Advisers' altruism is an inspiration

These individuals give their time, energy and resources to charitable organizations in their communities. To recognize the contributions of these people, the foundation created the Community Leadership Awards, which honor financial advisers at brokerage firms and registered investment advisory firms of all sizes for their roles as leaders and volunteers in various charitable organizations. Serving as a judge for the CLAs, which are sponsored by the foundation and InvestmentNews, has acquainted me with some truly remarkable accomplishments on the part of advisers. The awards pay tribute to these advisers by honoring them for their dedication to their communities and the lasting impact of their efforts. The CLA judges evaluated each entry based on the person's ability to motivate and inspire others to accomplish a specific goal or objective. The judges also looked for an ability to inspire others to volunteer their personal time. After reading hundreds of entries, all the judges — volunteer industry executives and key InvestmentNews staff members — share my sense of humility and appreciation. Selecting finalists from the nearly 300 nominations we received wasn't easy. However, as in any other competition, there are those people who stand out. InvestmentNews and the Invest in Others Charitable Foundation will honor the exceptional advisers who have made a difference in their communities at an awards dinner in New York on Sept. 14. As in past years, the Invest in Others Charitable Foundation will make generous donations to the charity designated by each category's honoree. Furthermore, Invest in Others will make a donation to each of the finalists' charities. (Complete profiles of this year's finalists will appear in a special section in next week's issue of InvestmentNews.) This year, in the Community Service category, the adviser finalists are Richard S. Brown of JNBA Financial Advisors in Minneapolis for Special Olympics Minnesota; Michael Curran of CAPTRUST Financial Advisors in Raleigh, N.C., for Triangle Aquatic Center; and Dennis Stearns of Stearns Financial Services Group in Greensboro, N.C., for the YMCA of Greensboro. In the Mentoring Excellence category, the adviser finalists are David Benning of Ameriprise Financial Services Inc. in Minneapolis for Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Greater Twin Cities; Grant Blindbury of FMB Wealth Management in Westlake Village, Calif., for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Ventura County; and Gerald L. Ray of Gerald L. Ray and Associates in Dallas for Aggies on Wall Street. In the Volunteer of the Year category, the finalists are Mary Bersot of Bersot Capital Management LLC in Mill Valley, Calif., for MedShare; Germaine Broussard of Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC in McLean, Va., for TroopTreats.com; and Andy Seth of LotusGroup Advisors LLC in Denver for Minds Matter of Denver Inc. In the Volunteer Team category, the adviser finalists are Randy Carver of Carver Financial Services in Mentor, Ohio, for Rotary Club of Mentor bone marrow project; Barry Engelman of Ameriprise Financial Services Inc. in Los Angeles, for National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Southern California & Nevada chapter; and E.J. and Laura Rabell of Defender Capital in Charlotte, N.C., for National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Mid-Atlantic chapter. In the Global Community Impact category, the adviser finalists are Bruce Kusmin of Mariner Wealth Advisors in Leawood, Kan., for the Global Orphan Project; David Polstra of Brightworth in Atlanta, for Medical Missions Ministries; and R. Stephen Werner of Exemplar Financial Network in Walworth, Wis., for Health Education Africa Resource Team (HEART). Each of the finalists deserves our humble praise.