The. Tis the season for giving. Help a child have a merry and bright Christmas!

Transcription

1 syracuse The Syracuse Advisor NAIFA - Syracuse 606 State Tower Bldg. Syracuse, NY Phone/Fax: Tis the season for giving. Help a child have a merry and bright Christmas! Help support NAIFA - Syracuse s annual participation in the Toys for Tots program Give back to your Community by helping the US Marines A bright and shiny gift found underneath the Christmas tree is an exhilarating sight for any child. In a word, it s magical. NAIFA-Syracuse is very proud to be a part of that magic again this year by participating in the US Marine Corps Toys for Tots program. We invite you to be a part of the wonder. While you re out shopping for your loved ones this season, any new, un-wrapped toys (of any value) you wish to donate are greatly appreciated. These toys are given locally to less fortunate children and can mean the difference between finding a gift under the tree or the hope that maybe Santa will come next year? Collection boxes are available for placing in your agency. Please contact Rick Cote at to obtain yours. There is also a general collection box at the Financial Partners of Upstate NY agency, 308 Maltbie St., Syracuse, NY. Please drop off your donations no later than Friday, December 15 th so Santa can get them wrapped and delivered in time. For those elves that wish to donate by check, please make them payable to Toys for Tots. NAIFA Syracuse 606 State Tower Bldg Syracuse, NY Phone/Fax Syracuse.org Your generosity and support are greatly appreciated. Wishing you all a very, merry holiday season, The NAIFA-Syracuse Board of Directors

2 President s Page Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow - Melody Beattie This month, I simply want to describe how grateful I am for every one of you. I m not only thankful for your continued support as members of this association, but I also have such a tremendous appreciation for the work you do in our community, and for choosing such a noble career to call your profession. Every day at my office, I see staff members, agents, and assistants go above and beyond to help our client, as I m sure you do as well. Whether it s updating an address, confirming beneficiaries, or explaining the litany of paperwork they sometimes receive; I see everyone assisting these clients without a moment s hesitation. What makes it more special, to me, is that I can say with 100% certainty, that you all do this because you truly want to be advocates for your clients. It s not about the sale, it s about the service. It s about getting the coverage in place to protect their loved ones, while praying they never need it. It s not about finding the next hot stock tip (or crypto- currency), it s about helping people establish financial goals and diligently helping them reach it. I believe this to be true for the majority of Insurance and Financial Advisors, however, I KNOW it to be true for ALL of our members. I know this simply by the fact that you are members. You each take your profession seriously enough to invest in it, to ensure it will remain a viable industry. I wish it was a requirement to be a part of a professional association if you carry our licenses, but unfortunately it is not and never will be. You each make a conscious decision to be a part of NAIFA, and for that: Thank You! In 2018, we may see several changes coming to NAIFA on a National, State and Local level. I ll have several updates in our January Newsletter and throughout the rest of this fiscal year, so please be sure to open and review those. We have a great speaker lined up for our January 18 th meeting at Justins, so please put that in your new calendars! We ll also have an event for YAT members in the first Quarter, and our legislative breakfast is set for March 2 nd, so we will definitely be busy. As always, please reach out to me if you have any questions at all or if you like to further discuss the direction of our organization. In the meantime, I wish you all a peaceful and relaxing Holiday Season! Professionally yours, Samuel Chavarria, CLU

3 Dear NAIFA-Syracuse Members: As 2017 comes to an end, it gives us all a chance to reflect on our year both from a business and a personal standpoint. I understand that NAIFA business is not always top of mind for each of our members, so I wanted to take this opportunity to update you on how we are doing as an organization and encourage you to continue supporting this great association MEMBERSHIP This is always the most important area of focus for our Board as the strength of our voice with local and national legislators is directly tied to the number members we have. We ve maintained a stronghold of members, and when compared to other associations in the state and around the country we are still in a good position. Having said that, our membership was down last year, and we certainly do not want back to back down years. With every decision the Board makes, we ask ourselves, how will this benefit our current members or attract new members?. REPRESENTATION Last year, our association sent two members to Washington D.C. for a Day on the Hill with our Federal Legislators. We represented 25% of all the members that attended from New York State! We met one on one with representative Claudia Tenney, spent some time with Rep John Katko s chief of staff, and we believe that each of those conversations were very well received. Since then, we have had continued conversation with Rep. Katko s office. I don t believe that any of this would have been possible without the Benefactor Program. Each of us who attended certainly had some skin in the game, but the assistance we received from the Board made it a much easier decision to attend. It was great to have two of us there, but I believe it would be even more impactful if we had more members with us. I encourage each of you to consider joining us next May, as we ll be sending at least two representatives again. We hope that our neighbor associations will take our lead and increase their attendance at the Day on the Hill, as I believe it aligns so perfectly with what NAIFA is all about. IMPACTFUL MEETINGS - Our benefactor s donations have allowed us to have more impact at our meetings. We received a lot of great, constructive feedback about how we have been able to improve the benefits received from our association meetings. We have an excellent speaker lined up for January, Stephanie Rivas, recent recipient of NAIFA s 4 under 40 award. Our legislative breakfasts have steadily increased in attendance on both the legislator side and from our own members that would like to have meaningful discussion with our local representatives. Our NYS lobbying firm, Park Strategies, has been able to enhance and create meaningful dialogue with members of both the State Senate and the Assembly. In fact, we have 2 that are currently working on co-sponsoring bills in the state with us. I can t put enough emphasis on how successful I believe these legislative breakfast events have been. We kept this program alive through the years, in part due to the Benefactors Program, while every other association in the state had discontinued them. Now they and the State Association are following our example and several are revitalizing this program. I truly believe we kept that program afloat for the entire state.

4 -2- The support of our benefactors has made a difference! I want to thank every one of you who has contributed in the past, as well everyone who has continued your membership. We would like to invite you to join the NAIFA-Syracuse Benefactors Program. As a benefactor, your donation dollars go directly to NAIFA-Syracuse and will be used to benefit the membership, i.e. programs, meetings, new member engagement, etc. There are four levels of membership. The first level is the Visionary Level and is for anyone who contributes $500 or more. The next level is the Advocate's Level and is for anyone who would like to donate in the $250 - $499 range. The third level is the Sustainers Level and is for anyone who would like to contribute at least $100. The fourth level is the Associate's Level for anyone who contributes anything under $100. It is important to remember that 100% of the money contributed via the Benefactors Program stays with NAIFA-Syracuse and will be used to benefit the membership. Once you become a member, we will publicize it in our Online Directory, Monthly Newsletter, and at our Membership Meetings. To become a member, please send your check made payable to NAIFA-Syracuse for one of the levels and send it to NAIFA-Syracuse Charlotte Crandall, 606 State Tower Bldg., 109 S. Warren St., Syracuse, NY Sincerely, Samuel E. Chavarria, CLU President

5 Lee Gatta, CLU, ChFC, AEP My husband and I decided to pay it forward by establishing a charitable giving plan through the Community Foundation. We chose to use a life insurance policy to achieve our goal. When I pass away, the policy will fund the Lee M. Gatta and Joe Reddick Family Fund, which will provide continued support for issues that are of importance to us. Giving for Tomorrow: Lee Gatta The Community Foundation was ideally suited to help us identify and carry out our charitable vision. We are confident that it will honor our wishes in perpetuity. Read more of Lee s story at Gatta.5forCNY.org since 1927 cnycf.org (315)

6 Quality Life Insurance For Over A Century Caring for Families for Generations For 135 years, Columbian Mutual has been providing value through quality, affordable life insurance protection: protection through consumer-oriented products that are designed for family and business life insurance needs; protection through financial stability; protection through prompt, accurate and friendly service to our policyholders. We design our products with you in mind. From our Company s beginning, we have had a commitment to providing value to our policyholders. We strive to meet the everyday, as well as the long-term needs of our clients and those close to them. Final Expense Guaranteed Issue Whole Life Simplified Issue Term No Medical Exam Required For more information, contact Jim Smith jim.smith@cfglife.com You have over a century of experience behind you when you choose Columbian!

7 What drives you is what drives us. Your passion fuels your success. And we re as dedicated to you as you are to your business. MassMutual will listen to your needs, seek solutions to your financial challenges and help you plan for what s ahead. Christopher DeCola, LUTCF, CLTC Financial Services Professional MassMutual New York State 250 S Clinton St., Suite 300 Syracuse, NY cdecola@financialguide.com BUSINESS SUCCESSION PLANNING + KEY EMPLOYEE RETENTION AND EXECUTIVE BENEFITS PRODUCTS + RETIREMENT/401(K) PLAN SERVICES Insurance Representative of Massachussetts Mutual Life Insurance Company (MassMutual), Springfield, MA , and its affiliated US insurance companies. Local sales agencies are not subsidiaries of MassMutual or its affiliated companies. CRN THIS ADVERTISING SPACE MAY BE AVAILABLE CALL

8 NAIFA- Syracuse Advertising Program $1,000 $500 $500 $250 $100 Premier Sponsorship This includes a meeting sponsorship, a full page ad in our monthly newsletter, and a website ad with a link to your home page. Meeting Sponsor You will be featured on our monthly newsletter as the sponsor, will have 5-10 minutes in front of audience for extended elevator speech, handouts at each table, and a separate table for you to have more information/handouts. Full page ad in our monthly newsletter for 1 year. Distributed to 150+ Financial Advisors and Insurance agents in our area. Can also sponsor monthly at $60 per issue. Website Ad You will be listed as a sponsor on our website with a hyperlink to your webpage. Business Card Ad (1/8 th page) in our monthly newsletter for 1 year Note: Our newsletter is not published in July and August. FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT SAM CHAVARRIA AT TO: NAIFA- SYRACUSE, 606 State Tower Bldg., 109 S. Warren St., Syracuse, NY PHONE and FAX: E- MAIL: cgcrandall@peoplepc.com NAME: COMPANY: ADDRESS: PHONE: FAX: E- MAIL: ATTACHED IS A CHECK, PAYABLE TO NAIFA- SYRACUSE, IN THE AMOUNT OF $. SIGNATURE: DATE:

9 It s not too late to participate in our annual Toys for Tots program the deadline for toys or checks is Friday, December 15 th. Please contact Rick Cote at or at richardcote@financialguide.com to donate a toy or check. * * * Our Build A Package advertising options have been revised and reduced in price. You can participate at any time during the year and still receive a full year of benefits. For more information, see the flyer in this newsletter or contact Sam Chavarria at schavarria@financialguide.com or Charlotte Crandall at cgcrandall@peoplepc.com. * * * Get involved in your Association! We are always looking for members to serve on our committees and/or projects. If you are interested or need more information, please contact the NAIFA-Syracuse office at cgcrandall@peoplepc.com or call We welcome your participation. * * * VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT Happy Holidays ADVERTISING POLICY NAIFA-Syracuse realizes that its members are fully aware of their individual contractual and moral obligations. We publish limited advertising in our newsletter from various companies and agencies to keep our entire membership informed. Our advertisers are fully aware that an agent s own company agency is his/her primary source and that serving his/her clients is the agent s primary responsibility. Our advertising policy reflects this awareness.