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Fiona Kelly-Walsh, Tarin Gonzalez and Susanne Macke are responsible for putting the Carver Center's coupon class together.
Photo Credit: Luke Lavoie
Fiona Kelly-Walsh hands out coupon sheets at the Carver Center in Port Chester.
Photo Credit: Luke Lavoie
Photo Credit: Luke Lavoie
PORT CHESTER, N.Y. - When Rye resident Susanna Macke watched TLC's hit show "Extreme Couponing," she didn't believe the show was real.
"I had never heard of coupons before," Macke, a German native, said. "Then I saw the show and this lady had loads of loads of groceries and she didn't pay anything. I was watching the show with my mother-in-law and she said it was fake so I wanted to prove it to her that it might be real."
It wasn't long before Macke met Rye's Fiona Kelly-Walsh, another coupon enthusiast and European native, and the two Midland School moms became "coupon buddies," exchanging coupons and sharing deals.
While Macke and Kelly-Walsh's coupon clipping is impressive in and of itself, it's these coupon queens' desire to give back that's really inspiring.
"We ended up getting so much food for free that we brought a lot of stuff to the Carver Center's food pantry," Macke said. "Then we all came up with the idea to empower the ladies here to support their own families by using the coupons."
With the help of Carver Center Food Pantry Manager Tarin Gonzalez, Macke and Kelly-Walsh have created "The Super Shopper's Club," the Carver Center's coupon club. The club, which meets once every two weeks for half an hour in both English and Spanish, offers strategies and techniques on how to save thousands with coupons.
In her presentation to the group, Kelly-Walsh revealed that last year she was able to save more than $5,000 just between CVS in Port Chester and Shop Rite in White Plains alone.
"It totally works," Kelly-Walsh said.
The next meeting of the Carver Center's Coupon Club will be Feb. 28 at 7 p.m. inside the Carver Center. For more information contact Gonzalez at 914-305-6042.
A common myth is that couponers often buy wasteful things. But, savvy couponers actually do save big on great products they actually want and enjoy using on a daily basis. The secret to there success is that they simply ask companies for coupons.
Most companies love to hear from consumers. They typically will reward you with high value coupons and sometimes even free products just for dropping them an email. Simply visit the company website and click on the “Contact Us” button. For example, if you prefer Nivea body lotion, you would go to Nivea.com and tell them how much you enjoy using Nivea and request a few coupons. Try doing this with your favorite products. You’ll be surprised at what you receive in the mail!
For more couponing tips, visit www.couponcodeworld.com
Also, I recommend that you read Extreme Savings. It’s must a read that will teach you everything you need to know about couponing. Search for “Extreme Savings” on Amazon.com