January 19, 2024
Happy New Year, FPA of Houston! As I step into the role of President of the Houston Chapter, I want to take a moment to introduce myself to those I have not yet met. I started my career in public accounting and I’ve been in the wealth management industry now going into my 17th year. I’ve been married for 16 of those years, and my wife Elizabeth is a Pediatrician at Texas Children’s Hospital in Pasadena, and we have 2 girls, (Ella, 7, and Avery, 5) that keep us very busy at home.
I’ve truly appreciated being a part of the FPA, attending symposiums for many years, but only getting actively involved in the board since 2019. I’ve had the great fortune to meet and work with tremendous individuals in the chapter, and I’ve definitely learned a ton from everyone I have met.
This association provides us the opportunity to learn, grow, and develop our competences to help our collective clients achieve their financial goals and aspirations. We continuously seek to provide a space for our members to come together to continue to improve themselves as well as our profession.
As we eagerly look ahead to 2024, we are excited to preview what’s to come.
- Chapter Meetings: We look forward to continuing to bring you engaging educational content, and we will again be meeting at the Briar Club. In an effort to provide diverse learning opportunities, we will be adding some new, niche topics that will expand our curriculum. Getting a Season Ticket is the best value and easiest way to ensure you experience our programming.
Note: If there is something preventing you from attending the meetings regularly, we’d be happy to learn what those obstacles are so we can improve and make adjustments if we can.
- Symposium: We are excited to bring back our signature event again this fall (September 12) as a powerful one-day conference. Speakers and topics are still TBD, but your Education Committee is striving to craft the best experience possible. We encourage anyone that wants to participate in building and executing the Symposium, to step forward and reach out to anyone on the Board and we will get you plugged in.
- Niche Gatherings: We have found our small group gathering to be incredibly rewarding. We will continue providing opportunities to connect in study group settings through our Women’s Group, Advisor Exchange, and NexGen gatherings.
- Networking: We will continue partnering with like-minded associations, like the CFA Society, to bring more events and networking opportunities.
- Supporting the Next Generation: We will continue supporting financial planning students at schools such as the University of Houston and others, who want to engage with professionals in order to set them up for success as they enter the workforce. Also, we will refocus on our Career Development activities, meeting early-career professionals where they are to capture and engage them to join us.
- Website Update: You might have already noticed that we are getting a brand new website, branded by FPA National (https://www.financialplanningassociation.org/chapter/fpa-houston). We expect to have the website fully built out in the first half of 2024.
None of this would be possible without our remarkable Board of Directors and their committees. It is because of their time, dedication, and passion that we are one of the largest, most engaged chapters in the country.
I am delighted introduce you to your energetic and diverse Board of Directors for 2024:
2024 President - Freddy Garza, CFP®, CPA – Endeavor Advisors
Executive Director & Corporate Partnerships - Amanda Duran - Association Management Consultants, LLC
Chairman - Juan G. HernandezAriano, CFP®, CSLP® - WealthCreate Financial
Secretary - Andrew Kulha, JD, CFP® - Mission Wealth
Treasurer - Unfilled
Education & Symposium - Kyle Fritz - Sheets Smith Investment Management
Public Relations & Pro Bono - Marco Rimassa, CFP® - CFE Financial
Career Development - Vanessa Fellers, CFP® - Corebridge Financial
Women’s Group - Mandy Haskell, CFP®, CDFA® - Wealth Partners Alliance
NexGen - Michael Pumphrey, AFC® - Tanglewood Total Wealth Management®
Membership - Chris Wise, CFP® - Wise Capital Partners
Advocacy - Unfilled
Finance Manager - Vicki Stone Lanfer - V Professional Services
I would also like to give a special thank you to our Corporate Sponsors. We appreciate everything that you do to make our events possible. We are immensely grateful for your continued support and generosity.
Of course, we wouldn’t be the chapter that we are without you, our incredible members. We are thankful that you have chosen us as your association, and we will continue to look for new ways to serve you as the leaders of our industry. It is your thoughts, contributions, and forward thinking that drives us as a chapter.
I hope to see you and meet new faces at our first chapter meeting of the year on January 23, 2024.
Very Respectfully,
Freddy Garza
2024 President, FPA Houston
