What stood out was Kathy’s vision for helping people—and her determination to bring that vision to life. “I knew that if I put in the hard work, which I wasn’t afraid to do, I’d be rewarded with a growing client base,” she says.
After all, she’d already been helping people and had found her passion—and skill—for doing so.
KNACK FOR NUMBERS
A natural problem-solver with a love for puzzles and numbers, Kathy discovered during her years as a stay-at-home mom a gap in financial literacy among her friends. Many felt uneasy about managing their finances, so she stepped up to change that. She created a course at her local YWCA to empower fellow moms and all women in her community with financial knowledge and confidence.
As she listened to their concerns, she realized a pattern: Women faced significant financial challenges—whether navigating career transitions or coping with the loss of a spouse. That realization became her turning point. “I recognized a real need for women to step into financial advisory roles,” Kathy says. That’s when she began working toward the certifications required to make that shift herself.
Growing up in Old Tappan, N.J., Kathy was one of three sisters. When she was unsure about which career to pursue, her father offered simple yet wise advice: “If you can understand numbers, you can apply that to any career.” That guidance led her to earn a degree in Finance from Providence College, followed by an MBA from Fordham University, which further deepened her expertise.
FOUNDATIONAL GOALS FOR SUCCESS
Although Kathy paused her professional career to focus on raising her family, she embraced leadership opportunities through volunteer work with enthusiasm and impact. Besides volunteering at the YWCA, she continued to apply her financial skills and repeatedly took on treasurer positions, “because no one else wanted to deal with the numbers,” she jokes.
In 2001, when her kids were older, she applied to Morgan Stanley and entered the Financial Advisor training program. She quickly excelled, especially with financial planning. She remembers her financial plan being chosen as one of the top three among 400 trainees in her cohort.
With women from her YMCA classes and her other volunteer work in her community among her first clients, Kathy continued to build her business. Today, as Managing Director and Private Wealth Advisor, Kathy leads the True North 360 Group, a multigenerational team guiding families, senior executives and entrepreneurs through complex wealth challenges.
“Everyone gets a financial plan—it’s a foundational part of our process,” emphasizes Kathy, who loves “applying my skills and knowledge to make a difference in my clients’ lives. It doesn’t feel like work, and I’ll do it every day for as long as I’m able.”
A CHAMPION OF WOMEN IN WEALTH
Kathy is frequently invited to speak on the topic of women and finance, making regular media appearances to discuss the markets. “It feels great to present the female face and voice of Morgan Stanley, where we have so many incredible women advisors in an industry that is not represented as highly by women as it is men,” says Kathy, who hopes her daughters and their girlfriends feel inspired when they catch her broadcasts.
Source: morganstanley.com
