Allworth Kids Introduction - Video Transcript

Scott: We're Scott and Valerie Hanson. We've been married for 28 years. We have four kids and been in financial services for three decades. As co-founder and co-CEO of Allworth Financial, I've obviously worked hard at serving our clients. But also, over the last three decades, I've been quite involved in a variety of different non-profits, and whatnot. I've just believed it's important to participate in the community and particularly those that don't have the same advantages.

And many of those organizations I've been involved were children's issues, children's organizations. The Child Abuse Prevention Council, and River Oaks Center for Children, and the advisory board of the Salvation Army is just to name just a few. So I've always had a passion to help kids.

Valerie: And for myself, raising two kids, Scott's busy at work and serving on boards, and such. So I would pace along with them with kids activities. Then I was invited to serve with kids in college who are former foster youth, and I really enjoyed that. Then I thought, "Well, how can I work upstream?" I enjoy the older youth, but I really like younger kids and just being available for them. And I learned about CASA. So that's really where our most recent journey began.

My first case were these two darling sisters. And I would meet with them once a week and really enjoyed my time with them. That was about an eight-month journey. And toward the end of that they had moved twice, and we thought they were in their forever home. But then I got a text one day that told me that they had to move, and these are two sisters who needed a home. And my heart was broken. So that's, basically, what I texted Scott that day.

Scott: I'll never forget it. I was at the office that Thursday afternoon, and all the text said was, "I'm heartbroken. I found out the girls can't stay with the family they're with." And she really couldn't tell me much about the girls for confidentiality reasons. I didn't know much of anything. But I got the text and I was, like, "What about you? What about me?" Right.

It's, like, the values that I built my life on, how real are those to me? And we spent...in about 48 hours, we just kind of talked about this. It's like, "Well, we have a healthy marriage. We've got, fortunately, with the financial resources where she wasn't having to go back to work because a lot of people were at this stage we're in, because our youngest had just left to college. We were enjoying the empty nester years. And within 48 hours, we said, "Well, why don't we step up and offer to be their forever home?"

Well, I'm super excited right now that we're launching Allworth Kids. It's just a way to really align our staff behind one cause, to be able to, essentially, leverage maybe a bit of our platform even, and leverage the awareness of foster children throughout the United States. And actually, even four years ago, when we first brought the girls into our home, we said it'd be good to be able to encourage others.

We realize most important can't go out and adopt a couple of kids like we did, but they can certainly help out in other ways. They can be a mentor, or they can be a counselor themselves, or they can be a tutor. There's just lots of different ways they can help, or even financially. And so, it just seemed like things were kind of coming together. I was introduced to a couple of other organizations that would really work well with us and started sharing the idea with some staff.

And everyone seemed really excited about it. And so the employees, the leadership and the employees, came together, kicking this off with seed money of over a million dollars, not from Allworth. These were from the employees of Allworth, the people that work at Allworth. So, I mean, it was just super encouraging for me to see that kind of support, and I think it's really launching us well.

Valerie: We really are excited to partner with Ticket to Dream. They really feel like a gift.

Scott: Yes, they're, like...it's, like, perfect. And we were looking at creating a bunch of things, and then we really had no idea the amount of work they've been doing. I've known the founders for a number of years, just kind of socially. He's a successful business person, she's a pediatrician.

And they've had this heartbeat for foster youth for...ever since I've known them. And I really didn't realize everything they were up to. And when we started seeing what they were doing all throughout the country with over 200 organizations, like, "Why reinvent the wheel here?" I mean, this is...it's just been...it's gonna be a perfect partnership. Here's a little more information on Ticket to Dream Foundation.

Announcer: Ticket to Dream works to provide hope and opportunity for foster children across the nation.

Gina: They shouldn't have to worry about if their shoes are too small for their feet, or they feel self-conscious in the clothing they're wearing at school every day. They don't need to worry about fitting in, they need to worry about catching up in school and dream, and know that they matter, that their community cares about them. And to make sure that they know that they matter. And they matter to us.

Announcer: Since 2008, Ticket to Dream has partnered with businesses, communities, and over 200 non-profit organizations to collect and distribute over $40 million in essential items for foster kids.

Gina: Ticket to Dream has built a nationwide network of foster care non-profits across the country, one of the first of its kind. Basically, this now allows companies, retailers, charities, any partner that wants to affect foster care, to work with us anywhere.

Dale: So these kids did nothing wrong. They're wonderful kids. They need the support. They need the care. They need the love. And so the ability to help them to build their future, to see their future, and then and to engage in their future is what Ticket to Dream was founded on is the ability to make a difference in these kids' lives.

Together: Help foster kids just be kids.

Valerie: Allworth Kids really is partnering with this organization that's gonna help us with kids right when they show up and need help, all the way through their journey and when they age out, so that they can become the productive person they're designed to be. And feel valued and loved and have that opportunity.

Scott and I have been so privileged with our own daughters now. We've had them for four years. And they're given the resources, the love, and we get to watch them bloom into the people they're designed to be. And it is delightful.

Scott: Even little things just such as having piano lessons, and we've signed them up for tennis, getting them to try tennis. And as I picked them up from the tennis court, I thought, "What chance would these girls have at things like this?" I mean, most don't have opportunities.

And one of the cool things about Allworth Kids is they partner with different organizations that even maybe it's a couple 100 bucks to help fund the kid to play a sport. Because it's not gonna happen in most foster homes without someone else coming alongside and helping out.

If I'm looking back maybe 5 or 10 years from now at the launch of Allworth Kids, and say, "How do we know if we've been successful at this?" I think it's, really, if we can mobilize and engage a good chunk of our staff to participate on some level, even just a microscopic level, and if we can have some sort of influence on the clients that we have the privilege to serve.

Look, I know that there's a lot of people at retirement that are looking for meaning and purpose in their life. And I don't know what gives more meaning than being a parent, or being a tutor, or a mentor, or there's just...even these little small things that people can do that I know would bring great meaning to their life, particularly in this retirement phase that most of our clients are in.

So I think if we're looking back, if we can help encourage some people just to help come alongside and serve some of these foster kids, whether it be their own time or even just some financial gifts, I'll be very pleased.