SANDPOINT — Being married with a 4-year-old, living on a combined take-home salary as a cook of $1,602, it quickly became an overwhelming feat for Hannah Champion.

“I didn’t expect $900 for groceries — and then the child, and then the car,” Champion said.

Champion, who is actually a senior at Sandpoint High School and does not have a husband or child, found herself quickly going into debt during the Bulldog Finance Fair last Wednesday. During the “My Life, My Money” simulation, local high school seniors were each given a checkbook register and assigned a card that had their career, family, income, spouse’s income, debt and other information. The careers and income differed for each student, and some had spouses and children, while others did not.

A total of 286 seniors attended this year’s finance fair, not only from Sandpoint, but also Lake Pend Oreille and Clark Fork high schools.

Sherry Wallis, STCU community relations officer, said the finance fair is important, because it gives students the basic skills and understanding of personal finances. Going beyond high school without that guidance, young adults don’t always make financial choices that are in their favor, she said.

“We want them to understand that you have certain obligations, and everything else is a want,” Wallis said. “So putting those obligations and those needs first, and understanding that sometimes you have to save for different things that you want, you have to be very careful using credit cards, and we want them to be in control of their money.”

The three main components of finance the students were required to focus on during the simulation were household expenses, savings and charitable giving. Household finances include kids, cars, clothing and other expenses, but first, the seniors had to sit down and decide how much they wanted to put away each month for savings and also decide how much to donate to a of their choice, as Wallis said that is something they really want students to think about.

The seniors were split into groups and while half the students went through the simulation, the others participated in a game show, where the contestants were split into smaller groups to answer questions about finances.

Last week’s fair marked the ninth year of the event, which started at Coldwater Creek before moving to Cedar Hills Church for a time. It has been held at North Summit Church for the past four years, said SHS postsecondary counselor Jeralyn Mire. The fair is held for the seniors each year on the same day the rest of the student body participates in the PSATs.

“What I love about this event is that it is really community-run,” Mire said. “Everybody takes a piece of it and helps, and there are so many businesses that give their time, their talent and their treasure to make this a great event for our seniors,” Mire said.

The event is sponsored by STCU, Horizon and the Selkirk Association of Realtors, who also donate “great” prizes the students have opportunities to win, Mire said. In all, 48 volunteers helped out at last week’s fair.

“We are very, very grateful for all the volunteers who come and help put this on,” Wallis said.

Mary Malone can be reached by email at mmalone@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow her on Twitter @MaryDailyBee.