February 2023 Education Meeting
TOPIC #1: P&C Updates: Inflation and the Future of Florida
SPEAKER: Michelle L. Hirsh
About the presentation: Premiums are increasing for home and auto insurance throughout the country. Inflation is a factor, as well as the increased claim activity due to natural disasters and litigation. This presentation will share insights on how to properly prepare your clients for their P&C insurance renewals and share the importance of an annual audit.
About the Speaker: Michelle Hirsch is the Sr. Vice President and third generation family business owner of Brunswick Private Client. Michelle attended Penn State University for her undergraduate degree and obtained her MBA from Case Western University. She also earned the industry’s highly regarded designation of CAPI (Certified Advisor in Personal Insurance) through the Wharton School of Business and Chubb Insurance. Her 18+ years of experience have given her a deep understanding about the potential risks, exposures and complexities that are unique to today’s affluent and those in the public eye. Her insights, solutions and partnership has helped countless clients better understand and protect their personal risk.
TOPIC #2: 2023 Social Security Updates
SPEAKER: Brandon P. Smith
About the presentation: Brandon Smith, Social Security’s Public Affairs Specialist for the Greater Cleveland area, will be discussing the basics of eligibility for retirement, spousal and survivor benefits. Brandon will include any updated 2023 facts and figures regarding these benefits, including the new amounts for a quarter of coverages and the 2023 annual earnings limits. Brandon will also discuss the 2023 Medicare enrollment changes regarding the Initial and General Enrollment Periods.
About the speaker: Brandon Smith, a native of Cleveland, Ohio, joined the Social Security Administration in 2003. He started his Social Security career as a Claims Representative in the Middleburg Heights field office, specializing in Retirement, Survivors, Disability, and Health Insurance. In 2007, Brandon became the Public Affairs Specialist in the Greater Cleveland area. Brandon is the primary contact for media relations, outreach, and presentations for the agency in Cuyahoga, Lake, Lorain, and Geauga counties.
Continuing Education: FPA NEO will request credit for these programs, which will total two hours of CE from the CFP® Board of Standards for CFP® designation holders. A general certificate of completion and one for CPA designees who feel the program satisfies their continuing education requirements will also be available.
Reservation Policy: All attendees are encouraged to register in advance before noon 02/15/23 and walk-in reservations will be accepted on a space-available basis only. In person meeting cost is free for FPA members and $60 for non-members. If you reserve and are unable to attend, please call the office or email admin@fpa-neo.org to cancel by noon 02/15/23 to avoid a no-show reservation billing of $10.00.
About the presentation: An update from Capital Group/American funds for your client portfolio conversations.
About the speaker: Ryan Fischer is a Villanova University graduate and fourth generation real estate investor. He is presently the Account Executive of CAMA Self-Directed IRA, LLC (dba CamaPlan). CamaPlan is a national company headquartered in Ambler, PA. Ryan has implemented plans and managed millions of dollars in real estate transactions. He has been able to increase his personal net worth and control many endeavors with the self-direction tools available. In addition to his hands-on experience, he has the opportunity to speak to many groups including real estate investors and brokers, CPAs, financial advisors, and mortgage professionals about the power and possibilities of IRA, 401(k), and qualified plan self-direction. Ryan’s unique background, education, experience, and empirical information relating to business, finance, technical requirements, and overall management makes him a key element in the success of his clients controlling their own financial future.
About the Speaker: Jeffrey R. Brooks is a wealth strategist at Capital Group, home of American Funds. He has 25 years of industry experience and has been with Capital Group for three years. Prior to joining Capital, Jeff worked in the role of senior wealth strategist at UBS Financial Services and before that in a similar role at Merrill Lynch/Bank of America. Earlier in his career, Jeff practiced law exclusively in the areas of probate, trust and estate administration and worked for a Probate Court. He received a juris doctor degree from the University of Missouri, Columbia and holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism (broadcast sequence), also from the University of Missouri, Columbia. Jeff is based in Los Angeles.
About the Speaker: Joseph Fragapane is Senior Vice President & Team Leader, Private Banking Group at First National Bank. Joe has over 37 years of comprehensive experience in consumer banking and commercial private banking working with affluent individuals, entrepreneurs, and small business owners. He’s an accomplished lender focused on providing credit solutions and customizing loans for personal, business and investment purposes. Joe works closely with accountants, attorneys, financial planners, investment advisors and insurance consultants as a collaborative and vested partner in the best interest of shared clients. His approach and passion as a banking advisor is relationship-driven, being value added and having impact on improving the clients’ financial condition. Clientele consist of highly successful financial achievers as well as the emerging affluent. They include physicians and other medical professionals and groups, small business owners, real estate investors and developers, business executives and family-owned companies, law firms and attorneys, accounting firms and CPA’s, financial planners, investment and insurance advisors, and other professionals. Joe has an undergraduate degree in Finance from Miami University and an MBA from Baldwin Wallace University
About the Speaker: Patrick Clunan is the manager of the Learning Center, the value-add program for Columbia Threadneedle Investments. He is responsible for the implementation of the Learning Center’s resources with the company’s wholesaling teams. Patrick also manages the various business units that make up the value-add resource. He has been featured as a keynote speaker at numerous regional and national conferences. Patrick also travels the country working with advisors, clients and other financial professionals, offering education and insight into retirement planning strategies and other in-focus topics. Prior to his current role, he was a regional sales director. Patrick joined one of the Columbia Threadneedle Investments firms in 2010. Previously, he worked as an internal wholesaler with John Hancock Annuities. Patrick has been a member of the investment community since 2005. He received a B. A. in Business Administration from Saint Michael’s College. Patrick holds the Series 7 and 66 licenses with FINRA.
About the speaker: As Education and Partnership manager at College Inside Track, Cozy Wittman speaks nationally about college search, educating families and training financial advisors and other professionals who work with families with high schoolers. College search has become increasingly complex, the nuances hard to understand; Cozy is passionate about dispelling myths that cost families money! Cozy is excited to connect with organizations and families interested in learning more about the complex college search process. She is a mom of 5 kids with very different goals for college so she is no stranger to the challenges around college search.
About the Speaker: Natalya Zeman is an ESG investment specialist at Capital Group. She has five years of industry experience, all with Capital Group. Natalya began her career at Capital as a participant in the Capital Associates Program, a two-year series of work assignments in various areas of the organization. She holds a bachelor’s degree in music from Oxford University. Natalya is based in New York.
About the Speaker: Ross Frankenfield is a managing director at Harbor Capital Advisors, Inc. He leads the Investment Strategy Team that provides insights on financial markets and serve as product specialists for Harbor’s investment strategies. Prior to joining Harbor, Ross was an analyst at Financial Research Corporation, where he engaged in the analysis of trends within the financial services industry and contributed to FRC’s suite of research publications. He earned a B.A. in Economics from Colby College. Ross is a CFA® charterholder, a member of the CFA® Institute and the CFA® Society Boston, Inc.