In need of a financial U-Turn?

Then check out the U-Turn Challenge, presented by First Tech Credit Union.

Starting now through December 19, First Tech will be searching for households throughout the Pacific Northwest (Lane County, Portland Metro area, Salem and the Seattle Metro area) who are ready to turnaround their financial lives.















How does the U-Turn Challenge Work?

Selected households will compete against other households from Lane County, the Portland Metro area and the Seattle Metro area for a $10,000 grand prize. The prize goes to the household that achieves the most financial success in four pre-determined categories: debt reduction, savings increase, overall net worth increase, and overall level of participation. The First Tech-selected households will participate in the Challenge throughout 2009, documenting their financial successes and challenges via their own blogs at www.uturnchallenge.com.

The best part?

ALL participating households will be assigned a team of First Tech financial experts who will help them get on the road to a better financial life and potentially win the competition. The team will focus on every aspect of the households’ financial situation including budgeting, managing credit, home buying, paying for college, planning for retirement, insuring for the future, and much more.

Participating households must be willing to:

· Publicly discuss their financial situation

· Work closely with their First Tech financial team

· Provide monthly feedback on financial progress and results

· Have Internet access and be willing to blog regularly about their U-Turn Challenge experiences

· Be eligible for First Tech Credit Union membership. Membership qualifications can be found online at First Tech’s website

How to enter the First Tech U-Turn Challenge

Interested households can visit the U-Turn Challenge website at www.uturnchallenge.com. There, they can read the Challenge rules and regulations, fill out an online application and download the required release forms. Completed questionnaires and release forms must be addressed and mailed by

December 19, 2008 to:

U-Turn Challenge

PO Box 2100

Beaverton, OR

The public can follow the participating households’ journey in the U-Turn Challenge from February 2009 through December 2009 at www.uturnchallenge.com.

For more information about the First Tech U-Turn Challenge, visit www.uturnchallenge.com. All media inquiries should be directed to JulieAnna Little with R/West Public Relations at 503.223.5443 x114 or julieannal@r-west.com.

Check out this video for more info (and yes, that's R/West's own JulieAnna who, for the record, prefers being behind the scenes rather than in front of the camera and was forced to do this by her own team!)