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The Invest in Others Charitable Foundation and InvestmentNews, Crain's Wealth's sister publication, announced the winners of the eighth annual Community Leadership Awards Thursday. The awards honor financial advisers who make a difference with their philanthropic giving and service in their communities and around the world. The profiles of the finalists and winners -- whose charities included everything from autism projects to aiding people affected by the earthquake in Haiti -- are below. “The nominations were all very strong, and we heard some amazing stories of caring and charitable work,” said Megan McAuley, executive director of Invest in Others. “The awards highlight profound examples of advisers' demonstrating that philanthropy is alive and well.” Charitable donations of between $20,000 and $25,000 will be given to winners in five categories, while the other finalists will each receive $5,000 for their charities. The categories are Volunteer of the Year, Community Service, Global Community Impact, Catalyst and Lifetime Achievement Award, a new honor to feature the volunteer efforts of an adviser who has worked with a charity for at least 10 years and has created a lasting impact. The Invest in Others Charitable Foundation and InvestmentNews received more than 200 nominations for this year's awards. “Across the board, these advisers are all impressive and so dedicated to these charities across the country and the world,” Ms. McAuley said. The Boston-based Invest in Others Charitable Foundation, a registered 501(c)(3) charity, supports philanthropic and volunteer activities among investment advisers in the United States. Invest in Others also announced that this year, 57 advisers were awarded honorable mentions for their charitable endeavors. LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD Alexandra Armstrong (Winner) Since 1996, Alexandra Armstrong, principal of Armstrong Fleming & Moore Inc. in Washington, D.C., has helped raise more than $10 million for the Foundation for Financial Planning, an organization that focuses on providing pro-bono financial planning to low- and moderate-income individuals. The cause has attracted support from some 50 corporations and more than 14,000 individual donors. “The reason it resonates is because it's an endowment fund. Furthermore, our profession is maturing and this is a way to give back to our profession and fight financial ignorance,” said Ms. Armstrong, a certified financial planner. Over the past 18 years, the foundation has provided more than $5.5 million in grants to more than 225 community-based organizations across the U.S. to facilitate pro-bono financial planning for the underserved. More than 320,000 individuals have directly benefited, notably serving members of the military, veterans, victims of disasters, low- and moderate-income families, and students. Studies have shown that financial coaching can help low- and moderate-income beneficiaries save money, reduce debt and improve their credit scores. “I've always loved our profession because you help people achieve their goals — and it's the same thing with this foundation work. You're helping people get control of their financial lives for the first time. I find it immensely satisfying,” Ms. Armstrong said. John Laurents In 2009, John Laurents, serving his fourth term as president of the Charlotte, N.C., Optimist Club, had a vision of a program that would both keep kids from dropping out of school and encourage younger people to become Optimists. Five years later, his Youth Empowerment Service — the YES initiative — has reached more than 2.5 million teens in the United States, Canada and the Caribbean. An Optimist for 46 years, Mr. Laurents of Matthews, N.C., is a registered representative of Questar Capital Corp. The core of the initiative for at-risk youths is the book, “Success for Teens,” which teaches students time management, goal setting, self-esteem, self-motivation, dream building and how to define a purposeful life. The eight-week program often is facilitated by students from college Optimist clubs. The Success Foundation provides the books free of charge. The YES initiative partners with Sylvan Learning Center, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, and Communities in Schools to provide additional services to the kids. “We have an enormous responsibility and opportunity to bring out the best in our youth. If we don't, within the next 10 years we're going to be dealing with millions of kids who don't have a high school diploma. This will result in increased crime and increased taxes to pay for entitlement programs for all these kids who don't have jobs.” Jim Richardson When Jim Richardson of the Richardson Salsman Group in Lexington, Ky., along with his wife Stacie, were inspired to start the Lexington Dream Factory in 1988 — they didn't go it alone. They brought along a core group of 38 friends — most of whom are still on the board. Over the past 26 years, more than 700 dreams have been granted to critically ill children. Unlike some dream fulfillment organizations, the Dream Factory has no endowment and no staff; instead, there is one major fundraising event per year, and volunteers conduct fundraising activities within a child's local community. Dreams average about $3,000 each. There are two overwhelming aspects to this work, said Mr. Richardson, a certified financial planner and financial adviser. “First is realizing that for some children, their dream was not huge — for example, just a little red wagon. One of the hardest parts is to put our own perceptions in our pockets and listen to the patients ... because you want to do more,” Mr. Richardson said. “The second is to understand that no dream is too big, like a meeting with the Pope, which we've managed to do. Instead of getting overwhelmed, we just figured out how to do it — it's six degrees of separation.” COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARD Patrick McClain (Winner) Patrick McClain, chief executive of Hanson McClain Advisors in Sacramento, Calif., has been serving the Sacramento Food Bank and Family Services for nearly 30 years. After starting as a volunteer during college in 1985, Mr. McClain was selected for the board in 2000 and has served as a member for 14 years, including as chairman for the past five years. As chairman, he has overseen successes such as a multimillion-dollar fundraising campaign, the construction of a collection facility and a computer lab for clients, and an innovative program that eliminates a centralized distribution center and brings fresh food “closer to the customer” at 12 locations across the region. He has used his deep organizational knowledge and management experience to transform the board, instituting term limits and accountability. “I fought with the old-timers — it took about a year. But your job on a board is to provide leadership insight and help build a team to accomplish it,” said Mr. McClain, a chartered financial analyst. “The first thing I did was ask "What are the areas we need specialists in?' I divided up the board like a business board, recruiting expertise in facilities, logistics, finances, HR, and education,” he said. “You set up a road map, and then just get out of the way and let them work.” B. Wistar Morris III As chairman of the board of the Boys & Girls Club of Central Virginia, B. Wistar Morris has led a fundraising campaign that brought in $1.5 million, enabling the club to open its sixth site and increase the number of children served to 1,000 a day. Furthermore, Mr. Morris, a lawyer and client strategist with Signature, a family wealth advisory firm in Charlottesville, Va., has elevated the local club to the top five in the U.S. in terms of donors who give annual gifts of at least $10,000. When asked what's behind his drive, he credits the community. “There's a very strong nonprofit culture in our community. Charlottesville is a locus of a substantial amount of wealth. There is a lot of intellectual and monetary capital, which finds outlets in many ways,” he said. “There are lots of things in the country we're polarized about. But we have equal numbers of people on the right and left who are donors. Everyone can agree that if you match a child in need with mentors and a nurturing environment — with fun and educational programs — you get great outcomes.” Bill Pearson Ever since his grandson was diagnosed with autism 12 years ago, Bill Pearson has worked with a grandfather's passion to improve the lives of people with autism and their families. Mr. Pearson, a financial adviser with the Pearson Hand & Chua Group and senior vice president at Morgan Stanley in Birmingham, Ala., has served on the board of the Autism Society of Alabama since 2008, including a term as board president from 2011-13. His most significant achievements include successfully lobbying the state to improve private insurance coverage for autism spectrum therapies and attaining an Alabama Department of Revenue specialty auto license plate for autism spectrum disorder, an important tool for fundraising and building awareness. Mr. Pearson also is championing a local, church-supported residential home for adults with autism spectrum disorder to use as a model housing solution on the state and national levels. “There's been a surge in young adults with autism. What's going to happen to them? Housing and residential care is a challenge,” Mr. Pearson said. His activism comes from his heart. “When you have a grandchild with some kind of condition, you are also thinking about the suffering of your own child. We hurt for both of them,” he said. “This work has provided me an outlet to help not only my family but the community as well.” CATALYST AWARD FINALISTS Michael J. Skrynecki (Winner) There are so many unknowns when you have an orphan disease,” said Mike Skrynecki, a financial adviser with Morgan Stanley in Atlanta. He is the founder and chairman of the Wiskott-Aldrich Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting families of children with Wiskott-Aldrich Syndrome, a rare immunodeficiency disease that affects one in 250,000 males. The organization has grown quickly, thanks to Mr. Skrynecki's strategic vision and professional background. A certified fund-raising executive, he spent 15 years working in the nonprofit field. In 2010, the Wiskott-Aldrich Foundation, which had primarily been focused on helping families, was transformed by a strategic merger with another WAS organization focused on scientific research. The combination created a bridge between patients and the global scientific community. Since its establishment in 2002, the foundation has launched the first-ever WAS research projects, organized two WAS conferences for families and re-searchers, created an information and resource website used by several thousand families and physicians worldwide, published the first WAS family and patient guide, and provided over $1 million in direct and indirect assistance to families. “Even more im-portant than the money we give to families is the emotional support, the answers and the family support network we provide. We've been the only support for these families — we're their lifeboat.” Patrick Baldwin "These kids in poverty, if given an opportunity and a chance, will be successful,” said Patrick Baldwin, a senior vice president with the Baldwin-Marcovici Group in Chicago, part of the private banking and investment group at Merrill Lynch. Mr. Baldwin has volunteered since 1999 for Right Angle, an organization that enables local low-income minority high school students to get a taste of higher education by attending college summer programs. He served as board president from 2008-13. In Chicago, it is estimated that as few as 11% of public school students will earn a college degree. In recent years, 99% of Right Angle's participants decided to go to college as a result of the group's “Summer of a Lifetime” program. What began in 1997 as funding for 25 students has mushroomed to 750 students in 2014 attending 69 college programs across the U.S. About 3,000 students have benefited so far. Students are recruited from a network of 14 charter schools. “I think we're at a tipping point, about to explode. It's working and growing exponentially,” he said. The program has resonated with donors because the results are so practical and concrete, Mr. Baldwin said. People can have a direct impact by funding scholarships for one student or a group. “It's been an awesome ride and it's only getting better,” he said. George Cox What I've been seeing is a serious disconnect from high school to college and beyond that is impeding kids' ability to succeed,” said George Cox, a certified financial planner and senior vice president of the Cox Shook Harsch Group in Seattle. In 2004 he did something about it, founding the Alexander Hamilton Friends Association “to create leaders of character to improve our nation and our world,” in Mr. Cox' s words. The association is obviously named after Alexander Hamilton, one of the founding fathers of the United States. “Hamilton is a mentor to me. He had a big idea — the concept of the United States. We want young people to identify the great visions for their lives and bring it into their daily lives,” Mr. Cox said. With a focus on low-income students, the organization's core is the Hamilton Leaders Academy, a five-year program that accepts 35 high potential high school juniors a year. Over the past 10 years, there have been about 250 participants in 46 states. The program helps students manage their transitions from high school to higher education to the workplace by offering professional mentors, peer support, internships, educational programs, and assistance in finding scholarships. Training and mentoring take place both virtually and through week-long conferences in the U.S. and internationally. “American leadership is faltering — and we need to put the emphasis on the right things to find our next leaders,” Mr. Cox said. VOLUNTEER OF THE YEAR FINALISTS Lynn Phillips-Gaines (Winner) For many years, Lynn Phillips-Gaines, a principal of Phillips Financial in Starkville, Miss., held a common misconception about people in poverty. “I used to see those less fortunate make poor financial decisions and think that it was because they were irresponsible or just didn't care,” she said. Three years ago, she read a book, “Bridges Out of Poverty,” that changed her outlook and inspired her to transform how her community worked toward eradicating local poverty. She came to see that neither the middle class nor the poor understand the mindsets of the other. “Program developers, usually middle class, based their approaches on their own socioeconomic mental models — for example, requiring lengthy applications. But can clients read well enough? Are they organized enough to respond? Instead, they need an in-person process,” Ms. Phillips-Gaines said. In 2011, she founded Starkville Bridges Out of Poverty to educate each group about the other and to build relationships between them. Those in poverty learn about finances, community resources, predatory lending and causes of poverty, and are treated as equal participants in creating their own plans for leaving poverty. After the education component, they are paired with middle class “allies” who guide and support them for two years. “I'm convinced that this is the path to success — working together as equals,” she said. Billy C. Peterson The subject of suicide is taboo — it needs to be talked about. We can't tap-dance around it,” said Billy C. Peterson, owner of Peterson Wealth Services in South Ogden, Utah, and founder of the Livastride Foundation. Soon after his brother Brody took his life in October 2009, Mr. Peterson started a movement to give young people something more to live for. The name Livastride is meant to represent the opposite of suicide. The foundation started off by awarding a scholarship to a Utah young person who had either attempted suicide or had been affected by a loved one's suicide experience. “The message we wanted to give was, "Don't give up — let us help you see those dreams come true,'” said Mr. Peterson, a certified financial planner. Inspired by his passion for sports, Mr. Peterson also created a baseball tournament that now hosts 55 teams with thousands of spectators — a huge captive audience. “We use the opportunity to tell kids, "Be a leader — stop bullying when you see it.' “Before the games, we tell the coaches to teach the kids how to win and lose humbly, and teach them how to deal with adversity,” Mr. Peterson said. “I want to see the kids emotionally, spiritually and financially stable. We're trying to provide a bridge to all these things.” J. Thomas Uhler In 2011, Tom Uhler, owner of Uhler and Vertich Financial Planners in Fort Myers, Fla., took on the challenge of chairing the organization's multimillion-dollar annual fundraising campaign. “We were worried because a lot of businesses — former donors — no longer existed. There were thousands of foreclosures per month. But there was no way I was going to let us not reach our goal — not on my watch,” Mr. Uhler said. Characterized by peers as having a “contagious positive attitude,” Mr. Uhler led and mobilized some 1,200 volunteers to find, cajole, convince, and sign up an equivalent number of new businesses and individuals to replace the lost donors. They not only succeeded, but exceeded their $8 million goal. Now serving as the chairman of the board, he continues to spread the message. It's not hard for him. “I get more bang for the buck for my energy — knowing that every donation impacts more than 70 agencies,” he said. GLOBAL IMPACT AWARD FINALISTS Tyson Jon Ray (Winner) In the three years since Tyson Jon Ray launched Children's World Impact, the nonprofit's momentum has been unstoppable. The charity, which focuses on care and community development for widows and orphans, was a response to the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, in which hundreds of thousands of childrens were orphaned. There already were 380,000 orphans in the country before the quake. The nonprofit has conducted a medical mission in Haiti that served 3,000 patients; built an elementary school for 400 kids and a boys' home for 120 kids; and, stateside, paid for and packaged 450,000 meals to send to orphans with the help of more than 500 volunteers from Lake Geneva. Wis., a town of fewer than 8,000 people. Mr. Ray is a founding partner of FORM Wealth Management Group in Lake Geneva. Since expanding services to Ghana in 2011, the organization has built a well, a bakery and a processing plant to enable more than 1,400 widows and orphans to create a sustainable income by selling water, bread and shea butter. How did they accomplish so much so quickly? “The facts that we are self-funding (with no overhead) and we could show results so quickly attracted donations,” Mr. Ray said. “Also, we only fundraise for a specific project, $20,000 to $30,000 at a time, so it is achievable. And we share results via social media, which creates more excitement and interest.” In 2010, Randy Thompson, a financial adviser with Lincoln Financial Advisors in Houston, volunteered to go to Haiti to check out the work of Pure Water for the World as a representative of his local Rotary club. “It was a sea change in my life — a very deeply moving experience,” he said. The charity's mission is simple but profound: It provides life-saving water filters, hygiene education, monitoring and follow-up support to impoverished rural communities in Haiti and Honduras. According to the organization's website, 780 million people worldwide have only contaminated water to drink, resulting in diseases such as cholera that kill millions each year, mostly children. Since 2008, the nonprofit has had an impact on almost 500,000 people. “It's not just pain and desperation; there's also joy,” Mr. Thompson said. Though he has seen people die from cholera, he has personally been able to raise money to help whole villages receive inexpensive filters and services. It averages just $300 to help one family. Donor support comes from around the U.S., with about one-third of donations coming from Rotary Clubs, one-third from churches and one-third from grants and individuals. What does he see as the ripple effect? “On a macro level, their economy will grow; on a micro level, they won't have to watch their children die.” David S. Richmond For 11 years, Dave Richmond, a partner at Richmond Brothers Inc. in Jackson, Mich., provided financial support for the Lingap Children's Foundation. The group serves children in the Philippines who have been victimized by abuse, neglect, exploitation or abandonment. In 2006, he was given an invitation he couldn't refuse. The organization's founder, John Drake, said to him, “You guys have helped us for so long — why not come see what we do?” “I don't know why, but I said yes,” Mr. Richmond said. “The experience opened my eyes to what poverty is.” He has since gone back 25 times to the Philippines and is now the second-in-command for the charity. The foundation, established in 2003, provides housing for 100 poor children and funds their education and vocational training, and reaches out to thousands more with food, education and home visits. “Through my work with LCF, I have been shown what love is: Sometimes it's giving and sometimes it's just being in the moment with another human being,” he said. Mr. Richmond acknowledges it can be daunting to travel to faraway countries and confront terrible suffering. “Let yourself feel it — take the chance — say yes. See where that journey will lead you.” Randy Thompson In 2010, Randy Thompson, a financial adviser with Lincoln Financial Advisors in Houston, volunteered to go to Haiti to check out the work of Pure Water for the World as a representative of his local Rotary club. “It was a sea change in my life — a very deeply moving experience,” he said. The charity's mission is simple but profound: It provides life-saving water filters, hygiene education, monitoring and follow-up support to impoverished rural communities in Haiti and Honduras. According to the organization's website, 780 million people worldwide have only contaminated water to drink, resulting in diseases such as cholera that kill millions each year, mostly children. Since 2008, the nonprofit has had an impact on almost 500,000 people. “It's not just pain and desperation; there's also joy,” Mr. Thompson said. Though he has seen people die from cholera, he has personally been able to raise money to help whole villages receive inexpensive filters and services. It averages just $300 to help one family. Donor support comes from around the U.S., with about one-third of donations coming from Rotary Clubs, one-third from churches and one-third from grants and individuals. What does he see as the ripple effect? “On a macro level, their economy will grow; on a micro level, they won't have to watch their children die.”