From Under the Mattress to Inside the Vault

“I came to Latino Memphis and literally found HOPE,” Alejandra says.

Latino Memphis is a nonprofit that provides services to the city’s Hispanic community. HOPE partners with Latino Memphis to offer financial counseling and services.

When Alejandra joined Latino Memphis as its program coordinator, she learned about Crece con HOPE (Grow with HOPE), HOPE’s program to expand service to Spanish-speaking immigrants. Crece con HOPE offers checking and saving accounts to immigrants who have an ITIN, or individual taxpayer identification number. The IRS issues ITINs to people who are not eligible to obtain a Social Security number to help these individuals comply with U.S. income tax laws.

Alejandra has referred dozens of her clients to HOPE for financial services, but no clients were happier to find HOPE than Alejandra’s own parents. Her mother and father, natives of Zacatez, Mexico, have lived in the United States since 1999.

“My parents had looked at other financial institutions, but they didn’t feel a sense of trust there,” Alejandra says. “They had resorted to keeping all their money in cash, literally hidden under the mattress. I kept thinking, ‘What if the house burns?’”

Alejandra convinced her father to turn to HOPE, where he opened an account using his ITIN number. The entire family can rest easier knowing their money is in a safe place.

“Many undocumented people are afraid to go to a bank without a social security number. Others have gone to a bank and had a bad experience. When I tell them, ‘HOPE will work with you with an ITIN,’ or ‘HOPE will have someone there who can explain things to you in Spanish,’ their eyes just glow,” Alejandra says. “At HOPE, I have noticed a difference in the way people from my community are treated. If you make thousands or if you make five dollars a year, at HOPE, you are treated with the same respect.”