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Where on earth would they come up with this kind of money? Bob had a pretty good job at a local chemical plant, which provided a decent paycheck.

so how could they pull off paying for Cathy's college without being financially wiped out? In the meantime, Cathy took it upon herself to get some college advice from her high school guidance office.

Because Cathy had always managed to keep her grade point average way up, and had scored well on her SAT's, she received letters of acceptance from three different schools! The Shocking Truth.

Bob and Ellen were worried.

And Ellen worked part-time at a nice department store, which provided some extra income.

Although some may have considered them pretty well off, they've had many years of struggling from one paycheck to the next.

After all, they had two younger children in addition to Cathy that they had to feed, clothe and take care of.

She wasn't quite sure of what all to ask, but she tried.

They got all sorts of advice on which schools were the best, and filled out the applications.

She....

And so they went to it.

When they saw the amount of money they'd need to fulfill Cathy's college dream (and theirs!) their stomach s turned into knots.

Upon receiving her acceptance letters, Bob and Ellen's excitement quickly turned to fear as reality struck.

And they also had some serious credit card debt.

They had heard a long time ago to start a college fund, but never quite got around to it.

Applying for financial aid was something Bob or Ellen had any idea on how to begin.

They also had a substantial amount in their savings account, and a bit in some mutual funds and CD's, but not a whole lot.

They had made a few investments, like IRA plans, and Bob's 401K plan through work.

The little extra money they did have was mostly tied up in investments.

Fortunately, Ellen remembered receiving an flier from Cathy s high school inviting them to a College Financial Aid night.