I feel like I've always known how

Do you remember how you learned to do your taxes?

My Dad had a thing about doing them. Being ultra competitive, he was determined not to give the IRS any more than he had to. That may be why he started filing them exactly on the 15^th (or it may have just been good old-fashioned procrastination).

His annual ritual was a bunch of late nights to get the taxes done, followed by the ceremonial trip to the main post office by Philadelphia's 30th Street station where Postal Service employees would be out front collecting envelopes. I don't think any of us ever went with him so I have no way of verifying any of his (probably embellished) stories about the pageantry of the night.

The downside for me is channeling the procrastination part when despite my best intentions, April 15^th rolls around and our taxes still need to be filed. On the other hand, I don't remember not knowing about taxes; I knew how to do them long before I had need to file my own.

I am reminded of this annually when DCFYI youth reach out to ask for help with their taxes. Over the years numerous young people have asked if they could come to the office and complete theirs to make sure they know what to do. Others call for a refresher or reassurance that they're doing them correctly.

Recently I had a conversation with a youth still in foster care who did not know what taxes are (or that one day soon she will have to file them).

All a reminder to me of the many things one needs to learn about "adulting" and how much harder it is to not learn them (sometimes almost organically) as one is growing up. And another reason every young person needs trusted adults in their lives (especially adults they trust enough to share their financial matters with).

Thank you for making sure DCFYI teens have these adults in their lives (and if you are just filing your taxes, I hope you hit the send button with an extra zing and conjure the energy of post offices of old at 11:50 PM on the night of April 15^th, because if you have to file you might as well have some fun with it),
Susan

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Upcoming Events

Earth day project - Saturday April 23

On the Water - Saturday May 21 

All events continue to be outdoors for now.

We continue to watch covid numbers (and new variants) and vaccination rates to determine if any event should be canceled and when we can safely return to indoor events. We are keeping our fingers crossed and building a full schedule of events for the rest of the year.

Events are on the DCFYI website calendar.

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Help Family & Youth Initiative grow!

Are you an events person?

Every October, Family & Youth Initiative holds our Establishing Roots fundraiser. It's a fun evening of food and drink, a silent auction, and the highlight of the evening - hearing from a DCFYI youth and volunteer!

We hope you will plan to join us on Wednesday October 12^th in the North Hall of historic Eastern Market.

As we plan for this year's fundraiser we would love your help. If events or silent auctions are your thing, consider joining the Establishing Roots committee. Please reach out and we'll connect you!

Thank you.