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We are excited to announce the August 2026 Financial Goals Scholarship winner is Marion! Congratulations!
"I am beyond thankful to have been chosen as a recipient of the 1st Financial Bank USA Financial Goals Scholarship! I intend to use the funds to help pay for my education as I'm studying to be an elementary school teacher. As a college student, I understand the stress that comes with paying for college and this scholarship will be incredibly helpful in allowing me to focus on my education and career. I am deeply grateful to have been provided with this opportunity and for the support of 1st Financial Bank USA." - Marion V.
College brings together students from many different financial backgrounds and lifestyles. When you’re still learning how to manage money, it can be easy to compare yourself to others or feel pressure to keep up with peers. In her essay, Marion shares how she has been tempted to spend and how she avoided that financial pressure.
"In April 2025, my classmates and I embarked on our senior trip to Washington D.C. and New York City. At our first mall stop in Tennessee, I immediately saw my friends buying $50 sweatshirts, jewelry, or shoes. As I walked from store to store with them, I began comparing what they could casually buy with what I knew I could afford. I wanted to belong with everyone, but I also knew I had set a spending limit for myself.
My family has always struggled financially, from living in apartments our entire lives to relying on SNAP benefits and receiving one to two Christmas gifts every year as kids. Seeing my classmates purchase items without giving a second thought to how much they wanted that particular item reminded me how every person has grown up with varying financial needs. While nobody chooses how financially secure they are as kids, it still stung when I found myself walking out of every store empty-handed; not because I wanted to, but because I couldn’t spend my money as freely as they did.
In a souvenir shop in New York, all I got were a few magnets. Throughout the whole trip, food seemed to take up most of my money. At the time, I remember hearing my friends stating how much money their parents gave them. A lot had spent more than $500. Meanwhile, I did my best to stay under my limit of $300.
Looking back, I thought I’d regret not spending more money, but once we got home, I never did regret not spending as much as my friends did. I left that trip with amazing memories instead. Our legs might’ve hurt from all the walking and our bodies might have been sore from the lack of sleep every night, but the experience was well worth it. Senior trip made me realize how spending more money on a certain event or experience doesn’t necessarily mean that you’ll get more out of it. I consistently reminded myself that my values dictate how much I spend on something. For instance, I prioritized food, something I valued, while limiting spending elsewhere.
Now, as a sophomore in college, I continue to recognize that everyone's financial situation is different. I wait 48 hours before making purchases and have set personal financial goals. To deal with financial comparison, I will always ask myself if whatever I’m doing is because I genuinely want to or if it's because my friends do. This way, I can fall out of the peer pressure trap. I don’t need to spend like the people around me to experience the same joy, and I especially don’t need to have the same financial circumstances to feel that I belong.”
Established in the year 1910, 1st Financial Bank USA (1FBUSA) provides quality community banking services in South Dakota, credit card and other financial services to college students and college graduates, and construction lending to builders, developers, and investors from coast to coast. 1FBUSA will award a $2,000 scholarship to a new winner each month. View full rules and eligibility at 1fbusascholarship.com.
