Local family's money-saving tips attract attention

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

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The Heinz family was featured in a Parade magazine for a story about saving money.

SARASOTA (Bay News 9) -- As the economic roller-coaster has many searching for ways to save money, a Sarasota family is receiving national attention for their cost-cutting ways.

Sue Heinz was recently featured in Parade magazine and "The Oprah Winfrey Show" as a result of her money-saving ideas, which she says are not as difficult and life-changing as many would think.

The mother of four boys, who calls herself "thrifty," said her family had been living like this long before the economy began to hit rough spots.

One of Heinz's major sources of savings comes from a pre-paid cell phone plan that costs about $5 a month.

"If you have it direct-debited from your account, $15 dollars every 90 days will keep it active," she said. "If you use it for emergencies, you will not run out of time."

She said she spends less than $100 a week on groceries, and that she can fix a family meal for $5.

"If it's not on sale, I won't buy it," Heinz said.

In addition, she cuts her sons' hair and her husband changes the oil in the car. They pack their own lunches and make their own coffee. She also said she's buying her family's swimsuits and backpacks for next year right now because they are on clearance racks.

Heinz said one of her tips is to do a lot of research online before she makes a decision, including visits to some favorite coupon Web sites.

Even though the Heinz family is all about saving as much money as they can, they still have a lot of fun as a family. Heinz said they have game nights and that they go to the beach. When the family wants to see movies, they go to the second-run movie theater near their home.