For many of us, the movements of the stock and bond markets on Wall Street are, at best, a matter of academic interest. My parents and grandparents were Italian immigrants. Their idea of finance and banking consisted of money hidden under the mattress or in the cookie jar we kept on the kitchen counter. Ultimately, my parents’ financial acumen evolved to a passbook savings account, but that was only after they realized that American banks truly didn’t steal your money.

Having learned from a neighbor about passbook savings, my parents struggled to balance their one statement savings account, an activity frequently accompanied by heated discussion. Going to the bank to cash and deposit paychecks was an involved procedure which required considerable planning and creative arithmetic. My parents’ financial evolution took a new turn late in their marriage when my father sold two acres of non-contiguous land which he’d bought for $300 dollars. That two acre parcel fetched the astounding sum of $40,000. When someone at the local S&L suggested a CD account, their education as fiduciaries was complete. They were suddenly money market investors. Receiving interest on CDs made them feel guilty, but proud, too.


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