PLANADVISER - September/October 2020 - 44

advisers giving back
Adviser Actions That Speak Loudly
E
ach month, on PLANADVISER.com, we present the
profile of an adviser or advisory practice involved in
philanthropic efforts. Besides to highlight the good
works plan advisers do and to attract a new generation, we
hope these stories will inspire those who are still unsure what
role corporate responsibility or philanthropy should play in
their practice. Below are excerpts from recent features-find
the full versions at PLANADVISER.com/AGB.
ARE YOU AN ADVISER WHO GIVES BACK to the local,
regional or global community? If so, we want to hear about it
for our Advisers Giving Back program. If you have or know of
such a story, please email editors@issmediasolutions.com.
Transferable Skills, Compassion
Responding to " a calling in [my] soul, " UBS adviser and
chartered retirement planning counselor Bernadette
Lanser and her daughter, Erica, volunteered to help
with a dinner at Milwaukee's St. Ben's Community Meal
program. In the 17 years since, they have prepared,
transported and served food to thousands in need
around the city, plus raised funds for the program.
Lanser likens serving St. Ben's to her adviser work: " I
cherish how everyone is treated with respect. In the
retirement planning world, [too,] you have to treat
everyone with the utmost respect and compassion-
with their best interest front and center. "
Money Is Not Required,
To Give, Says Adviser
Stephanie Hunt, a retirement
plan consultant with Atlanta
Retirement Partners, and based
in Athens, Georgia, credits how
she was raised for her life-long
passion for giving back. " I was
taught ... you can have nothing
and still give something back-
your time and energy, " she
says. Today, Hunt donates both
to the Food Bank of Northeast
Georgia, particularly its Food
2 Kids program. She delivers
weekend meal bags to schools
around Athens for kids identified
as " food insecure. " To get started
volunteering, she says, " Jump on
Google and find a cause you're
passionate about. "
Fitness Challenge
Inspires Other Firms
From Pain Into Blessings
For Kids and Pets
COVID-19, " the critical connection
between all types of wellness, "
plus passions for exercise and
supporting kids in crisis added up
to a creative charitable effort by
LeafHouse Financial in Austin,
Texas. Firm President Todd Kading
says the event had its origins
with a Peloton cycling platform
personal challenge and evolved
into an event where people could
bike, run or walk. It has inspired
14 other firms to join in. Donations
benefited children in the court
system who have been abused or
neglected. " The event's success
shows that people should use their
own passions to get involved and
to give back, " he says.
You could say Renee Scherzer,
principal at 401K Resources in
Scottsdale, Arizona, is giving away
lemonade, having turned her
own and her daughter's pain into
an array of efforts to prevent such
pain for others. From anti-bullying
advocacy to serving children in
crisis to supporting local animal
rescue, this is a part of her identity,
she says. " It took time to realize
that I should talk to my clients and
colleagues about the work I'm
doing to give back. " In doing so,
she has inspired many of them to
aid these causes, too. Scherzer
says it takes the same skills to be a
successful adviser as it does to be
successful at helping others. -PA
44 | planadviser.com September-October 2020 Art by (from left) Giulia Tomai; Lars Leetaru; John Cuneo; Sonia Pulido

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PLANADVISER - September/October 2020

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