Ep 8 - From Childhood Poverty to Wealth Management Industry Pioneer

• Overcoming adversity can fuel success. Shirl's early life challenges instilled a strong work ethic and determination to succeed in finance.
• Building a robust professional network is crucial. Shirl's proactive approach to seeking mentors and opportunities paved the way for his career.
• Independent financial advice is vital. Dynasty Financial Partners champions a model that separates advice from product sales, democratizing access to quality financial guidance.
• Philanthropy enriches lives. Supporting veterans and empowering others to achieve their dreams is a core value shared by both Blau and Penney.

Disclaimer: [00:00:00] The following podcast by Fusion Family Wealth, LLC Fusion is intended for general information purposes only. No portion of the podcast serves as the receipt of or is a substitute for personalized investment advice from Fusion or any other investment professional of your choosing. Please see additional important disclosure at the end of this podcast.

A copy of Fusion's current written disclosure brochure discussing our advisory [00:00:15] services and fees is available upon request or at www.fusionfamilywealth.com.

Voiceover: Welcome to The Crazy Wealthy Podcast with your host, Jonathan Blau. Whether you're just starting out or are [00:00:30] an experienced investor, join Jonathan as he seeks to illuminate and demystify the complexities of making consistently rational financial decisions. Under conditions of uncertainty, he'll chat with professionals from the advice world, [00:00:45] entrepreneurs, executives.

And more to share fresh perspectives on making sound decisions that maximize your wealth. And now here's your host.[00:01:00] 

Jonathan Blau: Hello everybody. Welcome to another episode of the Crazy Wealthy Podcast. I'm so excited today to have my friend Cheryl Penney, uh, founder, CEO of Dynasty Financial Partners. Uh, firm that has allowed the democratization of freedom, [00:01:15] uh, among financial advisors in the industry who were once I think, um, trapped in the, in the big firm space as I was.

And, and, uh, while that may be appropriate, now, there's, there's a lot of choice and uh, Cheryl I think is one of the main reasons we have [00:01:30] that. So Cheryl, welcome today and thanks for joining us. 

Shirl Penney: Thanks for having me, John. So great to see you. Always, always great to spend time with you. For sure. 

Jonathan Blau: Likewise. So, uh, so I thought today, you know, you and I have, uh, a bunch of things in common, [00:01:45] uh, um, and, um, one is kind of, uh, our backgrounds in terms of, uh, how we, how we grew up childhood, uh, and in life.

You know, when people are successful, not just in career. [00:02:00] In, in family endeavors and, and charitable give back and all of that. Uh, hobbies. I know you're an equestrian. I know you love horses. Um, those, those usually are outcomes that are associated with narratives that don't really reflect the [00:02:15] narratives that one would find when they look into our.

Uh, uh, beginnings. And so I don't wanna talk too much about mine, but we'll relate it. But, but I want you to talk, if you're willing, about your beginnings and, um, and, and, and then we can talk about how that all influenced, uh, [00:02:30] uh, the outcomes that, that, that you currently have, uh, been fortunate to experience with family and business and everything else.

Shirl Penney: Yeah. No, I appreciate that. Um, you, so I'm originally from the state of Maine, uh, from a little fishing village, uh, called [00:02:45] eSport Maine. Uh, it's a town of about 1300 people. I. Uh, and I was raised there by my step grand grandfather. My mother actually had me when she was 16, which, uh, unfortunately is a bit common, uh, where I'm from, [00:03:00] uh, would've given me up for, uh, adoption, uh, which, you know, I think would've been the right thing for her to do, except my step granddad when he went to the hospital to check on her, said.

You know what, uh, I think I'll take this kid, uh, [00:03:15] and, uh, not risk that maybe he would go to an abusive home and decided to, to raise me. Uh, and John, he was 60 at the time, uh, handicapped, uh, dirt poor. I. And took me home, raised me in this [00:03:30] little 400 and square foot, uh, four 50 square foot, uh, home, uh, until I was 11, and it literally fell down around us, uh, and was condemned.

Uh, so for three years, between 11 and and age 14, uh, we were homeless, [00:03:45] uh, live with, uh, different neighbors. Uh, you know, we had to move around 'cause we didn't, everyone there is kind of poor, uh, so we didn't want to burden, you know, one, one family. Uh, and then I. The local Native American, uh, tribe, were [00:04:00] trying to teach, uh, their youth, uh, a skillset around carpentry.

Uh, and said, why don't we, uh, build, uh, you know, this gentleman and his grandson a home, uh, as part of a project, uh, to teach our youth, uh, which was, uh, which was [00:04:15] awesome. Uh, it took 'em, uh, it took 'em a while to, to get it built 'cause the students were building it. Uh, but we moved back in when I was 15, 16.

That was the first time I actually had a shower in my life. I used to bathe out of a, a [00:04:30] pot, uh, you know, in the kitchen with a, with a washcloth. Um, but anyhow, that's how I grew up. And then went to Bates College, uh, in Maine. Uh, studied economics, was always fascinated, uh, with finance and wanted to go off and work on [00:04:45] Wall Street.

I didn't know anyone, uh, in New York, let alone, uh, on Wall Street. Uh, so I bought a suit. Uh, for $13 at the Salvation Army, and you and I have talked about this before, John, it, you know, it fit me. The sleeves were up here. Yeah, it had a [00:05:00] hole in the crotch, unfortunately. And I rode a bus, you know, 16 hours transfer through Boston, make my way to New York, and at that point I'd never seen a revolving door.

Uh, or an escalator, uh, in my life. And I never, I had never [00:05:15] seen an elevator that went more than one story. Uh, so I navigated all of those things, uh, and just at the end of the day, I said, look, I, I'm not gonna be the smartest person in the room, but I can probably be the hardest, per, hardest working, uh, person in the room.

Uh, if you give me an [00:05:30] opportunity. And they say, great. Sounds good. Come back next week for a second round interview. And I said, you gotta be kidding me. Like, this is what I went through to get here. Uh, can't you just decide? Uh, so the first time I ever flew, uh, they paid to fly me back, uh, the, the, the [00:05:45] next week and, uh, ended up getting hired and worked my way up, you know, through, uh, city, uh, Smith, Barney, and left, um, at the age of 32 to start Dynasty, which we, we may talk about, but to your point, I think.

I talk about this, I [00:06:00] have two daughters, uh, 18 and, and 16. My wife and I talk to them a lot about not judging a book by its cover. Uh, and you know, sometimes, uh, and it's been a challenge for them, uh, in school, uh, at times where they've even been teased [00:06:15] about, you know, the perceived level of success, you know, that their family or parents have had.

And I'm really proud of, of the girls. Like they'll stand up for themself and say, we will never apologize for our success. My dad was homeless, you know, he's built this business from the ground [00:06:30] up. We've all had to sacrifice. You know, they'll say, I, I typically don't have dinner with my dad on a Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday.

'cause he's traveling or working, whatever it might be. Um, so, you know, they have been, you know, witness firsthand to the level of [00:06:45] effort and sacrifice it takes as, as you well know, uh, to, to build a business, certainly to get it to a size and scale of where Dynasty is today. 

Jonathan Blau: No, that's, that's tremendous. I always love your story and um, partially, you know, we have different stories, but, [00:07:00] uh, I know, I know, uh, Townsend I believe is named after your grandfather.

Shirl Penney: Yeah, Clarence Townsend was my granddad. Yeah. 

Jonathan Blau: Yeah. And I, my, my grandfather on my mother's side was the Bali King. He, he came from the [00:07:15] Ukraine, uh, Balis were, were from Bali stock in Poland, which was. You know, relating to the Ukraine when he was there and he had to do certain things to get to the country that we wouldn't wanna talk about.

Um, and he taught himself, uh, English and I was never close with him growing up. I lost, [00:07:30] my dad had dramatic fever as a child, which today is not something we, we suffer from as a society. But then it was, and caused him to have a mitral valve issue, led to a, a blood clot stroke, paralyzed when I was 11, passed away when I was 13.

And my mom. [00:07:45] For better or worse was kind of absentee, you know? And, and, and so in, in that sense, uh, I was in your situation where, you know, it was, uh, hope, hope that, uh, someone was looking over me. I always worked hard, right? And, but my grandfather is the [00:08:00] point, was a big influence. Um, later in life, uh, we got close and, uh, he taught me work ethic just by, uh, witnessing right what he did.

You know, he worked in a two by four. Basement with a brick oven and making Alis [00:08:15] and delivering 'em in his underwear. That's how he started. 

Shirl Penney: Yeah. 

Jonathan Blau: Um, so, so you learn from those things. Uh, and I, I relate that 'cause I'd love to make a connection before we talk a little bit more about Dynasty between what.

You know, you, you, you went [00:08:30] from watching this tribe build a house for you, and you grew up with your step-grandfather who was poor. What, where did you learn, or, or how did you learn, um, not, not the hard work, but the things that you learned? Yeah. What, what got you interested in, in [00:08:45] Wall Street, you know, coming from where you came from?

Shirl Penney: Certainly the, the hard work and integrity. Uh, I got a lot of that from my grandfather, uh, right. But I'm also a big believer in, uh, uh, mentorship by committee. Uh, I've always been fortunate, uh, to seek [00:09:00] out, uh, and have mentors across all different, you know, walks of life and, and, and industry. And, you know, to your point, you know about you as a, a child and.

And what you saw, I say this a a lot, you know, with, with children in particular, [00:09:15] what they see is what they'll be. Uh, so it, you never know, you know, if, if you're having a chance to mentor or to help a child, the profound impact that you can have in someone's life. Which is why, you know, I'm a big proponent, and maybe [00:09:30] we'll talk a little bit about charitable, uh, endeavors, but in particular with veteran causes, especially veterans that are trying to transition, uh, into becoming entrepreneurs like we are.

Uh, because I think it's so wonderful to help them live the American dream that they spent so [00:09:45] much of their life protecting. Uh, and I think that's, uh, that's, that's very powerful. But, uh, to your question, specific to, to financial services in large part. John, I was self-taught. Uh, I do think it takes a community to raise, to raise a child as well.[00:10:00] 

Uh, when I was in high school, uh, I convinced one of the, uh, local, uh, high school, uh, teachers, uh, to teach me economics. And we set up a class where, you know, my graduating class was 22 kids. It's a very small rural [00:10:15] area, uh, in Maine. Uh, and they said, you know what? Let's, um. We see something in this kid. Uh, let's, let's push him a bit.

So we created a class where I was the only one in the class, uh, and I took micro and macroeconomics in high school. Uh, I [00:10:30] went on to Bates College, which has a very strong economics department. Uh, and candidly, uh, it was quite easy for me because I'd had the mentoring, uh, of, of taking, uh, you know, those classes, uh, in a non-accredited high school [00:10:45] because one person cared to take that, uh, level of interest in me, uh, back in Maine, which was great.

Also convinced the school to. Uh, start, you know, the stock market game, which I know, uh, is out there, you know, not in enough schools, but [00:11:00] in, in some, uh, and was just always fascinated, uh, by numbers, by finance, uh, some of the local tourists that would come to Maine that I would get to know, I would ask them to, uh, to bring me, uh, copies of the Wall Street Journal, uh, and other [00:11:15] publications, which might be kind of funny for anyone listening, because obviously the data was like.

Six months old. Uh, so it wasn't so much about following the stocks as it was about learning the language. Uh, and I read a lot, uh, as a, as a [00:11:30] child, uh, and again, found mentors the best I could that would be available in, in eastern Maine. Uh, when I went to college, the first day on campus, they had a one week of freshman orientation.

The first day I was there, I was in the Office of Career [00:11:45] Services starting to go through, uh, the spreadsheets of seeing who's working, uh, in financial services companies who's on Wall Street. Uh, and literally from the first week started building the Rolodex. Uh, so I could, you know, get internships and start to get [00:12:00] more experience that ultimately could lead towards, you know, me landing my first job on, on Wall Street.

Jonathan Blau: No, that, that's, that's great. I mean, it reminds me of when I, when I was at Arthur Anderson as an accountant and I was 20, I started there I [00:12:15] guess at 26, and I had just gotten my master's in tax and MBA in accounting, spent my first year learning how to use a copy machine for $60,000 in salary. And, uh, and I perfected it.

But, uh, what, what I remember is, well, it was a different 

Shirl Penney: time back in the early seventies, right, John? 

Jonathan Blau: [00:12:30] Yeah, not, not funny, but, uh, and not early seventies, so, so maybe a little funny, but, uh, but what happened was, I, I woke up one day and I recognized I had done internships at Lehman Brothers when I was, when I, in the, [00:12:45] in the mid eighties.

And I, I recognized that I didn't wanted to cold call and just sell stuff to people. Um, I wanted to make a difference, and so that's why I went and pursued my, my degrees in tax and accounting. But when I was in Anderson at 29, I had clients that were at Sanford [00:13:00] Bernstein when it was still the largest privately owned money management firm.

And I said, I would read the research and now you probably remember it. It was brilliant research. It was, it was, yeah, for sure. It was great. They, they never outperformed anything, but they research was phenomenal and, uh, and [00:13:15] so I'd read their, it was called the Green Books. I had his green books and, and I was so enamored of them.

That I said I got, I would love to work for that firm. So I, I called, I called, uh, like you did, you know, you just instinctively, like you clearly instinctively, you knew you had to build some kind of network Right. To, to be [00:13:30] able to reach out and, and find opportunities. So I, I called all these recruiters and all these people and, and they said, now we don't have any relationship with Bernstein.

They, they, they have their own. Like white glove recruiting firms. And there, one guy for some reason latched onto me and he called the [00:13:45] managing director at Bernstein and he said, I got this guy, he's a triple threat guy. He's, he's got an MBA and a master in tax. He works at Anderson. He can sell, he can talk to people.

He relates, you gotta meet this guy. And they said, listen, we have this firm I and, and he, and he just. Called him three or four [00:14:00] times. And the fourth time, and I, the guy's name was Alan Feld, the managing director, who himself at 35 and then was a managing director at Bernstein, came at Anderson. He said, all right, fine, I'll meet with the guy.

But we have one on one condition. I, I, if I meet with the guy and we hire him, you and I can do business in the [00:14:15] future. And if I don't, you never to call me again. And one thing led to the other. Yeah. And in the last interview I met with the head of, uh, I met with the head of, um. The institution, this guy Kevin Bryan, and it was a three month interview process psychologist.

You may, it was crazy. [00:14:30] And, and he said to me, uh, he asked me a bunch of questions. He said, all right, I, I don't have any more questions for you. Do you have any for me? And I said, I have one question for you. He said, what is it? I said, what concerns do you have about hiring me? And he looks at me, he says, I have none.

I closed them. Now, that was something that [00:14:45] I learned from my days at Lehman Brothers as an intern, right? Yeah. So it was just, that was the one day where I was on target. But what you just said about. Building networks and all that. You learn these building blocks and they come out of your mouth and your brain when, [00:15:00] when, when, when they're needed.

So one of, I wanna transition and you 

Shirl Penney: gotta be, and I would just say, you gotta, you gotta be, uh, tenacious with it, right? And sometimes, you know, you have to kick your way in, right? The door, the door is not always unlocked and easy to walk through. [00:15:15] You made me think of, you know, just a, a quick story. I had, I made a call to a guy named Joe Mara, who's the guy who hired me, uh, first time on Wall Street.

He was at Smith Barney Asset Management. He was a wholesaler who came through when I was interning in the Portland, Maine branch of Smith [00:15:30] Barney. And I asked, uh, if I could, uh, come see him in New York. Uh, and he said, yeah, sure. Uh, so I literally called him 20 times. 

None: You know, 

Shirl Penney: being, I called it pleasantly persistent, including, uh, many of those times, [00:15:45] John in the hospital where my granddad was, you know, unfortunately passing away.

Uh, and I'm trying to get him on the phone to line up that meeting, that interview that I mentioned earlier in, in New York and. I got it, uh, you know, the [00:16:00] interview and ended up getting the job. Uh, and I was able to go back home and, uh, tell my granddad literally as he was dying in my arms that we did it.

Uh, and all the sacrifice was worth it. And I was gonna head off to New York and chase our dream to have a career in [00:16:15] finance. 

Jonathan Blau: And that's wonderful. I love that story. I've heard it before with your grandfather at, at the end. Um, so I, I wanna transition a little bit to talk about Dynasty. And, um, by the way, thank you for everything you, you did for me.

We, we met you, uh, as our, we, we [00:16:30] disclosed on our last podcast with Mindy Diamond. Yeah. Through, through Mindy Diamond. And, and, uh, we had circumstances where we knew we wanted to go independent and, um, and, uh. I love the friendship we develop, but, but, uh, the professionalism and the people that you [00:16:45] surround yourself with and, uh, everything, uh, everything that Dynasty does for any team who's looking to go independent and explore it, I, I couldn't think of anyone to, to, to, to be a better fit for that.

Um, and I, uh, when [00:17:00] we started, I know we were among the early teams, um. But it's the people you had that gave us the confidence. Yeah. Um, and so I'd like you to talk about what led you having worked at Smith, Barney City Group and senior positions at a very young [00:17:15] age. What led you to see far ahead? 'cause you did, um, uh, the need for people to have the resources from custodianship.

To fin financial technology, FinTech to everything else that we didn't have. We meaning went way back [00:17:30] when, when I was in the, uh, big brokerage firms and Mindy Diamond used the term two terms, optionality, you know, go looking forward. There's more options for, for people in our industry and for clients, but also she used the term incongruence in her mind.

It's the fact that, you know, the big [00:17:45] firms would say, oh, you have to do this, you have to sell that. We, we, we need you to do it this or that way, uh, and so forth. The incongruence with what the advisor wanted and what was mandated by the firm. There's now a freedom and a democratization. Right. What led you to see that?

Yeah. And how did [00:18:00] that, how did that come to be? 

Shirl Penney: Yeah. And I, I, and I knew as an aside from the first time you and I sat down and started talking about your vision, that there were, that there was philosophical alignment for the why of why I started Dynasty to why you wanted to start your [00:18:15] own firm. Uh, because you talk so strongly about your advocacy for your clients, which is something that I've always really respected about you and your entire team, uh, thank you.

And wanting to separate where you give advice, uh, [00:18:30] from where products are manufactured and sold. Uh, and that was a big, uh, driver for you. And, and going back a few years before when we first met, when I founded Dynasty, it was a big driver for me as well. I, I think the, the aha moment came. I [00:18:45] used to run private wealth management, which is the ultra high net worth, uh, group, you know, for Smith Barney, which is now part of, of Morgan Stanley.

And a big part of that job was to bring, uh, advisors in with some of their largest clients, largest prospects, uh, to [00:19:00] meet with the senior executives, whether it's Sandy Weill at the time, and, uh, other, you know, senior, senior team members. Uh, and I remember after, you know, a few hundred of those, uh, maybe it should have clicked sooner, but after a few hundred of them, uh.

Understanding [00:19:15] that the way ultra wealthy individuals. Received their advice was different from the average American. And what I meant, what I mean by that is the model for them is triangulated. And I've later [00:19:30] coined the, the concept of the triangulation of advice. And what I mean is, uh, advice is given, you know, oftentimes through a family office to a billionaire, you know, insert the name of any billionaire that you may know or have heard of.

That family office [00:19:45] just works for them. Separately, uh, those families can custody their assets at any counterparty. Uh, where they feel, you know, is best record keeping, uh, record keeping safety of assets. So whether it's [00:20:00] JP Morgan, Goldman, Schwab, fidelity, Pershing, uh, they can house their assets anywhere they want.

And then separate again, because they have a lot of buying power, they can go out across the entire industry and shop for products, whether it's Blackstone, [00:20:15] BlackRock, you name it. All these product manufacturers would love to provide product to a billionaire. Uh, and I remember, you know, sitting in one of those meetings and thinking, wouldn't it be wonderful if we could build a model to democratize the triangulation of advice?[00:20:30] 

What if we could aggregate, you know, over time and as we have now, well, north of a hundred billion dollars of buying power, uh, behind 60, uh, RIAs that we have on the platform today, over 500 advisors. So that [00:20:45] maybe there's an advisor in my, my home state of Maine, uh, that has, you know, a million dollar, uh, a client that's saved up over the course of their whole life.

It's retired. School teacher, uh, you know, with, uh, someone you know [00:21:00] who maybe is military or whatever their background might be. Wouldn't it be nice if they could get the same democratization, uh, of the triangulation of advice model delivered to them by having a truly independent advisor. Who's only paid for [00:21:15] advice.

They can custody their, their assets wherever they want, and they can go out and shop the whole street from a product implementation standpoint. And Dynasty is the technology that ties that experience together. Uh, and that's what we built. Uh, and that was, uh, where the, [00:21:30] the early thinking and vision came from.

Uh, obviously it was hard. We launched the business in the height of the financial crisis, uh, back in, uh, 2010, uh, at the end of the year. Uh, so raising capital. In a way that allowed me to maintain control, [00:21:45] uh, to get alignment around raising the capital and then to build it up. Uh, took time candidly. You guys coming on, given the size of your business and the belief early on for us, uh, was really important, right?

To help. Get the narrative out there of why it is what [00:22:00] we are doing with Dynasty. Uh, and it's really exploded. I'm very humbled, uh, to say that we're 120 billion today. We have 30 billion signed. Uh, not that you're looking to break some news on your show, but we have 30 billion signed. [00:22:15] 

Jonathan Blau: Nothing wrong with that.

It's real. Yeah. 

Shirl Penney: So we, you know, we'll see what happens, you know, in the, in the markets, but, uh, you know, God willing, we should be close to 150 billion of assets on the platform by the end of 2025. So, and, and the last thing I would say is we're just [00:22:30] getting started because as you know, and I know you're passionate about this.

It's fundamentally better for the client, for the consumer. It's also better for advisors. It's better for their staff. Uh, there's just a beauty in that alignment, which is why I think we're in the [00:22:45] early innings. Uh, and we're gonna continue to see massive acceleration of all roads for advisors and clients leading to the REA space.

Jonathan Blau: No, that's, that's wonderful. And I, I, you know, this very recording of this very podcast, I [00:23:00] don't believe could be happening with the freedom that we have to, to, uh, dictate what we want to talk about Right. Without the freedom and such. Yeah. Right. You know, that, that's just as an example. I think that, um. You know, I'd like [00:23:15] to talk a little bit because you said that your, your passion for veterans and so forth.

I mean, three of my six or so previous podcast guests, half of them, uh, have, have relation, uh, relationship to to, to the veteran, uh, community. One is my father-in-law who [00:23:30] was a sergeant in Vietnam. One is my friend Chad Ford, who, who is a level five special, uh, ops, uh, Blackhawk. Uh, helicopter operator in, in, uh, Afghanistan.

And the other is my most recent guest, uh, before Mindy Diamond. [00:23:45] Uh, my friend Steve Stern, who's Suffolk County, um, um, uh, he was a legislator and now he's, uh, he, he's involved, uh, on, on, on the, um, on the Veterans Affairs Committee with New York, who was recently appointed. So, so I'm, I'm. Very [00:24:00] passionate about it.

Maybe not as much as you are. Uh, but also I want to talk a little bit about the charities. Like we work with, um, one of our main charities called the Sunrise Organization, and you talked about mentorship and, and those sorts of things. So this Sunrise organization was, uh, [00:24:15] founded by a fellow who saw the need.

It's underprivileged families who have, uh, one, at least one child, uh, who unfortunately was stricken with cancer. And so the, the need he saw was not just that, Hey, let's give these kids with cancer something to look forward to in the [00:24:30] summer, something pleasurable, but let's give relief to the underprivileged, uh, parents who have other siblings that require their time and they don't have it.

And so now the siblings and the, the children, uh, struggl with cancer. Gets sent to camp and it frees up the [00:24:45] parents and it's just as a wonderful kind of thing. And Amy and I not just give money. We, we volunteer, we put necklaces, candy, necklaces, kids, give you hugs and kisses. So I'd love to hear a little bit about some of the things you support in, in that, uh, vein.

And then lastly talk about [00:25:00] around the track and, and, uh, your podcast, uh, a little bit. 

Shirl Penney: Yeah, yeah. The, the Dynasty Foundation as well as our, our, our family, the, the Penny Family Foundation. Uh, both, uh, support various military causes. Dynasty, uh, [00:25:15] in particular focuses a lot on the entrepreneurial, uh, aspect of helping, uh, veterans, uh, make the transition, you know, back into, uh, you know, the private sector and, and sometimes finding jobs, uh, you know, with, uh, entrepreneurial [00:25:30] based businesses.

Uh, we have a veterans network, uh, at Dynasty, uh, every chance. Uh, we get, I think maybe even the, the sales person, uh, that worked, uh, with you when we were getting to know you, uh, was, uh, a former F 18 fighter [00:25:45] pilot. Uh, Ben Bines. Ben, yeah. No, I know Ben. Yep. Yeah, Ben. Uh, so Ben's a, uh, you know, obviously a very proud, uh, veteran that that's on the team and.

We have quite a number. My chief of staff, uh, currently, uh, his name is Jeremy Gilbert. Uh, he [00:26:00] was a army ranger. Uh, so we, uh, we try every chance we get, uh, to, to hire here, but more than that, uh, to mentor and help connect, uh, veterans with other opportunities. Our family foundation, uh, you know, [00:26:15] spends, uh, time with, uh.

The Navy Seal Foundation, uh, doing, uh, events, uh, you know, for Gold Star families. Uh, unfortunately, uh, there's too many of those. Uh, actually just last night, uh, we're doing a, uh, I was part of a, a [00:26:30] planning, uh, for an event called Rancha Palooza, which is a big party. Uh, we're gonna have, uh, here in Tampa, expecting over a thousand people.

Uh, we're gonna have four bands and it's just a big fundraiser. For the Navy Seal [00:26:45] Foundation, uh, we're planning for a Frog Band swim, uh, which will take place in the next couple of months. Uh, trying to get some elite Olympic swimmers, uh, as well to be a part of it. Uh, but a lot of retired seals show up in full gear, uh, and [00:27:00] swim essentially from St.

Pete to Tampa, uh, which is pretty incredible. Uh, I'm not even sure if. Uh, if you and I could, uh, swim out to the, to the first buoy, but 

Jonathan Blau: I have no comment about me. You can speak for yourself. Yeah, yeah. [00:27:15] 

Shirl Penney: Uh, but it's just, 

Jonathan Blau: it's, 

Shirl Penney: it's, it's 

Jonathan Blau: inspiring. I could float, I could float to the buoy. Uh, 

Shirl Penney: you, you, you have a lot of the gold star family members that are there, you know, telling stories about, uh, loved ones and it's just so.

Moving and, and powerful. So again, [00:27:30] you know, I'm a big believer, you know, you and I, we've talked about it now, you know, we're living, you know, kind of the best version of our American dream. Uh, one of the beautiful things about our businesses is we get to live our American dream by empowering others to live theirs.[00:27:45] 

And we get to do that because of the incredible men and women in the armed services who to me, are the great protectors, uh, of the, of the American dream. So we're really passionate there. Uh, I would be remiss if I didn't mention, uh, we do a [00:28:00] lot, uh, around a LS. Uh, my, uh, wife Maryanne, who, you know, um, her mom, uh, Ann, unfortunately, we lost the a LS uh, yeah, so that's a, a cause that's very, uh, near and dear to our heart.

Uh, and we do a [00:28:15] fair amount around, uh, education. I. Scholarships. Uh, we try to do a lot, uh, anonymously. Um, you know, there's a lot of things that you want to do. You can't do everything. Um, but we're not, you know, people who put our [00:28:30] names. Nothing wrong with it, putting your name on a building, it's just not who we are.

Um, no, sure. But we, we try to, you know, focus our time, attention, uh, and, uh, some of our capital on things that have touched us, uh, and that are near and dear to us, you know, from, [00:28:45] from over the years. 

Jonathan Blau: Now Harvey Radler, you may may not even know this, but his dad, uh, passed away, uh, as a result of a LS too. So it's very near and dear to him.

Um, we so. In, in closing up, I'd like you if you want to talk a little bit about your [00:29:00] podcast, but I also want you to talk to the audience about, uh, how they can learn more about, uh, dynasty Financial Partners, uh, your resources and, uh, and, and be able to get in touch if it's appropriate. Sure. 

Shirl Penney: Yeah, so I have, I have a podcast.

Uh, [00:29:15] we're in, uh, season six now. We've taped probably 65, uh, or so episodes called Around the Track, which plays off, uh, my passion for thoroughbred, uh, horse racing, uh, the Kentucky Derby right here in front of us. For the second year in a row, [00:29:30] I just miss qualifying with one of our cults, but that's okay. Uh, couple.

I watched the, 

Jonathan Blau: I watched the race for Yeah, when you, when you notify 

Shirl Penney: we're, I'm gonna try to win the, uh, Belmont Stakes on my home track in Saratoga. So that wouldn't be, uh, that's not a bad fallback plan, but a couple of our [00:29:45] friends have horses in the race, so we'll cheer for them. We're taking clients, uh, to the, to the Derby.

It's a great community event, being involved in racing. But we have a podcast, uh, it's 15 minutes as I call it. Uh, the most exciting. 15 minutes and, and [00:30:00] wealth management playing off the derby being the most exciting. Two minutes in sports. Uh, it's eight rapid fire questions. Each one of the questions represents one furlong on the track.

Uh, a track typically is a one mile oval and it's eight furlongs, uh, in, [00:30:15] uh, in a mile. So I. We're walking the, the virtual track, uh, together. Uh, and I have, uh, leaders from our industry, uh, entrepreneurs, athletes, you know, just interesting people, uh, that you know, for 15 minutes if you're out, [00:30:30] uh, taking a walk, uh, or if you have a little free time, uh, that, uh, you might want to sit down and engage with.

So the, the, the amount of, uh, views, uh, has continued, uh, to increase. Over time. I'm super appreciative of that. Uh, it's a, [00:30:45] like I said, it's a, it's a passion project and for me, uh, I get to sit in the chair and ask the questions, but I'm learning alongside of the viewers. In part, I, I ask questions, the things that I want to know, uh, the answers to as well.

So it's been, it's been a lot of fun. Specific [00:31:00] to, uh, to Dynasty, uh, you know, our website is just the name Dynasty, uh, fp uh, F as in financial, P as in partners, uh, dot com. You can follow me on Instagram. Uh, LinkedIn, uh, I'm not [00:31:15] on Facebook, uh, but most of the, my engagement on social media, uh, is on LinkedIn and I will say I don't check that email, uh, as much 'cause I get a lot of stuff that comes in.

Uh, but, uh, my, uh, personal email, uh, is [00:31:30] available and contact information on the LinkedIn website as well. 

Jonathan Blau: Great. Well, listen, I have to just in closing, uh, say I really appreciate our friendships, uh, professionally. I have a world of respect for, for, for you, uh, not just because of what you've created, because of how, [00:31:45] how you've created it and, and the integrity involved and, and the commitment.

I mean, I know you and I, I know if I need to talk to you, usually 1130 at night is when I reach out. Yeah. So you and I have a similar work ethic, uh, whether for, for better or worse, we're both a little nutty that way, uh, but. [00:32:00] But, um, again, I thank you for everything. Yeah. And, and, uh, appreciate your friendship.

And I love that you came on today and we had a chance to talk about all this. I appreciate 

Shirl Penney: the friendship too. I think you built an incredible firm. Uh. Uh, even though I'm, I think I am younger than you, I'll say I'm proud of you. Uh, I'm [00:32:15] really proud as a friend. Thank you. Uh, you and Harvey and Jeff and the whole team.

What you guys have done is remarkable. And as I said, the passion and care for your clients, uh, is, uh, is admirable. Uh, and as a result of that, I'm not surprised that you've had the success, uh, that you've had. [00:32:30] And, uh, you know, I think I'd be remiss too if, uh, if I didn't say that you married way up with Amy.

Uh, and so I'd be lying 

Jonathan Blau: if I didn't say it, 

Shirl Penney: not just. You have, you have a wonderful family, which is yet another reason. You know, [00:32:45] another thing that we have in common and when we get together, it's always fun to uh, you know, to spend the first half of the conversation talking about family. 'cause it's so important to both of us.

Jonathan Blau: Likewise. And with that, send my love to Maryanne as we call her Map MAP. [00:33:00] Yes. And uh, and good luck and have fun at the Derby. You know, we, we went with you guys I guess seven years ago or so. We had a great time. Uh, and I, I know how much fun it is, so enjoy it and, uh, love to everybody. 

Shirl Penney: You know, I think we should, we should wrap this up when, when you [00:33:15] produce it and, and push it out.

Uh, we, we should highlight some of the photos of you in your, uh, outfits from that Kentucky Derby trip. I, I have those. I have no 

Jonathan Blau: objection. No objection. I have those. If your 

Shirl Penney: producer would like 'em, just have 'em reach out. I 

Jonathan Blau: [00:33:30] thank you. Thank you. Uh, it was a nice friendship. So great. Great to see you. 

Shirl Penney: Thank you for having me, John.

Thank you. You too. Alright.

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