hmmm…..
Whatever happened to good old U.S. Savings Bonds? I was thinking about them the other day and was wondering if they were even still in existence. It seems like you never hear about them anymore. Then, this morning, there is an article on the USA Today website. Apparently, after Dec. 31, we will no longer be able to purchase savings bonds – at least on paper. The whole program has gone digital and bonds will no longer be available at banks and savings and loans.
Seems like every momentous event in my early life was marked by a savings bond. You could purchase them for about ½ the face amount and in about 7 years or so, they matured. So when I received them for first Holy Communion, they would mature about college time – handy, wouldn’t you say? My Dad bought savings bonds through work and used them as a sort of college fund for my brothers and sisters and I. I won several 4-H awards during high school, and they always came with a $25 or $50 bond. When my daughter was born, I began to save nickels and dimes and gathered up enough for a $500 bond. I think she cashed it in to buy her first house.
But all of that now seems like a thing of the past. There are so many other much more profitable ways to invest money that savings bonds are pretty much last on the list. Maybe we should start a revival of them, though. It’s a good way to support our government at a time when it needs our help.
hmmm…..
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