Trent Hamm is in his twenties, a father of two, and lives in rural Iowa. In April 2006 he went through what he calls a complete financial meltdown. This is when he threw himself head first into trying to figure out every nuance of fixing his financial situation, and after a few months he began to get the picture. Within eight months he had paid off all of his credit card debt, his vehicle, and also established an emergency fund. He then started The Simple Dollar in 2006 to share what he learned and help people who were struggling with similar issues.