Our January letter to clients is always a look back at the previous year. We share the many fantastic things that our team and our clients have done. We take time to celebrate the wins of the previous twelve months and use it as momentum toward the next twelve. We cannot think of another year in the history of our firm where this process has been any more important. 2020 was trying. It challenged us all as individuals, families, employers, and employees in ways we could not have expected. It tested our perseverance and our resolve. But, it also highlighted our ability to adapt and be flexible in a situation outside of our control. It delivered important lessons. We became more grateful, more compassionate, and more family-oriented. We cooked at home more, supported local businesses, and enjoyed the great outdoors. We realized that despite what is going on around us, we will make the best of the situation. So, in keeping with that thought, here’s that annual list of celebrations and “making the best of the situation”.
In January, Jeff transitioned the president’s role to Jessica. Jeff and Jessica had been working on this transition for several years. Jeff remains as the Chief Investment Officer.
In March, Longview supported Toasting with Tallulah, an event that raises funds for the Women’s Philanthropy Society. The society is a group of women who are focused on making a difference, with a concentration on women and children. Each year, they give a $50K grant for a project that will create systemic change in the Greater Huntsville area. March was also the month that we were forced to close our offices due to COVID-19. However, we celebrate that we were able to transition into working from home fairly easily.
In April we participated in the HudsonAlpha Alumni meeting. Longview partners with HudsonAlpha to sponsor these events every year. We also took time to celebrate our office manager, Debbie, for Administrative Assistant Day. She is certainly the glue that holds us together! She has done a terrific job of managing the day-to-day as we have transitioned to working from home.
When not working with clients, we spent May and June working toward identifying better tools to communicate and share with clients. You can see this through the increase in communications through social media and our newsletter. We’ve also added videos to our website and are continuing to build out other processes and implement technology that our clients may find valuable.
In July, Andrew Gipner and his wife, Kristin, welcomed sweet baby #2, Liam Shea Gipner. Andrew was also named as a board member on the Leadership Greater Huntsville Board. He has volunteered with the organization for several years now, most recently serving as the Program Chair for the Connect 22 class.
In September, Jeff Jones was named as the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA) Treasurer. Jeff was named to the National Board in 2019. Also, in September, Longview supported the Community Foundation’s Summit On Philanthropy. We have been long time partners of the Community Foundation and are so proud to be able to continue to support this organization.
In October, we supported the HudsonAlpha Tie The Ribbons event. This is an annual event that supports vital breast cancer research.
Once again, we supported the HudsonAlpha Alumni event in November.
We finished off the year with a virtual holiday party and fun games. The Gipners are indeed the reigning champions!
We celebrate that even during difficult times, we have had the opportunity to continue to support our communities through our time, efforts and assets.
As we embark into 2021, we want to thank you. Thank you for your continued trust and support. Thank you for adapting with us to new technology and new ways of meeting and communicating. We learned a great deal over the last year. But, the most important lesson we learned is that we are all in this together. So, thank you for your support of not only our firm, but the other families and businesses in our communities. May 2021 bring even more to celebrate!
