Elovitzes very savvy about saving money

By JEWISH REVIEW

article created on: 2010-09-01T00:00:00

Lake Oswego’s Elovitz family—Nicole and Mitch and their daughter Maude— made national headlines recently for their savings’ habits.

The August edition of Money Magazine highlighted the family’s savings program with a story and photo.

They set aside 35 percent of their budget for savings.

Nicole Elovitz chairs the Women’s Philanthropy Committee of the Jewish Federation of Greater Portland. She said her family’s story also was discussed on NBC’s Today show in July and she was recently interviewed by NPR for an upcoming Marketplace—Money Matters story.

In the wake of all that attention, Nicole has launched a blog “to support the habit of spreading savings and laughter to all who desire.” Her blog can be read at clutchingcoins.wordpress.com.

On Aug. 27, she wrote about charity in her blog. A brief excerpt follows:

“What I will tell you is that charity—like life—is all about money. The more you have the more you can do. … (F)or me the way to “do good works” is to do it the hard way–for people I don’t know. I migrate to the overseas needy-emergency types—where life and death hang in the balance and the money I raise helps to tip the scales in their favor.

My philanthropy is budgeted into my life. I carve out a percentage of money monthly and send a check to the Jewish Federation of Greater Portland. That way, as we find goodness in our own lives, we help others to find it as well.”

The story can be seen in full online at http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2010/moneymag/1007/gallery.super_savers.m....