Ryan M. Fleming, CFP® - President’s Message     

 

70 degrees. Not a cloud in the sky. 132 advisors, sponsors, and chapter friends playing golf with another dozen supporting the effort. 1757 Golf Club was a great host and provided a fun and challenging course for our 20^th Annual FPA NCA Golf Tournament. Peggy Nelson, fellow board member Chris Rivers, CFP® and his team (including my wife, Betsy) put on a great event. Preliminary results show that we raised over $15,000 for charity, with a significant majority of that going to the Foundation for Financial Planning.

 

TD Ameritrade typically matches dollar-for-dollar only personal donations, but graciously matches our donation, so we should be credited with over $30,000 this year. And someone found my wallet in their golf bag. So, all in all, it felt like a perfect day. Over the last decade, our chapter golf tournament has resulted in donations of over $100,000 and matches of over $25,000. This year should see us eclipse the $150,000 mark. 

Chapter members and mentors Bob Albertson, Mike Carey, and Steve Bingham had great vision over two decades ago when they started this great annual outing. And we’re fortunate enough to still have Steve play in it every year. If you played and you have any thoughts, suggestions, or feedback, email Chris (crivers@afmfa.com) or me. If you didn’t play or sponsor, please consider doing so next year. We exceeded capacity for the third year in a row, but that doesn’t mean we can’t find a 27- or 36-hole course if demand is high enough.

We have a pretty full three week period coming up. Take a look at the calendar and find an event to attend: https://m360.fpanca.org/frontend/portal/viewcalendar.aspx

First, Dan Lash (Secretary) and I will be attending a NexGen Study Group meeting to continue the 2013 outreach and push for more dialogue and interaction with the regular FPA-NCA chapter and our NexGeners (many of whom are also FPA-NCA members). I encourage you to engage the younger/newer/transitioning future advisors and share your history and your knowledge. It’s one of the things we need to do to make our profession outstanding. A lot of us are not sharing, mentoring, and nurturing relationships, even with low-hanging fruit of younger staff in our own firms. I think of how lucky Brian Jones and I are to have worked with 7 former FPA and predecessor organization presidents over the years. These people were bosses and colleagues, but more importantly are mentors and friends two decades later. Without Armstrong, Jones, Welch, Bingham, MacIntyre, Severns, Albertson, and <please insert your name here>, Brian and I aren’t where we are today. Let’s continue to bridge the knowledge gap and set the next generation up for success.

On May 23^rd, we have a monthly lunch program at Bethesda Country Club. At 10 a.m., we are hosting a member reception. If you’re new or tenured, young or seasoned, or somewhere in between, and you are looking for networking opportunities, this is a great one. We are welcoming our new chapter members during this hour, so please come early if you want some face time with colleagues. We recently had a merger consummated through discussions at monthly chapter meetings, so good things are happening when FPA-NCA members get together. Registration for the lunch program itself begins at 11 a.m., when Douglas French from the Ludvig Von Mises Institute and Editor of Laissez Faire Books presents on Money, Banking, and Inflation for 2 CFP, VA, MD, CPA CPE, and CIMA credits. 

Our whirlwind culminates with our annual Spring Symposium at the Sheraton Premiere in Tysons. We have a powerhouse lineup that rivals our Winter Symposium and offers up to 8 CE credits for CFP, MD, VA, CIMA, and CPA CPE (all approved, except MD). You can find the program and registration here: https://m360.fpanca.org/ViewEvent.aspx?id=68595&instance=0  Our sponsors compete to bring you the best presentations and draw the most eyeballs. It’s a fun and engaging day of learning and networking. We also present our annual awards for Leadership, Planner of the Year, and Lifetime Achievement. The winners have been notified and we will announce them soon. 

Enjoy spring. Hope to see you at one of our upcoming events.

Best regards,

Ryan M. Fleming, CFP®
2013 President, FPA of the National Capital Area