Money$mart Kid

If everyone could be as smart as Mario about money, no one would carry any credit card debt, pay bills late and bankruptcy judges would have to find a new line of work.
 

While most 12-year-olds are thinking about how to spend their money...

"So people will start buying stock," Mario says.

Mario is focused on how to save and invest his for the long run.

"I've been saving money probably since I was a baby," Mario says.

It's that kind of thinking that helped Mario become the first official Money$mart kid. To win this honor and the $2,500 Bright Start college scholarship that accompanied it, he had to write an essay about things people should know about money.

"You should shop for sales, so you should spend your money wisely and you should pay yourself first and if you give money, you get money," Mario says.

Kids who are smart about money usually get some sort of guidance from their parents. Bruce and Michelle Gage believe in being as open as possible about what things cost.

"We come from families that taught us very good principles on how to be good people and how to shop wisely," Bruce says.

"With Bruce being an entrepreneur and a business owner we talk about money all the time and what it means," Michelle says.

Which explains how Mario came up with his money saving formula.

"I put 10 percent in the church jar, 30 percent in the savings jar and 60 percent in the store jar," Mario says.

"What's the store jar?"

"That's the money I can use to shop," Mario says.

But Mario also learns about money at his school Ariel Community Academy.

"Mario's class has learned about sole proprietorship, corporations, they make sure they are living proof that they know what an opportunity cost is. What it means to open a bank account," says Connie Moran, Ariel Community Academy.

Being this year's Money$mart kid isn't just about knowing how to save and invest your money. It's also about how well you explain the concepts to others.

"You have to spend your money wisely definitely because otherwise you can be a millionaire today and maybe a year from now you'll be bankrupt," Mario says.

RESOURCES MARIO GAGE'S MONEY$MART KID AWARD-WINNING ESSAY

Making It Worth Your Dollar

By Mario Gage

Are you one of those people who never seem to have money? If so, I am going to share three simple tips to help you keep and grow your money.

The first tip is: you get money if you give money. The second tip is: you don't have to be rich to invest your money. My final tip is: in order to keep money, you must spend your money wisely. You get money if you give money. Remember that it is better to give than to receive.

Whenever I get money, I have been taught that the first that I should do is set aside 10 percent for church. For example, if I get a dollar, ten cents of the dollar will go in the church "jar". By doing this I am giving to others.

You don't have to be rich to invest your money. Your first investment should be yourself. The second thing that I do whenever I get money is take 30 percent and put it in the savings "jar". By doing this I am paying myself. The money that I put in the savings jar will eventually go into a savings account for future stock investments. For example, if I get a dollar, thirty cents will go in the savings "jar". Look out John Rogers!

Finally, in order to keep money, you must spend it wisely. The first things that you buy should be what you need (then what you want), shop for sales and never spend all of your money. For example, after giving 10 percent to church and saving 30 percent, I have 60 percent of my money to spend or go in the store "jar". So, if I had a dollar, I would be able to spend sixty cents. This is the money that I use to buy what I need or want.

If you follow these tips, you will always have money.

(C) 2004 Mario Gage.

Copyright © 2004, WGN-TV