Diversity & Inclusion Awards Lifetime Achievement top 5

Number Selected Category Nominee’s name Nominated by Nominee’s title Nominee’s company Nominee’s birthdate (month/day/year) Years of experience in…

Number	Selected Category	Nominee’s name	Nominated by	Nominee’s title	Nominee’s company	Nominee’s birthdate (month/day/year)	Years of experience in industry	Nominee’s own assets under management (if applicable)	Type of organization	Nominee’s custodian and clearing firm (where applicable)	Nominee’s location (city & state)	Nominee’s e-mail	Nominee’s Phone number	Please indicate the nominee’s gender	Please indicate the nominee’s ethnicity	Please indicate if the nominee is LGBTQ	Please indicate if the nominee has a physical disability or other impairment	Nominee’s LinkedIn Profile URL	Nominee’s Twitter handle	Explain why this nominee should be recognized for lifetime achievement. Judges will consider management, team development, achievement and a minimum 10-year commitment to fostering diversity and inclusion.	In 500 words or less, cite specific examples of how the nominee effected change through creative and specific solutions in the financial services industry.	Average Score
1	Lifetime Achievement (10-plus years supporting D&I in the industry)	LeCount Davis	Jessica Lewis	Founder/Chairman Emeritus	The Association of African American Financial Advisors	8/18/37	50	Not applicable	Industry group/trade organization	N/A	Potomac, MD	[email protected]	301-983-2435	Male	African American/Black	No	No	https://www.linkedin.com/in/lecount-r-davis-sr-b302b338	N/A	LeCount R. Davis, Sr., CFP® is a true pioneer in the financial planning profession – for African Americans, and for all CERTIFED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professionals. In 1970, he established his own consulting firm specializing in tax planning, small business management, financial planning, financial management and investment consulting. After earning CFP® certification, LeCount harnessed the various skills he had acquired to build a diverse resume. His personal client portfolio would eventually include national organizations, international labor unions, pension funds, individuals, small businesses, religious organizations, investment clubs, and other entities. In addition, he spent several years as a Senior Consultant with a Washington, DC-based CPA firm, and was also Assistant Director of Finance for an international labor organization, concentrating in the Caribbean and South America. Along the way, he became the recipient of various awards and accolades that recognized his volunteerism, his exemplary work as a financial planner, and his overall place as an industry trailblazer. While LeCount’s business achievements have been impressive, it is his focus on advancing both consumers and advisors – especially African Americans – that truly makes him an individual worthy of honoring. Passionate about financial literacy, he published a quarterly financial education newsletter, “Finance and the African American Family,” for over six years and has appeared as a financial expert on many television programs and at events discussing financial planning and financial advisory issues. He also hosted the financial television program, “Common Cents,” for station WHUT. LeCount also saw the need to create a strong support system for African American and minorities in the profession – a support system he had lacked as a young student of financial planning. In 2001, he founded the Association of African American Financial Advisors (AAAA) with a mission to develop and foster professional relationships among African Americans and other minority professionals working in the financial services industry.	In keeping with LeCount’s vision to create a membership organization for African American financial advisors, AAAA describes itself as “the leadership and advocacy organization connecting those who provide, support, and benefit from professional financial planning. The lack of financial literacy plagues African American communities throughout the United States. Financial illiteracy is not just an African American issue; it is an American issue. AAAA members demonstrate and support a professional commitment to eradicating financial illiteracy via educational initiatives and a client-centered financial planning process.” LeCount continues to serve on the Board of Directors of AAAA, which has helped advance countless minorities and their businesses through a number of resources, including mentorship, professional development, educational opportunities, and various career-focused initiatives. LeCount is also Chair of AAAA Foundation, with a mission to cultivate the next generation of African American financial planners and engage research that shifts the understanding and advancement of financial planning in African American communities. The organization recently announced the LeCount R. and Jewel W. Davis Scholarship, named for LeCount and his wife. This merit-based scholarship will be awarded to talented undergraduate students enrolled full-time at a Historically Black College and University CFP Board Registered Program. Recipients will receive $2,500 to advance their financial planning academic achievement and professional development.	1
2	Lifetime Achievement (10-plus years supporting D&I in the industry)	Jennifer Hatch	Jennifer Hatch	President & Managing Partner	Christopher Street Financial	3/21/61	33	more than $500 million	Broker-dealer Affiliate	Kestra Financial	New York, NY	[email protected]	212-405-1605	Female	Caucasian	Yes	No	https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenhatch/	NA	It is my honor to nominate Jennifer Hatch, President of Christopher Street Financial, for the Investment News Lifetime Achievement Award for Diversity & Inclusion. As a woman and an out lesbian, Jen’s thirty-year career is the embodiment of diversity and inclusion in the financial world. She succeeded in the rough and tumble world of institutional sales and trading at Bear Stearns where the presence of women was scarce. Next, she jumped in to the more genteel, but also male-dominated world of personal financial planning, by acquiring her own firm. That firm was the landmark boutique, Christopher Street Financial, a quintessential model of serving a minority market. Christopher Street has focused on serving members of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender (LGBT) community, as well as their friends and allies since 1981. While there have been individual financial advisor representatives marketing to the LGBT community in more recent times, the firm has been the only independent firm with the singular mission of serving the LGBT community. For more than 35-years, Christopher Street Financial has been a visible minority brand and a progressive beacon in the very white, straight, male financial world. For decades, Jen and Christopher Street Financial have taken a visible role advocating and educating clients and the media about the critical need for marriage equality. Jen believes that it is Christopher Street’s duty to be both an activist and major donor in the LGBT community. On any given night, Jen is likely to be chairing a meeting for a non-profit or fundraising for another non-profit. For the last five years, CSF has provided pro bono office space to Family Equality Council – a not for profit advocating for LGBTQ parents and families. The generosity of Jen and Christopher Street Financial has been recognized many times: * Out Magazine’s OUT 100 List identifying “the year’s most influential, important and interesting people” * Anti-Violence Project’s Courage Award for “the oldest life and wealth management firm dedicated to servicing the needs of the LGBT community and our allies” * Community Service Award from SAGE (Services and Advocacy for Gay and Lesbian Elders) for her “pioneering work helping same-sex couples navigate the legal and tax world” * Nyack Center’s Hero Award (with her wife Sue), their home town community center serving under-privileged youth. * Outstanding Philanthropic Small Business Award from the Association of Fundraising Professionals NY Chapter * Stonewall Community Foundation Women of 2008 Award for Community Action and Leadership. * Manhattan Borough President’s Proclamation for being a “visionary leader in the campaign to build and demonstrate LGBT economic power and entrepreneurial savvy” While this is certainly a full lifetime of achievements, Jen believes she is just getting started!	Jen redefined the role of financial planning in the lives of hundreds of LGBT families. She envisioned a powerhouse of specialist life planners under one roof in Manhattan, including CFP’s, CPA’s, and estate planning attorneys. Each professional is an expert in the unique financial, legal and tax needs of same-sex or unmarried couples. Unlike most minority groups, there are very significant financial challenges for an unmarried couple who is committed to each other and who owned assets together without the benefit of marriage. LGBT families nationwide seek out Christopher Street Financial for their ability to address their unique challenges. Perhaps more importantly, they are looking for an opportunity to be valued and understood for who they are without fear of rejection. This is the firm that Jen built.	1.33
3	Lifetime Achievement (10-plus years supporting D&I in the industry)	Frank Hundley	Craig McGovern	Vice President Wealth Management	Janney Montgomery Scott, LLC	12/19/63	15	$51 million- $100 million	Wirehouse	Na	New Hope, PA	[email protected]	215-862-8324	Male	African American/Black	Prefer not to disclose	Prefer not to disclose	https://www.linkedin.com/in/frankhundley	frankbhund	Frank has been in the industry for over 15 years now and every year he helps to integrate diversity and inclusion into his practice from the make up of his team, to his client base, to giving back to the community. Frank came to the realization that financial education within the communities of people of color is lacking greatly. Many investment firms and employees will not spend any time with those communities because there is typically not a concentration of wealth. Therefore, little time is spent because of the lack of immediate revenue. Frank and his team donate their time to help education and break this trend. Frank believes by breaking the trend and teaching the people within the community to build wealth, he will help them create a better life, while eventually helping his own business in the long term. Frank has mentored countless people from the young to old. He has worked with different high schools to teach student financial wellness to the students, while at the same time, worked with the parents on college funding and admission process while saving for retirement. Frank has also worked with college students within historically black fraternities on financial wellness and job placements. Mr. Hundley has also created seminars within different churches in the urban communities. Frank has created a team (Hundley, McGovern Wealth Management) that puts an emphasis on diversity. This is shown through the make up of his team. Frank is an African American male, his business partner is a white male and their registered client associate is an Afro-Caribbean female. Each comes from different social, racial and social economic background. Hundley, McGovern Wealth Management also has a very diverse client base. The majority of their clients differ drastically from the average Wealth Management client. It consists of mostly of younger (99% of their clients under the age of 70), diverse clients. They built their book only through personal connections made in the community. Mr. Hundley also ran the training program at Merrill Lynch for several years. While running the program, he was able to implement a hiring and recruitment process that involved heavily hiring people of all backgrounds and different beliefs. Frank has been recognized in the past having to deal with his willingness to give back to the community and focus on diversity and inclusion. Before being appointed to the Board of Governors at the State University of New Jersey, Rutgers University, Frank was the Chair of the Board of Trustees at Rutgers. While serving as the Chair, he created and wrote into the bylaws of the Board, a Diversity and Inclusion committee and mandatory diversity standard within the Board.	In addition to the work Frank has done in the community and in the workplace (mentioned in the previous question), Frank implements his passion of helping people wealth within his practice. Many firms have stringent minimums to open accounts and give advice. Frank has always pushed back on this because he believes that everyone has to start building their wealth at some point. Mr. Hundley is extremely passionate in helping members of the community build wealth, that he will take on clients that do not have a lot of money, but are discipline and have the desire to better their situation.	1.67
4	Lifetime Achievement (10-plus years supporting D&I in the industry)	Marci Bair	Marci Bair	President	Bair Financial Planning	12/8/66	25	$51 million- $100 million	Registered investment adviser	LPL Financial	San Diego, CA	[email protected]	619-546-6160	Female	Prefer not to disclose	Yes	No	https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcibair/	@MarciBair	I have been in practice for over 25 years. I am a Certified Financial Planner. Since I founded my practice 25 years ago I have been a pioneer in financial planning for LGBTQ Couples. In 1993 I started Family Matters, an LGBTQ Parenting Group and ran the organization for over 10 years along side my Financial Planning practice. Family Matters supported LGBTQ parents that were thinking about starting their family and then supported them with resources on parenting, legal and financial planning. I folded Family Matters into the San Diego LGBT Center and they now provide the programing and support for the families. My wife and I of 33 years, were one of the first LGBTQ couples in San Diego to create our family from donor insemination. Our boys are now College students age 20 & 22. We were trailblazers for what an LGBTQ family looks like. In 2003 I founded “Gay Day in South Bay” which is now known as the South Bay Pride Art & Music Festival in Chula Vista a suburb of San Diego. This was the first and only LGBTQ Pride event in Chula Vista and is still going strong. I started this event to bring together the LGBTQ and allies in this more conservative part of San Diego to show that there are LGBTQ people everywhere and that we are just like everyone else. I feel it is important that we show the community that we are parents, teachers, coaches…and Financial Planners. Through this organization I have mentored countless volunteers that have gone on to become leaders in their own right and now organize and run this large event each year. We make sure each year that the vendors and entertainers are LGBTQ and from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds so everyone can feel comfortable and welcomed. I have always built my company and team members with diversity & inclusion. I am white, and my wife is black and our kids are bi-racial. I feel it is important that they see diversity in professional services and all walks of life. I want my clients to feel comfortable when they come to us whether they be LGBTQ or a racial minority. I am convinced diverse teams perform better and as a leader in SRI/ESG investing I feel it is important that we “walk our talk”. My business partner is Mexican-American and within our RIA of The Wealth Consulting Group over 40% of our advisors are female and over 30% of our Firm is racially diverse. I am working hard with our management team and recruiting department to increase this even more.	I have been openly out as an LGBTQ Financial Advisor since I started my practice 25 years ago and was one of the only openly out advisor wherever I worked. Within the financial services industry I have been on D&I committees for many years. While I was an advisor with MetLife I was one of very few out LGBTQ Financial Advisors and was on their LGBTQ Advisory panel. I pushed for involvement with Pride parades and had a MetLife float in the San Diego Pride festival and help create LGBT specific marketing materials for MetLife Advisors to use. For the Lawyers Club I was a founding member of their LGBTQ Committee to bridge together the LGBTQ attorneys and other LGBTQ professionals like myself. I also sit on their Diversity & Inclusion committee to support and help grow & support the Attorneys of Color in San Diego. I teach a course to attorneys & financial planners each year on Financial & Estate Planning for LGBTQ Couples. This is an outreach to help educate the financial services community on unique planning that we need to do for our community based on whatever the national or state specific laws that are in place at that time for LGBTQ couples. I am on the FPA’s Women’s committee in San Diego and am the LGBTQ liasion for San Diego. I am often interviewed on the subject of Diversity in Financial Services and am a cheerleader for adding more diversity in all professions, especially ours where it desperately needs it. Within our RIA, The Wealth Consulting Group, I educate our fellow advisors and our financial planning department on the latest laws affecting LGBTQ couples and am the go to person for our Financial Planning department when they have questions or financial planning strategies that they need help on for the LGBTQ clients of our fellow advisors. I look forward to continuing to shine a bright light on not only the LGBTQ community, but as an out LGBTQ Certified Financial Planner I think it is important that we show the next generation that they can be a successful professional in Financial Services and they can live an authentic life.	1.67
5	Lifetime Achievement (10-plus years supporting D&I in the industry)	Frieda Lewis	Linda Namias	Chief Commercial Diversity Officer	Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc.	12/2/55	30	Not applicable	Industry group/trade organization	Not applicable	New York, NY	[email protected]	212-981-1424	Female	Alaska native/American	No	No	https://www.linkedin.com/in/frieda-lewis-4175375/	None	Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. nominates Frieda Lewis, our Chief Commercial Diversity Officer, for Investment News’ first-ever Lifetime Achievement Award. Throughout her 30 years in the financial services industry, no one in our estimation has done more to foster and achieve an increasingly diverse and inclusive company and industry culture than Frieda. In January of 2016, Frieda took on a role with a unique title, Chief Commercial Diversity Officer. The function of the role wasn’t simply to work in alignment with Human Resources but also with customers to ensure that diversity increases business opportunities across the organization. Frieda emphasizes that diversity drives business growth and maintains that Broadridge understands the power it can play from a client and advisor perspective. Frieda’s work to advance diversity and inclusion not only at Broadridge but throughout financial services is what truly makes her stand out as a trailblazer.	Over the last 10 years, Frieda has worked to make Broadridge an industry leader in diversity and inclusion efforts. She is an active member of the Executive Diversity Committee and is on the Inclusion Board at Broadridge. She has been instrumental in forming the Women’s Leadership Forum, Multicultural Associate Network and the LBGTA Network. Additionally, she created mentorship programs at Broadridge to promote the professional development and community of diverse employees. Frieda brought decades of experience to Broadridge, having founded and joined numerous industry associations throughout her career, each devoted to advancing diversity in the financial services community. Her roles and memberships include: • Helping found the Wall Street Women’s Alliance, dedicated to creating a culture that enables women to advance to C-suite posts. Frieda serves on the governing board and recently hosted a roundtable discussion at Broadridge for Alliance members to share best practices about advancing diversity. • Serving on the Board of Directors of the Women’s Bond Club, which was established in 1921 and seeks to strengthen networking among seasoned professional women within the capital markets industry. • Serving on the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) Diversity Board, which seeks to (1) be an industry thought leader for diversity and inclusion and to provide benchmarking data on demographics and industry practices and (2) assist member firms in the development of corporate diversity initiatives. • Serving as an initial board member of the Bank Insurance & Securities Diversity Board, which seeks to cultivate and increase diversity in the financial adviser industry. • Serving as a Diversity Task Force member of FSI to foster and promote diversity for financial advice profession.	2
6	Lifetime Achievement (10-plus years supporting D&I in the industry)	Ellen DeSarno	Samuel Del Propost	Certified Financial Planner	AXA Advisors, LLC	10/26/62	28	$51 million- $100 million	Registered investment adviser	LPL Financial	New York, NY	[email protected]	212-541-1833	Female	Prefer not to disclose	Yes	No	https://www.linkedin.com/in/ellendesarno	none	Ellen has been instrumental in developing education and training relating to financial and estate planning for the LGBT community for the AXA Advisors field force. She developed client-facing LGBT educational workshops. She initiated the AXA LGBT Field Advisory Council in 2007 to mentor and support peer advisors working with the LGBT community. Ellen worked closing with the AXA diversity team to produce the annual LGBT Financial and Estate Planning Summits for AXA advisors and AXA corporate employees throughout the United States. Ellen is involved in various LGBT community organizations including HRC, RAIN Foundation, Garden State Equality. Annually, Ellen hosts a contingent in the New Jersey Pride Parade in Asbury Park, NJ. Ellen lives with her wife Patti in Livingston, NJ. They’ve been together 31 years and married in 2014 after marriage equity came to New Jersey.	Ellen developed educational program for LGBT clients on how to navigate estate planning, financial planning and starting a family in the era before the advent of nationwide marriage equality in 2015. Realizing the all financial advisors in her company have some LGBT clients, Ellen developed and promoted a workshop and training module for advisors, new and experienced, to help them serve better the LGBT community. In an outreach to the LGBT community, for more than 20 years, Ellen has hosted seminars that specifically address financial planning issue unique gay and lesbian clients.	2
7	Lifetime Achievement (10-plus years supporting D&I in the industry)	Mitchell Harris	Jamie Letica	CEO, BNY Mellon Investment Management	BNY Mellon	1/31/55	39	Not applicable	Asset manager	Pershing	New York, NY	[email protected]	2126357824	Male	Prefer not to disclose	No	No	https://www.linkedin.com/in/mitchell-harris-6b702b74	@BNYMELLON	Born and raised in New York City, Mitchell Harris has felt a strong commitment to diversity and inclusion from a young age. As a young Jewish person, Mitchell experienced discrimination first-hand and internalized what it’s like to be a minority and not feel entirely comfortable in a society when one is labeled with “outsider” status. From an early age, Mitchell became determined to do all he could to ensure others would not experience those feelings. In his professional life and through his international travels, Mitchell recognized how varied the world is and the importance of embracing different cultures and sexual orientations rather than fear them out of ignorance. Mitchell made this deep understanding a cornerstone of his leadership when he became CEO of BNY Mellon Investment Management. Today, Mitchell is frequently invited to speak on LGBTQA and diversion and inclusion topics, both internally and externally. He also serves as the lead executive for PRISM, the internal LGBTQA employee group. Female empowerment and gender equality is also very important to Mitchell. Earlier in his life, Mitchell was a widower, which placed him in a position of raising his children while working full-time without any support. From this place of empathy, Mitchell has worked to counsel women and ensure BNY Mellon has policies that accommodate everyone’s situation. Prior to BNY Mellon, Mitchell worked for 11 years Pareto Partners, where half of the six partners were women. The firm participated in the Toigo Foundation to prepare and hire underrepresented professionals in order to foster a diverse and inclusive organization. Externally, since 2014 Mitchell has been involved with The Center, the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center, serving NYC’s LGBT community. He helped to establish the Women’s Opportunity Initiative, The Center’s first program specifically built for the economic and social empowerment of women within the LGBTQA community. While recognizing the importance of bigger strategic goals of these organizations, it is the day-to-day moments and mentoring that he values most in this work.	Since 2014, Mitchell has served as the lead executive for PRISM, BNY Mellon’s LGBTQA employee resource group. His passionate leadership has attracted greater visibility to the group from both senior leaders and employees throughout the organization, resulting in a 25% increase in participation and its expansion to 27 international chapters. As a committed corporate citizen, Mitchell doesn’t just talk the talk, he walks the walk—literally traveling around the globe in an effort to bolster both BNY Mellon’s and its clients’ respective commitment to diversity and inclusion. After a major Japanese insurance company client noticed BNY Mellon’s 100 percent rating on the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index, Mitchell coordinated internal resources to help the client gain a greater understanding of PRISM and ultimately create a new policy around life insurance designations for same-sex couples. Mitchell has also traveled to BNY Mellon’s India offices to relaunch the PRISM Ally program, publically advocated against anti-inclusion legislation in North Carolina and Tennessee and led BNY Mellon to be the only non-Australian bank to sign an open letter joining other Australian business leaders to express support for marriage equality. Most recently Mitchell traveled to Japan to deliver a staff and client workshop on diversity titled “Uncovering Talent” and participate in an LGBTQA Ally event at BNY Mellon’s Tokyo offices where he discussed diversity challenges in the workplace. In October, Mitchell was named to the Financial Times’s 2017 OUTstanding Role Models list for his impact on LGBT+ inclusion inside and outside the workplace.	2