About Us

My name is Jude Gilford. I help people take back control of their personal finances. No more sleepless nights! MAP shows you how to take charge with easy-to-follow steps guaranteed to turn debt-servicing dollars into YOU-servicing dollars. Everything we do is based on the philosophy that “No one can take better care of your money than YOU.”

I had been a marine insurance broker before co-founding Money Awareness Program in San Francisco in 2000. It started as a community service project offered at churches and “Y’s,” then MAP became the provider for the financial educational component of the then San Francisco District Attorney, Terence Hallinan’s, Bad Check Program.

While the Bad Check Program was MAP’s primary client, we also conducted financial workshops for other businesses and organizations. In early 2004, I decided to relocate to Tucson. I was seeking blue skies and reasonable home prices. I overdid it in the blue sky department, but I have come to love Southern Arizona. A friend was the executive director at a women’s rehabilitation residential facility in San Francisco, and she wanted to offer MAP to her residents. I tell it in my book, but there was a remarkable story of a woman who had lived on the street for eight years in unbelievable conditions because she believed she owed over $100,000 in medical bills that she would never be able to pay. The story had a very happy ending and it caused me to say, “If not one other person ever benefits from MAP, it’s okay because I just received all the reward I will ever need!”

I thought I was leaving my business behind for a life of rollerblading, hiking and biking, but in 2007 it seemed everyone I spoke to was voicing the same concern, “I’m taking care of my children, my grandchildren and my parents. I don’t know what will happen to me – I’ve given everything away.” My generation of Baby Boomers was particularly hard hit, since we are the first sandwich generation.

I consulted with Don Allen, LMSW, LASAC. As a therapist, he spoke of individuals and families who came into his office experiencing varying degrees of depression. He discovered that their sadness usually had a financial component. He found that when he could offer a solution to their financial obstacles they felt better. Don felt that a financial education program was the missing link in most recovery programs. My first workshop in Tucson was in November 2008, and then in 2009 Don joined the Money Awareness Program as its Clinical Director.

Originally from Jackson, Wyoming, Don enjoys a variety of outdoor activities, including fly fishing, hiking, and photography. He brings 30 years of sales experience to MAP. He hopes to use it to expand MAP’s message to a diverse range of clients. He is an excellent presenter with a passion to help people overcome life’s obstacles. Don feels MAP’s message is genuine, has something for everyone and recognizes MAP’s potential to empower people to take charge of their finances.

We have shared many laughs over the fact that between Don and me, we have made most every money mistake possible. You see, financial illiteracy is not an issue unique to any one population. It affects everyone – men and women, young and old, across all racial and socio-economic lines. At the beginning of every workshop, I ask, “Who ever had a parent say, ‘Here’s what we earn, here’s what we owe, here’s how we manage our money?’” I always raise my own hand as I ask the question to encourage participation. Yet no one raises a hand. We carry so much shame and blame about our mistakes with money but guess what? It is totally undeserved. We are all doing the best we can.

People would rather tell you their deepest, darkest secrets than what they earn or what they owe. MAP’s goal is to encourage families to pull those financial taboos out from under the carpet, and drop them onto the dining room table, and then laugh about our past mistakes.

Here’s the point. Financial literacy is not rocket science; it’s only a matter of skill-building that anyone can master – because no one can take better care of your money than YOU!