Veteran turned advisor embodies spirit of service

David Chepauskas, a senior wealth planner at Summit Financial in Red Bank, New Jersey, embodies the spirit of service in multiple ways. Early in his life, he felt called to volunteer for the military during the Cold War. After all, it runs in the family.

His father was one of the longest-held prisoners of war during World War II, having been captured in North Africa and held for more than 800 days, until the Nazis surrendered.

“He got captured in February of 1943. And his mother didn't know he was alive until November of that year,” Chepauskas says, fighting back tears. “Veterans of World War II didn't talk about it much, but I knew what he had done and I admired it and was inspired by it, like many people [who were] inspired by their parents.”

Chepauskas graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point at 21 and made a cross-country trip to Fort Sill in Oklahoma to commence his military training. It was “a big culture shock,” he says.

Over the course of his military career, Chepauskas served as a field artillery officer in the 101^st Airborne and was stationed .in Berlin, Germany, where he commanded the largest artillery battery in the U.S. Army.

“We were outnumbered in Berlin like 25 to one,” he said. “We were just there as a deterrent to the [then] Soviet Union from advancing.”

Chepauskas added that one of the most rewarding things in the military was being able to watch young soldiers grow and develop. “In the military, seeing guys have success and turn into good leaders and good soldiers is a tremendous reward. That's your job as an officer,” he said.

After serving for just over 12 years, Chepauskas decided to retire from the military to focus on his family. With three young children, having to move from house to house is often difficult for military families. That’s when he decided to go into financial planning, with an exclusive focus on veterans.

“I found I like working with them. A lot of folks know each other, we have similar values, we're patriotic and we care about America. So that's who I like doing business with,” Chepasuskas said.

“I think we all know, sometimes veterans don't get all the thanks that they deserve. They made those kinds of sacrifices, and they can just easily be swept under the rug of society. Those of us that that came out more fortunate, I think we have something of an obligation to those of us that did not come out 100%,” he added.

Chepauskas said advisors should work with clients on charitable tax planning in order to give more to those in need.

“There's a lot of veterans that come out of the military, much less fortunate than me, who are either physically wounded or emotionally wounded," he said. "I try to show people how they can redirect money to charities.”

Chepauskas and his country club, in partnership with the USAA and Monmouth County, New Jersey, raised $25,000 to sponsor and train a service dog for a fellow veteran who struggled with PTSD. He said watching the veteran come back a year later and settling back into civilian life was “life changing”.

“That’s the kind of thing that you could do when you have financial success,” he said. “It’s something you may want your kids to remember you for more than just financial success. You’re helping people and changing their lives.”

Chepauskas added that he’ll always be amazed at the amount of responsibility he was given in the military at a young age.

“I was 23 years old, commanding an artillery battery, shooting live ammunition [reaching] 20 miles and not killing anybody,” he said. “When I look back at what I did at the time, it was lovely. You traveled the world. I managed to enjoy it and love it. I fell into it by accident, but they were some of the best years of my life, without a doubt.”