Financial educators don't want people in Rochester to fall into the bankruptcy trap.  They’re hoping to change they way people spend their money.  In 1985, 14,000 people filed for bankruptcy in the Greater Rochester Area.  Just 20 years later the numbers jumped up by more to 7,700.

The Federal Bankruptcy Judge in Rochester is making a plea to the public.  Judge John Ninfo says people need to get control of their spending before it’s too late.  "If you sit in this court every day and see people ruining their lives you think they really didn't have to if they knew the basics of personal finance" said Judge Ninfo.

Judge Ninfo and other financial educators launched a grassroots campaign Monday.  They plan to get the word out about the importance of balancing your check book and the dangers of credit card abuse.  "They live in homes they can't afford.  They drive cars they can't afford.  And they have credit card debt they can't pay back basically because it’s been to easy to do all those things," said Judge Ninfo.

Just four months ago, the average American had nine credit cards with a balance of at least $10,000.  "We're seeing a lot of people come in with astronomical volumes of debt in credit cards," said Linda Howland, Consumer Credit Counseling Service Chief Executive Officer.

Linda Howland says because our economy's in crisis it's a teachable moment.  "The awareness is there more than ever before.  I think people will be more pro-active about thinking of saving and maintaining their homes, staying current on their mortgage payments," said Howland.

Judge Ninfo is asking businesses and churches to get involved in the campaign.  They want to hold town meetings and pass out information to get consumers in Rochester back on track.  "We're going to continue to have these bailouts.  We're going to continue to have these kinds of crises in our economy if we don't get back to something more sustainable.  More realistic," said Judge Ninfo.

The Greater Rochester Financial Literacy Initiative is having a public forum next week to kick off the campaign.  A panel of experts will give advice about managing your money in the current economy.

It will be Tuesday, March 31^st at 7 PM at the Downtown Community Forum at 15 St. Mary’s Place in Rochester.

Judge Ninfo is a founder of the nationally recognized Care Program, which educates high school and college students  on the dangers of credit card abuse.  Here's a link to its website:
www.careprogram.us