Actions create ripples that spread across communities, impacting people in unseen ways, making the thoughtfulness of our intentions all the more important.
North Berkeley Wealth Management intersects with many communities, including clients, outside professionals, community partners, and team members. We consider all stakeholders in our decision-making process, with the recognition that there is not a single outcome but many, not a single interest, but a multitude. We want the ripples we send into the world to have a lasting, positive impact, and this spirit is reflected in our interactions with the people in our communities.
Our Community Engagement Report highlights the many connections our firm created in 2024, ranging from financial support for local organizations, expertise shared with our clients, and events our team hosted. These intentional efforts all help to foster our vision of a community alive with connection and stewardship.
Engaging as a Firm
Community engagement takes many forms, each rippling through our communities. Our financial support of nonprofits helps reinforce their unique missions, touching a diverse array of people. We share our expertise through direct work with organizations as well as pro bono work for individuals, providing immediate impact. Building new connections and strengthening existing ones creates positive impact for our local community and our North Berkeley team. This highlights why giving and sharing as a firm is meaningful to us.
1% Giving Target
Each year, we set a giving target equal to 1% of our revenue for that year in the form of donations, sponsorships, and financial support of community partners. Having a target linked to our business performance helps guide our giving efforts.
Event Sponsorships
North Berkeley seeks out opportunities to sponsor events that help increase the impact of local nonprofits. In 2024, we supported several organizations’ events, including the Berkeley High School Development Group, the Berkeley Athletic Fund, the Berkeley Public Library Foundation, and the Berkeley Public Schools Fund.
Community Involvement
Our advisory team provides expertise and counsel to our community partners and other organizations by serving on boards or committees and providing financial planning to individuals. We also provide paid service days off for all team members and organize group volunteering opportunities.
Publishing
We publish weekly investment and financial planning articles. The content is available to everyone who visits our website and is shared through our community mailing list.
Community Partners
Through its programs in the Richmond community, YES cultivates leadership, increases access to nature and outdoor activities, reclaims a connection to the earth, and creates brave spaces that foster cross-cultural relationships. In 2024 we supported their mission financially, and Lead Advisor Matthew Gatt served on the YES board. In addition, we sponsored their fundraising event, Down by the Bay, and provided guidance on investment reserves and retirement plan investment.
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The YWCA Berkeley/Oakland’s mission is to eliminate racism, empower women, develop leaders, and promote peace, justice, freedom, and dignity for all. The YWCA is a global movement for women’s empowerment, leadership, and rights. In 2024 we supported their mission financially, and Lead Advisor Jena Regan and Founding Partner Kate King worked with the YWCA on managing a portion of their investment reserves.
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The Berkeley Food Network envisions a Berkeley where no one goes hungry. They use an innovative, community-centered approach to food sourcing and distribution providing easy and convenient access to healthy, high-quality food for people in need. Founding Partner Kate King co-founded Berkeley Food Network in 2016, and has served as the Treasurer and member of the Executive Committee.
Learn MoreTeam Giving Initiatives
North Berkeley Wealth provides team members with the opportunity to direct a portion of our firm giving. Each year, we have two themed giving initiatives that allow team members to allocate funds to organizations that they want to financially support. It unites us in giving and adds diverse perspectives to our outreach. In 2024, these initiatives resulted in support for 25 different organizations. We have now given to more than 90 organizations selected by North Berkeley team members over the last five years.
Spring Giving Initiative
For our Spring Giving Initiative, we asked our team to support organizations that promote new beginnings and growth. The results were a wide-ranging group of nonprofits focusing on various issues for people, animals, and the natural world. The organizations included Angel City Aerospace, Full Pocket Farm, Seva, and One Sky.
Winter Giving Initiative
For the Winter Giving Initiative, we focused on second chances. We asked each team member to donate to organizations that provide hope and avenues to success to those in need. The organizations included Jelly’s Place, Root and Rebound, Friends Outside, and PD Active.
Organizations Supported
Volunteer Highlights
North Berkeley provides each team member with 40 hours of service time per year to pursue interests important to them. Below, we highlight two team members who had a positive impact in our communities in 2024.
D.R.E.A.M. Financial Academy
This program is designed to provide youth ages 6-19 with relevant and engaging instruction about personal finance. Daniel Smyth, CFP® led several financial literacy workshops in 2024, supporting the organization’s goal of creating positive change and providing the students with the knowledge and skills to manage money effectively, make sound financial decisions, and establish a solid foundation for success.
Learn MoreBerkeley Food Network
BFN offers many programs that address food insecurity in our local community. Their Home Delivery Program specifically supports Berkeley residents who cannot attend regularly scheduled pantries due to time, mobility, and transportation challenges. In 2024, Kate King and her husband Brian started driving a new route for BFN to reduce the waiting list for this high touch, high impact service.
Learn MoreBusiness Practices
Our business practices reflect a commitment to stewardship and recognize that our decisions impact all stakeholders in our communities. The ripples of our actions spread far and wide, and this knowledge affects our choices, including the decision to be a certified B Corp, selecting a local community bank, and working with local vendors.
Certified B Corp
We believe business can be a force for good, balancing profit with purpose. We are proud to be a certified B Corp that offers an alternative to financial institutions guided by short-term investment horizons. Being a B Corp helps identify us as part of a landscape of socially sustainable financial services firms.
Community Banking
We work with a well-established community bank for our firm’s banking needs because it channels loans to the neighborhoods where its depositors live and work, helping local businesses and communities thrive. As a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) it focuses on creating equal opportunity for all community members.
Local Vendors
We prioritize partnering with local companies and small businesses for certain products and services we need as a business. Working with local vendors deepens our connection to the people who work in our communities and supports our local economy. Some of our favorite vendors in 2024 include Solano Florists, Of All Places, Jarvis Architects, and Holland and Harley Construction.
The Impact of Our Services
Our investment and financial planning services help our clients navigate decisions and transitions that are personal to their financial lives, as well as ensuring their capital is aligned with their values. This can range from banking options to philanthropic planning to investment decisions, and often spans across multiple generations within a family.
Impact Investing
While we offer a variety of strategies, many of our clients elect some form of impact investing. This approach can better align capital with personal values by including environmental, social, and governance criteria within a diversified portfolio as well as private investment options that promote environmental stewardship and renewable energy.
Shareholder Resolutions
Owning a share of stock in a public company makes you a partial owner of that company, with a say in how it operates. We help clients use the power of their shareholder vote to voice opinions about a company’s policies, affect how it is governed, and hold it accountable for its social and environmental commitments.
Work with Nonprofits
Nonprofit organizations often don’t have access to professional financial advice. To address this issue, we provide services to a select group of local organizations. We help strengthen these nonprofits by using our expertise to provide financial clarity and stability by managing their reserves, providing brokerage services for stock donations, and counseling on growth strategies.
Art at North Berkeley
Art fosters dialogue, builds community, and supports creativity. Since 2015, we have hosted over 30 art exhibits featuring over 70 artists, creating countless connections within our community.
In 2024, we participated as a satellite exhibit of the Art of the African Diaspora with ‘Bearing Witness’ featuring works by Stephen Bruce, Raymond L. Haywood, Anna Edwards, Arthur Norcome, and Jazmyne Woffard-Jones. In ‘Acts of Discovery,’ we explored abstraction through the vibrant paintings of Irene Nelson and Valerie Corvin. We delved into the fiber arts with ‘Voices in Fabric,’ which featured the art quilts of Carol Drucker, Ora Clay, Roxanne Schwartz, and Giny Dixon.
