News & Events

Jon Dewar Receives Recognition from LPL

July 2010 - Jon Dewar recently received another Director's Club Award from LPL Financial “For Outstanding Client Service” (see attached picture). In reaction, Jon jokingly stated “I blame my staff, fellow advisors, clients, family and God for any awards I receive in the business world.” On a serious note, he said “It’s always nice to receive recognition for our constant efforts at LLG to listen closely to clients and then diligently work with them to achieve their goals. We plan to keep increasing our efforts every day to keep clients happy and keep them referring others to us.”

Dana Odrezin Joins LLG as a Summer Intern

May 2010 - Dana Odrezin has joined LLG as a summer intern from the University of Georgia (go UGA Bulldogs!). She just completed her freshman year from the honors program, and is majoring in finance and real estate. Dana also has family experience in real estate and insurance. Dana will be involved in most LLG activities to learn as much as she can and to assist our staff and advisors, and for the summer will be greeting clients at the front desk. In her spare time she has an interest in tennis (from playing at the high school level at Sanderson in Raleigh), and she loves playing with Jon’s daughters.

Jon Dewar and Wat Keys Attend Retirement Symposium

May 2010 - At LLG we try to be on the cutting edge of retirement planning, investments, and insurance. This month, Wat Keys and Jon Dewar joined with the best minds in the Retirement Plan/401k world at the LPL Retirement Plan Symposium in Baltimore, Maryland. The latest law and tax changes were discussed and the best strategies for company retirement plans for 2010 and 2011. Wat and Jon made time to attend a Baltimore Orioles baseball game at Camden Yards. From the stands, Wat and Jon tried to explain to the players to save more in their 401k since retirement comes faster for professional athletes (ha ha).

Jon Dewar and Al Howell Attend Insurance Summit

April 2010 - At LLG we try to be on the cutting edge of retirement planning, investments, and insurance. Recently, on the insurance side, Al Howell and Jon Dewar joined with the best minds at the National Financial Partner's Insurance Summit to hear the best strategies for 2010 and 2011. One dinner meeting took place at the Frontiers of Flight Museum where Jon and Al toured the facility which included the Apollo 7 command module pictured here.

LLG Financial supports Heel Your Soul

April 2010 - Rick Field of LLG Financial lent his sound engineering skills to the Heel Your Soul: A Walk For Inner Beauty campaign of Miss Garner 2010 Brianna Tracy. Heel Your Soul is a walk created to benefit Brittany's Battle and the House of Hope of NC . "It's a walk for every person who has ever struggled with low self-esteem, or felt like they aren't good enough." explained Miss Garner Brianna Tracy. Participants who donated a minimum of $25 received among other things a t-shirt that featured a list of the sponsors on the back including LLG Financial.

Hurricanes Victory Inspirational

Hurricanes Olympic Medals March 2010 - LLG clients and staff along with a lucky Junior Achievement raffle winner enjoyed the Hurricanes hockey victory at the first home game after the Winter Olympic break. The first 10,000 fans were rewarded with an Eric Staal bobblehead. We were inspired by the Olympic medals on display to reach new heights in financial planning excellence.

Happy New Year from LLG

Wat Keys and I just finished reading a ton of magazines that predict what will happen in our New Year 2010! Now that I know what will happen, call me and I'll summarize it for you. Here's a hint: Google Wave will be involved, and the USA will not win the World Cup Soccer tourney in South Africa.

LPL Financial Featured in Financial Planning Magazine Financial Planning Magazine Cover

Financial Planning magazine featured LPL Financial in a cover story for its November issue. The article titled We’ve Arrived highlights how our firm has come to eclipse its competitors in the independent broker/dealer space and our plans to maintain and extend this leadership position in the future. While the article is an important recognition of our standing in the financial services industry, it is more significant for the compelling story it tells of the unwavering partnership we have with our advisors.

View the article now.

Happy Holidays from LLG!

December 2009 - LLG celebrated the holidays with a party, White Elephant gift exchange, and Hurricanes hockey game. 2009 has been such a fantastic comeback year for the markets that gifts were extravagant such as Chia Shrek and the Carolina (UNC) and NC State Snuggies, and lots of other used and controversial gifts (we won't mention names Arron). Lots of kids were involved and they picked out the gifts for the adults and had a blast at the hockey game seeing Stormy, the Storm Squad girls, and a great hockey game where we actually won in the last minute (with Eric Cole getting a hat-trick). We all counted our blessings and we look forward to a wonderful 2010 New Year working with our great staff, advisors, and clients.

LLG Financial participates in Junior Achievement's "Success Skills" class

December 2009 - Jon Dewar of LLG Financial and Jaz Tunnell of Piedmont Natural Gas have teamed up to teach Junior Achievement’s “Success Skills” to the 9th graders of Broughton High School (Go Capitals!).

Jon and Jaz are teaching the students the main 16 success-skills necessary not only for finding and keeping great jobs, but also for succeeding in life and in relationships. This 4 minute video will give you a taste of the wonderful things Junior Achievement volunteers are doing in the local schools. Let us know if you want to become involved.

President of LLG turns 40!

September 2009 - Though his hairstyle and financial acumen might make you think he was at least 50 years old, our fearless President Jon Dewar turned 40 years young in September. LLG celebrated in style (and immaturity) by toilet-papering his office (see picture ).

Of course the staff also gave him all the standard "old fart" gag gifts like the yellow caution sign for his desk saying "CAUTION! 40-YEAR OLD HAVING A SENIOR MOMENT". Jon thanked the group for their gesture and jokingly replied that "those younger than 40 get to clean up the mess."

In addition to attending company and family celebrations for Jon's 40th, Jon was able to sneak off to NYC with some clients and family to attend the US Open Tennis tourney (see picture of Unisphere) where they saw many tennis champions (including Federer, McEnroe, Del Potro, Kim Clijsters and many more). Though he's a Red Sox fan, Jon and the group also enjoyed a baseball game at the new Yankees stadium (see picture of Senior Partner/Advisor Al Howell and his son who was able to attend).

Jon Dewar, Arron Brisard and Nikki Kourie of LLG Financial travelled to San Diego for our annual educational conference.

August 17, 2009 - While learning important new industry ideas and financial planning strategies for clients, they also discussed economic and market updates from some big names like former President George W Bush, Richard Ketchum CEO of FINRA (new name for the NASD), CNBC's Ron Insana, and Dr. William Poole former President/CEO of the Federal Reserve of St. Louis.

Additionally, they were the first to hear some great news from LPL Financial CEO Mark Casady:

"JD Power announced that we are #1 for Investor Satisfaction with Financial Advisors in 2009 for full service investment broker-dealers!" Notice how Jon does his best as a model under the announcement sign. On a more serious note, Jon said "We are all very proud of this client feedback, and we will continue to do our best to stay the best".

We'll announce more great news from the conference over time in and in our newsletter, but Jon e-mailed this update from a few miles high over California (on his flight back) since he was excited about the recognition. We will all continue to work hard for clients so we can all stay at the top in meeting client goals!

Wat Keys Joins LLG as an LPL Financial Advisor and Retirement Plan Specialist

August 2009 - Wat entered the financial services industry in 1983 as a financial planner. For the past 16 years, Wat has specialized in corporate retirement plans, adding his considerable expertise to his clients’ organizations as a trusted partner. Wat is a graduate of UNC-Greensboro. He holds a series 7 license, is a Certified Financial Planner, and a Chartered Retirement Plan Specialist SM. Wat is an Associated Professional Member of the American Society of Pensions Professionals and Actuaries (ASPPA), and regularly attends ASPPA conferences to keep up with the latest pension developments. He is a member of the Financial Planning Association, where he served on the board for seven years, and provided stewardship as president of the local North Carolina chapter.

Wat is passionate about helping business owners and employees get the most out of their retirement plan. Clients need someone who is trustworthy and competent, and he is honored that his clients trust him with their life’s savings.

A native North Carolinian, Wat grew up in Greensboro and moved to the Raleigh area after college. He and his wife, Vania, have two sons, Joseph and Benjamin. The Keys are active in the local Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

LLG's Sponsorship of Kids Making It (KMI) results in handsome LLG company sign made by kids and their mentors in downtown Wilmington, NC.

August 2009 - LLG made a donation to Kids Making It, Inc. which is a national award winning program unique in its strengths-based approach to empower youth to transcend their challenges and grow into responsible, employed and successful citizens of society. KMI teaches woodworking in a strong mentoring environment to instill patience, pride, perserverence, confidence, teamwork and self-esteem. Take a look at the beautiful company sign the kids and their mentors made for LLG. Particular thanks goes to Jeff Davies who made this happen.

Jon Dewar Honored by Junior Achievment

July 2009 - Jon Dewar has been involved with Junior Achievement (JA) since 1997, volunteering through Wachovia Bank in Atlanta where he served as a Vice President. Wachovia encouraged Relationship Managers like Jon to give back to the community and share their expertise with students. Jon quickly saw that he was having a sizable impact "educating and inspiring young students to succeed in a global economy," which is the mission of JA.

When he moved back to North Carolina in 2001, Jon started teaching JA's high school "Success Skills" courses, and he has also taught first-graders and middle-school children. Through Jon's financial planning firm, The Legacy Life Group and LLG Wealth Management & Planning, he has been able to participate in JA's Job Shadow Day, has offered internships to high schoolers, and donated time, money, and services to many JA activities including bowl-a-thons, golf tournaments, and the Valentine's Vegas Gala held yearly.

Because of Jon's commitment to helping children reach their potential through financial literacy, he was invited to join the Board for Junior Achievement of Eastern North Carolina. In 2007 JA's President honored Jon with the "5-Star Award", and Jon is currently on the Board's Executive Committee where he Chairs the Individual Giving fundraising efforts. Jon and his wife Debbie, an attorney at Ogletree Deakins, decided in 2008 to include Junior Achievement in their estate planning, and Jon's goal is to encourage everyone he meets to do likewise for this great charitable cause.

LLG Celebrates 6-Year Anniversary

May 2009 - Despite the financial markets having a rough year LLG did not slow down, and, in fact, LLG continued to grow in new high quality clients (thanks to your referrals) and grow in new advisors/staff. We had plenty to celebrate and be thankful for on the company's 6-year anniversary in May 2009. We are grateful to have wonderful clients who appreciate our mission to achieve client life goals by providing financial consulting services that continually exceed expectations. Some LLG Advisors and clients not only celebrated in Raleigh, but also continued the celebration overseas while enjoying a cruise to Italy, Greece, Turkey and Croatia.

Michelle King Brings Her 10+ Years of Financial Services Experience to LLG

March 2009 - Michelle joined LLG Financial in 2009 as the Client Relations Manager. Her contribution to our team is multi-faceted due to her 10+ years of experience with LPL Financial independent firms. She has an extensive background in working with high net worth individuals, business development, operations management, and maintaining compliance focus.

In Michelle's role, she is resolute to develop solid client relations and reach out to clients to ensure their goals and needs are being met. She is involved with business development, marketing, processing investment business, and tracking new business along with asset transfers. She prides herself on having a strong work ethic and providing world class client service.

Michelle and her fiancé, Tim, recently moved to the Raleigh area from Delaware with her three children, Clinton, Katelyn and Jessica and their dog, Libby. She enjoys spending time with her family, socializing with friends, gardening, wineries and she loves NFL football (especially the Washington Redskins!).

Re-Branding Announcement

December 2008 - Smart organizations constantly think about how they reach and connect with their stakeholders, be they clients, vendors, staff, or partners. Occasionally, an aggressive re-evaluation leads the organization to re-brand itself in order to reflect more closely its growth, changes in values or focus, or to align external and internal perceptions of its brand.

If you have visited our site in recent days, you may have noticed our new logo. Today, we’re pleased to informally announce to our clients and friends our new name, LLG Financial. Over the coming days and weeks, you will notice more changes to our website and business collateral that will reflect and reinforce our new name. A formal public announcement will be made soon thereafter.

LLG Financial represents our renewed focus on providing wealth management and financial planning services with a desire to work with clients in all aspects of their financial lives, not just one or two.

All of our LPL Financial Advisors have full financial planning licenses where we work as fiduciary for clients in the areas of investment nagement, insurance, cash/debt management, real estate, taxes, and estate planning. LLG Financial will continue to be an “independent” firm where our advisors only work for clients (not the investment or insurance companies) and we continue to have full access to all the top investment firms and A-rated insurance firms (offering life, long-term-care and disability insurance along with annuities).

If you have a financial planning, retirement planning, or estate planning need LLG Financial and our partners/advisors will listen carefully to your goals and concerns to find the best fit solutions in the market place for you.

While we’re excited about our name change, we are more excited about the constant core value that makes each of us at LLG Financial excited about coming to work each day: the opportunity to help our clients navigate the complex financial terrain and help them live their legacies today!

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