Shred Fest 2016 Volunteers Help Hundreds Avoid Risk of Identity Theft

As part of its ongoing efforts to help families avoid falling victim to identity theft, AARP Georgia joined with Cascade United Methodist Church, Action Ministries Feed the Hungry,  and the Better Business Bureau to sponsor “Shred Fest 2016” – an event which provided free shredding of personal financial documents and other sensitive records.

On April 30 at Cascade United Methodist Church, 12 AARP Georgia volunteers participated by registering people in their cars, passing out water and snacks to participants, helping people get their items out of their vehicles, dumping items into the shredding bins, collecting canned goods, and helping to direct traffic. Volunteers served over 400 vehicles while working in 80+ degree weather over a period of five-six hours. They remained cool under pressure and provided excellent service to the community.

“Financial fraud causes millions of dollars in losses each year,” said Charima Young, Associate State Director-Community Outreach, AARP Georgia.  “With the tax-filing season behind us, we’re encouraging taxpayers to do a spring cleaning of their old financial documents and other records.”