Lisa Dickholtz, of Northbrook-based Dickholtz Wealth Management knows that getting your personal finances in order can seem daunting, which is why she makes time to visit the library on the second Thursday of each month to meet with patrons and answer their questions about investing and financial planning. Since she took over the library’s one-on-one financial planning session service earlier this year, she’s been impressed with the turnout and how patrons respond to this free monthly service.
Patrons of all backgrounds and demographics come to see Lisa and her colleague David Zirko, an associate wealth advisor, bringing a wide range of financial questions and problems to the table. Some of the questions they get asked include what to expect from future Social Security payments, how to plan for a first house purchase, or whether or not to invest in long-term care.
“They come in with very good questions and are often prepared,” she said. “We’re not sitting around talking about the market; that’s not at all what it’s about.”
Based on the questions asked, Lisa tries to figure out what might be missing and the sort of problem they’re trying to solve.
“People don’t know what they don’t know,” she said. “So we hope they leave with not only solutions but deeper perspective, how they can achieve what they’re trying to achieve. For example, long-term care. A lot of people don’t even ask about it. So it’s also about just getting them exposed to issues they haven’t thought about as well as the solutions and actions they can take.”
The library's program started in 2007 after certified financial planner Pat Doland, who’s presented on 10 different financial planning programs at the library over the years, approached the Northbrook Public Library with the idea. After 11 years of meeting with patrons, Pat passed along the opportunity to Lisa, a fellow member of the Financial Planning Association, to take over in leading these monthly sessions, which have proven to be an in-demand service at the library for more than a decade.
“It’s been very satisfying to watch people as they come to a basic understanding of a topic that they didn’t have a background in,” said Pat, who will remain available as a sub.
Pat and Lisa say patrons they’ve met with are appreciative of the service and, in turn, the outreach work they offer has been a gratifying experience for them as certified financial planners.
“Some would come in with basic questions that they just didn’t have the background to understand,” Pat said. “Our goal was to help them think through their long-term and short-term needs and balance them in a way that puts them on a good path forward.”
Lisa: “The beauty of these sessions are that they’re getting custom advice.”
To reserve a private one-hour session with a financial planner at the library, visit our website, stop by the Reference desk, or call 847-272-4873.
In addition to meeting with a financial professional, the library provides a wealth of other financial resources, including:
Financial Research
Explore the library’s online investment resources, which includes Morningstar Investment Research Center and Value Line Investment Survey, to access market trends outlooks, industry reports, and more. To learn more, visit www.northbrook.info/investing
In addition, you can make time to stop by the Reference department on the 2nd floor to browse through and check out dozens of premium investment newsletters and periodicals such as The Dow Theory Forecasts, Kiplinger’s, Wall Street’s Best Dividend Stocks, and others.
