Just a little tid bit to support the fact that one share of stock can change a kids life forever!  At age 11, Warren Buffett bought his first stock (I assume with his dad’s help) – Cities Services (now known as Citgo Petroleum).  I’d love to say it was just one share but it’s pretty close.  The rest is history.

Warren Buffett and Bill Gates are among the richest men in the world. At number 4, Buffett’s net worth is $53.5 billion and Gates’, at number 2, is $67 billion. So, how does a 19-year-old college student with a net worth of only $1,000 find herself in the same room as these big-wigs? This is how:

Step #1: Become a shareholder

In 2009 I bought one share of Berkshire Hathaway B stock. As a shareholder, I receive an annual report with information on how to request passes to the annual shareholder meeting.

Step #2: Make flight and hotel arrangements

Reservations need to be made about a year in advance! While Omaha is a good sized city, the Berkshire Hathaway shareholder’s meeting draws about 35,000 people to the city all at once. You may even want to make dinner reservations at Warren’s favorite steakhouse, Gorat’s.

Step #3: Get your annual meeting credentials

Attached to the proxy statement in the annual report is a perforated post card. Fill it out and send it in to receive your credentials. Each shareholder can get up to four passes.

Step #4: Attend the meeting and all events

The only way to be in the presence of these CEOs is to actually attend the meeting. There are special events for shareholder’s that include free food, free drinks, music and good company that last all weekend. Not to mention great deals on products from Berkshire Hathaway companies like See’s Candies, Brooks, Fruit of the Loom, GEICO and many more. The actual meeting may sound boring, but Buffett and his vice chairman, 89-year-old Charlie Munger, may as well be a comedy act. Bill Gates is on the Berkshire Hathaway board of directors so chances are you’ll see him sitting in the audience!

Warren Buffett & Charlie Munger

Step #5: Talk, talk, talk

If it’s your first shareholder meeting, talk to people who have been there before. If you’re lucky, you’ll come across someone who has been going for a decade who can tell you all their secrets like where Buffett will be selling jewelry or where he and Gates will challenge the olympic table tennis champion to a game. Who knows… maybe you’ll get to meet a billionaire! At the very least you’ll be able to snag a picture to prove that you got close.

Proof that I met the Oracle of Omaha!

Lesson #1 when getting Warren Buffett’s autograph on your I’m A Shareholder Kit……Get a fresh, thick Sharpie!

The Kit’s gloss coating, intended to make it more attractive to kids/teens causes quite the challenge when getting billionaires to sign it.  Maybe we need a warning label.

Last weekend we did something that we’ve wanted to do ever since becoming shareholders of Berkshire Hathaway B stock a few years ago – we attended the  Annual Shareholder Meeting extravaganza in Omaha.  Erin, our 19 year-old daughter also owns one share of Berkshire Hathaway so we used her  four passes to attend.  It was the experience of a lifetime!!!  Erin and I will cover some of the interesting experiences in another blog post but check this out:

Knowing that Mr. Buffett is a big advocate of improving kids financial literacy, we wanted to give him a copy of our I’m A Shareholder Kit.  Erin was lucky enough to get that opportunity at the shareholder event at Berkshire-owned Borsheims last weekend.   Not only did Mr. Buffett eagerly accept his Kit, he was gracious enough to talk with Erin and sign her copy.  That’s where the fresh Sharpie comes in!  Given Mr. Buffett’s earning power, I can only imagine the opportunity cost of that signature as he tried several pens.

As mentioned, Warren Buffett is a big proponent of creative ways to improve the financial literacy of our youth.  He is involved with the Secret Millionaires Club which teaches financial literacy and entrepreneurship through activities for the classroom and home.  The common theme for both the Secret Millionaires Club and the I’m A Shareholder Kit is to give parents and teachers a tool to grab the attention of our youth and teach them skills that will benefit them for a lifetime.  Both are well worth it.

Thanks Mr. Buffett!

Meet Medical-Marijuana Inc., the newest addition to our stock list.  According to the company, their stock certificate is actually printed on hemp paper.  Let’s face it, this penny stock is unlikely to make anyone money and is likely to go to pot,  but WHAT A CONVERSATION PIECE!

The company is the largest (which doesn’t say much) of group of publicly owned marijuana related companies that exist mainly because of those betting that one day in the not too distant future, marijuana will be legalized.  In the last twelve month period, Medical Marijuana Inc. had $127M in revenues which dwarfs Hemp Inc.’s and Cannabis Science Inc’s revenues that are in the $30M’s.  We don’t give investment advice but we do give “interesting gift” advice and we think this is a winning gift or keepsake.  Can you imagine the fun that can be had with this baby hanging on the wall!

Why We Added Medical-Marijuana Inc. Stock To Our List

We are always on the lookout for stocks that are standouts for one reason or another.  Maybe it’s a widely loved company like Starbucks and Apple, or it has an awesome stock certificate like Disney and Orbital Sciences, or it appeals to fanatical (in a good way) groups like Harley-Davidson, or is bound to become a classic collectible like The New York Times.  In this case, we selected the company because it’s industry is in the forefront of discussion and debate in this country.  It’s provocative, it’s fun, it’s unique, and it has a fantastic stock certificate design and composition.

Who knows how long this company will be around or even if they will continue to offer stock certificates, but for the time being, you can buy Medical-Marijuana stock only at GiveAshare.com .

Shamu is now mine!  The SeaWorld IPO made some waves on the market this morning, up over 4 points in early trading.

You can buy one share of SeaWorld stock at GiveAshare.com.

Thanks to SeaWorld’s IPO this Friday, you can own Shamu.  GiveAshare has just added SeaWorld stock to our stock list.

In addition to Shamu, you would also own part of Seaworld Enterntainment, Inc.’s 67,000 other animals and 11 theme parks including Busch Gardens and Aquatica, and Sesame Place.

SeaWorld was bought from Anhueser-Busch by private equity firm, Blackstone in 2009.  The company plans to use the proceeds of the IPO to pay down debt.

Find out more about the SeaWorld IPO or buy a share of SeaWorld stock from GiveAshare.com.  We don’t know if they will be issuing paper stock certificates yet but we have you covered either way.

Did you know that April is Financial Literacy Month?

In 2003 the U.S. Congress passed a resolution declaring April Financial Literacy for Youth Month and then in April 2005, the U.S. House passed a bill supporting the goals and ideals of Financial Literacy Month.

Isn’t it ironic that our government is apparently a big proponent of Financial Literacy Month while at the same time it demonstrates its illiteracy on a daily basis?

In 2009 (updated in 2012) we created the I’m A Shareholder Kit to help improve the financial literacy of our youth.  We believe that this book coupled with a share in a company they love is a powerful way for kids to learn.  Over the years, it has become apparent that it is not only kids that can benefit from the simple lessons in this kit but many adults too!

So in celebration of Financial Literacy Month, we are offering a $10 discount (60%) – use coupon code “aprilfl”

Get one for your kid, get one for yourself, and maybe even send one to the President or your Representative in Congress.  It’s an easy read with lots of pictures!

Dell Stock Certificate

It looks like Dell is going private so the collectible value of their stock certificates is getting a bump.This is another of a long string of companies that have gone private only to see the collectible value of their stock certificate rise.  Private companies do not have stock certificates that are available to the public.  The supply of stock certificates will decrease as shareholders exchange their shares for cash related to the potential buyout.  It will be interesting to see how these certificates trade on ebay a few years down the road.

For a short time, you can still buy one share of Dell stock at giveashare.com .

Nike Stock Certificate

Nike’s 2 for 1 stock split on December 26th drastically lowered its stock price.  As a result, we lowered our price on a shares of Nike stock and have seen heavy demand.  Must have been a lot of sports fans waiting in the wings.  Will be interesting to see if there is any Lance Armstrong impact on Nike.  I have heard that other sponsors like the US Post Office are suing him because of no drug requirements in their contract.  I assume that Nike had the same type of clauses but who knows.

Each year, Gifts.com, one of the premier gift websites runs a competition for Best Gifts in various categories.

This year, GiveAshare.com has two gifts that are in the running.  Voting ends tomorrow and we’d love your VOTE!

Best  Gift Under $25 – I’m A Shareholder Kit – for kids

Change a kids life with a simple book by giving them an opportunity to learn skills that will last a lifetime.

CLICK TO VOTE

Best New Baby Gift – A Real Share of Facebook Stock

Why? Who knows where Facebook stock will be in 18 years when the child is ready to go to college but it is sure to be exciting.

CLICK TO VOTE

We’d appreciate your vote.  While you’re, take a look at some of their other categories and gift ideas.

Sincerely,

GiveAshare.com