A new job, a marriage, a house, and a layoff.

When Ramiah joined 3rd Decade, she was looking for a way to deepen her financial knowledge and prepare for what came next.

"My coworker had actually told me about it," Ramiah shared. "She had found out about 3rd Decade at a community event. I looked it up, fit the criteria, and just decided, why not?"

She grew up in a household where money was discussed openly, but she wanted to take the next step in her financial journey.

"Something I had always wanted to learn more about was retirement and just continue to grow, especially in budgeting," she said. "As an adult, I really wanted to take next steps into buying a house, looking more into retirement, and all of those different things. So I figured I could learn a lot from these classes."

For Ramiah, financial literacy is about much more than managing money. It's about creating opportunities, building confidence, and passing knowledge on to others.

Since joining 3rd Decade, Ramiah's life has changed in significant ways. She got married, purchased a home, changed careers, and weathered an unexpected layoff. Through each transition, the lessons she learned in the program helped her stay grounded.

"When I had my first meeting with my financial advisor, I had just accepted a new job that was double what I was making currently," she said. "A few months after that, I bought a house and also got married. All three of those things were a huge impact."

Then, about a year after accepting her new position, Ramiah was laid off.

Looking back, she doesn't point to any single financial challenge as the hardest part of her journey. Instead, she credits the program with helping her navigate life's many changes with confidence.

"Life changes have been the hardest part," she said. "Being able to remember and fall back on the foundation of what I've learned has really helped keep me going."

Today, Ramiah sees the impact of financial literacy not only in her own life, but in the life she's building with her husband and the generations that will follow.

"When I started the program, I was single," she said. "Being able to get married and share my knowledge of financial literacy with my husband, and then eventually pass that down to future generations, is something that is really going to impact my life."

For anyone just beginning their financial journey, Ramiah offers a simple but powerful reminder.

She encourages others to focus on progress rather than perfection.

"I have the personality that wants to go in fully and take all these things on," she said. "But sometimes it's a process. Sometimes it just starts with tracking your finances and where you're spending your money."

Her advice is one many young adults need to hear: "Don't be so hard on yourself. It takes time, and it's never too late to start."