning of the year, dfree® Young Money has partnered with organizations such as the Urban Leagues of Union and Essex Counties' Young Professionals (NJ), New Brunswick Public Schools (NJ), the Mastery Charter School of Philadelphia (PA), Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated, the Boys and Girls Club of Union County (NJ), the Historic First Baptist Church of Norfolk (VA), and the Macedonia Community Development Corporation of Los Angeles (CA) to host events for young people to not only begin thinking about their finances but also about career planning, entrepreneurship and college funding. Moreover, this dfree® initiative has already garnered support from influencers like The Breakfast Club's Angela Yee, and music artists such as Dee-1 and No Malice, formerly of The Clipse.

dfree® Young Money will host a special Building Billionaires LIVE event this fall at the dfree® National Homecoming Conference on October 26 in Somerset, NJ. The event, for high school juniors, seniors and college students, will celebrate financial literacy and entrepreneurship. The day will feature hip-hop royalty heir, music artist and actor, Diggy Simmons, and young entrepreneurial sensations, Jr. Flips, as seen on The Steve Harvey Show. The event is free for students.

"We have so many great things lined up with dfree® Young Money this year," Dr. Soaries said. "In addition to the reality web series, we will also release our youth and young adult supplement book at our national conference in October. This is not just dfree® for kids. This is going to be huge!"

For more information about dfree® Young Money, The Black Money Series and the dfree® National Homecoming Conference, please visit www.mydfree.org. Follow dfree® Young Money on social media: @mydfree #dfreeYoungMoney.

About dfree^® Financial Freedom Movement:
As the only faith-based, wealth-building system specifically designed with the black community in mind, dfree^® delivers access to financial freedom. dfree^® uses a variety of tools to educate, motivate and support people who make the choice to achieve and sustain financial freedom. dfree^® began as a faith-based initiative to help stem an epidemic of overspending, particularly in the African-American community. dfree^® has grown into a movement that gives participants the: ability to handle their own financial responsibilities; willingness to help others do the same; and, capacity to leave assets for future generations.

SOURCE dfree Global Foundation

Related Links

http://mydfree.org/