business & professional
What They Don't
Want You To Know
Local author aims to help people get themselves out of debt.
Jackie Headaphol
Contributing Writer
B
enn Perry of Commerce
Township wears many hats:
waiter, Web designer, trainer,
consultant, screenwriter, conference
organizer and writer. But perhaps his
biggest passion is helping people get out
of debt.
Perry recently self-published Escape
from the Plastic Prison: A Practical
Guide to Getting Yourself Out of Debt.
His mission is to let people know they
hold the power to repair their financial
lives on their own.
His book should have a large audi-
ence. According to credit reporting com-
pany Experian, 56 percent of consumers
carried an unpaid balance on their cred-
it cards in the past 12 months, and the
average credit card debt per household
was $15,788. Ouch.
"The multimillion dollar credit coun-
seling industry doesn't want you to
know what's in this book:' said Perry,
who once received death threats the
morning of a 1987 appearance on the
Oprah Winfrey Show for sharing the
information collected in his book. "You
do not need a credit counseling agency
to get you of debt."
Ironically, Perry spent 25 years as a
credit counselor at his family's Florida-
based business, Credit Counselors
Corporation. He walked away from the
industry in 2002, after it became impos-
sible to sustain the company's service
without charging a fee to customers who
were struggling to pay their bills.
"As a major part of our upbringing,
my parents raised their three children
to have charity in our hearts, to perform
mitzvot whenever possible," Perry said.
"But they didn't just teach it, they lived
it. That is why I dedicated my book to
them. They are responsible for providing
the livelihood through which I gained my
knowledge to write Escape from the Plastic
Prison, which I wrote with a singular
intention in mind — to help people — to
fulfill my commitment to performing a
mitzvah!"
Local Roots
Perry said he was "itching to get back to
Michigan" where he grew up and attended
Birmingham Groves High School. In the
years since he returned to the state,
Perry has "reinvented him-
self" but never lost interest
in helping people get out
of debt. He began writ-
ing Escape from the
Plastic Prison eight
years ago.
Getting out
of debt could
be a dry
subject,
but
Perry's
per-
Some Quick Tips
Start by cutting up all your credit cards.
Establish a household budget — and stick to it.
• Never pay medical bills with credit cards because medical
charges don't accrue interest and credit cards do.
•
When negotiating with creditors, get it in writing.
• Don't let stress over unpaid bills take over your life.
•
26
Don't waste your money on a credit repair clinic.
june 2 2011
sonal style and humor make for an easy
read filled with practical, easy-to-follow
advice for those who want to free them-
selves from debt. Readers will learn how
to budget their money, negotiate with
creditors to reduce interest and balance
on their debt, deal with bill collectors,
decide when it's time to file bankruptcy
and re-establish their credit once they're
out of debt. The book also has sample
letters readers can use as templates
when working with creditors.
The book, which was named Best
How-To Book of the Year by the San
Francisco Book Festival, has been get-
ting high praise in the community.
"If you have any debt — and who
doesn't? — it is a must read! Worth
every penny and more," Karen Gutman,
an employment specialist at JVS, posted
on the book's Facebook page.
Kimberly Kassner is owner of
Commerce Township-based Empower
Mind, a company that offers "learn-
ing to learn" workshops where
Perry works as a certified
trainer. She used
Perry's methods to
reduce her credit
card debt by $3,500
without help from a
credit-counseling agency.
"I didn't want to put a
blemish on my credit report,"
Kassner said. "Benn helped me
to negotiate with my creditors on
my own and my credit score was
untarnished!'
Perry said he hopes the book helps
more people like Kassner.
"I've found that the purpose of being
alive is to help people," said the 57-year-
old, who lives with his wife of 19 years,
Judy, who works at a staffing agency
helping put the jobless back to work.
In addition to promoting the book,
Perry works as a waiter at Maria's in
West Bloomfield, is shopping for fund-
ing for his screenplay Past Due! (about
a bill collector that steps over the line),
works as a trainer at Empower Mind, is
Benn Perry seeks to assist those in debt.
organizing an upcoming Natural Food
and Health Conference in Maryland and
also runs a Web template design busi-
ness.
"I feel a lot younger than I am," Perry
joked. "I don't have the time to grow
old."
No Please, Please!
Perry will be doing a book signing at
the Jewish Community Center of Metro
Detroit within the next few months. He's
working to shore up a date with organiz-
ers at the Arts, Culture and Education
Division of the JCC.
If you want to purchase Perry's book
at that appearance, don't bring your
credit card. It's cash only.
"After writing a book on getting out
of debt, I'm not going to ask people to
put the price of the book on their credit
card," Perry said. The book costs $19.95,
but Perry said he will take a lesser
amount if people ask. "Writing this book
for me wasn't about making money. It's
about helping people save money"
Perry's book is available at
www.createspace.com/3574280 .
Customers can enter a discount code
"JU9Z2F8S" to get a reduced price.