From Passion to Purpose: Bringing Financial Coaching to the Bluegrass Community

Written By: Andi Wrenn, AFC®, MQFP®

What are some of the things you enjoy doing outside of personal finance or being an Accredited Financial Counselor ®? 

I am a paper crafter which means that I enjoy making cards for others. I volunteer for the USO at the airport and a nearby military installation. As a military widow of ten years now, I have enjoyed being a mentor to other military widows. Volunteering at the elementary school in the classroom is another thing I enjoy doing. I also really love music, and volunteer for the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA). All these fun outside activities that I do as a volunteer have one thing in common, my passion for personal finance. Whether I am running the store in the second-grade classroom, or talking with a military widow about her benefits, as it came up in conversation, personal finance is something I often share outside the work environment. 

I want to share with you how I turned the joy of personal finance into an exciting new program for the IBMA Conference. I began volunteering with the IBMA National Conference and Festival in 2016. As a lead volunteer, I spent a lot of time with the leaders of the organization. Often, we would talk about personal finance, and I would answer questions and educate them on financial topics. Those conversations led to the idea of me giving a presentation during the conference to help the artists in attendance learn all they can about money. When the conference submission portal opened, I submitted a presentation, and it was accepted! 

Planting the Idea: 

After talking with leadership the following year, I suggested offering free financial coaching at the conference. The seed was planted. The CEO and Event Organizer liked the idea. But I didn’t think much about it for the next six months. One spring day I got a text from the conference organizer asking if I would be willing to launch the financial coaching program. Within two days we had a plan. 

Organizing the Details:

Our plan included a presentation that covered the basics of personal finance, and five days of financial coaching to attendees free of charge. I began organizing that part of the event. and gave my presentation description to the conference organizer. I also sent a description of the free financial coaching being offered with a list of things that attendees might want to discuss. Below is the information we shared with conference attendees. 

One-on-one coaching sessions – These sessions will be led by either a certified professional or a candidate in a national certification program, such as CFP® (CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER®) or AFC® (Accredited Financial Counselor®). Each session will last up to 25 minutes and cover various aspects of personal finance education. If you have specific questions about your financial accounts, please bring any relevant documents. Our goal is to help you align your values with your finances to make informed and wise decisions in your personal financial life. 

Here are some areas you may want to discuss: 

• Tracking your spending 
• Spending plan 
• Credit reports and scores 
• Debt Management 
• Savings 
• Insurance 
• Retirement planning 
• Estate planning 
• Goals for the future 
• Financial Values assessment 

Recruiting Volunteers: 

Next, I spent time organizing volunteers. I reached out to my professional network in North Carolina to see who was interested in participating, and I posted on the AFCPE member exchange and on my LinkedIn. I ended up having 12 financial professionals volunteer to help. 

The Event and its Impact: 

 On the first day of the conference, I presented to attendees. While attendance was on the small side, the group that showed up was highly interested in learning about finances. 

We also had a room designated for financial coaching. The organization made signage so that people could find us. We had four tables set up inside the room. We had Money Habitudes cards available at each table, note pads, pens, and decorations. Each of the 5 days we had 4 hours that people could drop in to talk about their personal finances. We had a variety of participants attend one-on-one sessions. People from the IBMA Board of Directors came in and talked about their plans to see if they were on track. They were very excited we were offering this program and wanted to learn more about what we were doing. We had an artist who was 16 years old come in with their parents to talk about finances. We had couples come in. All ages were represented by those who came by for financial coaching.  

It really was an amazing experience. One of the attendees of the IBMA festival stopped by to see the work we were doing. To my surprise Gerri Walsh, Senior Vice President, FINRA Investor Education Foundation and her husband are big fans of bluegrass. They came in to find out what we were doing and shared on her social media about the good work we were doing at the event. 

Overall, this was an opportunity to reach out to other communities through an international event. You never know where a volunteer role you have, or a personal interest, can turn into an opportunity to share how you can help people with their personal finances. In all we served over 50 people with 12 volunteers over 5 days. Those who attended were grateful. Other financial professionals who attended the event shared their interest in volunteering next year in Chattanooga, TN.  

Think about the places and groups where you can share your value as an AFC®.  

Andi Wrenn, AFC®, MQFP®, uses her certifications and MA in Counseling to convey her passion for helping people achieve personal, financial, and professional goals. She is a past president of the AFCPE® Board of Directors, and a retired leader in military financial education. Through her business, Coaching Capability, she develops continuing education for CFP®, ChFC®, and AFC® professionals. Andi received AFCPE’s 2021 Outstanding Education Program award and the 2023 Women Working in Wealth award. She empowers financial professionals with engaging education and mentorship to enhance client trust and communication.  Andi is a recognized expert in military finance.