The day I was born, my grandfather bought me a savings bond. My brother followed eighteen months later, and because he was named after our grandfather, he got double the bond amount. Of course, once my MawMaw found out, she made him make all things equal among the grands. This story was told at family gatherings from my earliest memories, eliciting a laugh. And thus, my investment journey began.

I have learned throughout life that anything worth having is worth our attention, our time, our energy and our dedication. In 2000, I graduated magna cum laude from Northwestern State University with an education degree. I spent the next 17 years investing in children and educators as a classroom teacher, mentor, content coach and district administrator. During this time, my relationship with Edward Jones was as a client. My husband and I worked with my brother, now a financial advisor, to identify goals and create a personalized strategies to meet them. In 2017, I carefully decided to leverage my knowledge of educating others into a career as a financial advisor with Edward Jones.

Because of my experience with Edward Jones as a client, I knew the firm's investment philosophy of working with long-term investors to set and meet goals. This mirrored my own attitude towards investing. What I didn't anticipate, and was delighted to discover, was how I would lean on my teaching experience while working with clients. Every day, I have the honor of working with families and individuals who want a deeper understanding of investment opportunities, teaching them how to set goals that may seem unattainable and building a unique strategy that matches their needs.

As a financial advisor, I am dedicated to partnering with clients to help them stay on track. However, I do not do this important work alone. Vanessa Woods, the branch office administrator, is here to support, serve and assist with client needs. Together, we invest time into our clients. They are worth it!