Dr. Lee appointed to Presidential Council

The Rev. Dr. Robert V. Lee III, Founder and Chairman of FreshMinistries, was personally appointed by President George W. Bush to serve a two-year term on the newly created President’s Advisory Council on Financial Literacy. The council, created by executive order within the Treasury Department on Tuesday, January 22, 2008, “will help keep America competitive and assist the American people in understanding financial matters.”

Dr. Lee was chosen to serve on the council due to his extensive background and successful accomplishments building outreach educational programs for the working poor. In 2005 Dr. Lee and FreshMinistries earned the U. S. Treasury Department’s prestigious Sherman Award for Excellence in Financial Education for its Individual Development Account (IDA) program, a financial literacy and matched savings program designed to help low-income people reach financial independence.

Dr. Lee, along with the other 19 appointees who serve without compensation, will advise the President and the Treasury Secretary on ways to improve the financial literacy of all Americans, specifically focusing on students and low-income working adults. A release from the White House states the council will gather information about financial literacy and advise the Treasury Secretary on goals including improving financial education for students and adults in the workplace. The council will also establish “effective measures of national financial literacy.”

“Serving on this council is truly a blessing and an honor. FreshMinistries’ mission is to improve the lives of all people, regardless of race, faith, nationality or financial status. We want to give every individual the educational tools, community support and guidance needed to become the person God created them to be, and, I truly believe the President’s interest in financial literacy and the creation of the Presidential Advisory Council on Financial Literacy is a crucial step toward breaking the cycle of poverty and crime in America” said Lee.

FreshMinistries’ other initiatives include, Beaver Street Enterprise Center, a core-city business incubator, Jacksonville Hospitality Institute, a free jobs training program for unemployed and underemployed adults, and East Jacksonville Neighborhood Resource Center, a fully staffed core-city neighborhood center that direct-connects individuals living in crisis with the social services available to assist their specific needs and Siyafundisa, an HIV/AIDS peer-to-peer educational prevention program in Africa.

For further information on The Rev. Dr. Robert V. Lee III or FreshMinistries, please visit www.freshministries.org or call Pam Kearney (904) 355-0000.

---