At the end of September, CFA UK launched recruitment for two new working groups – Financial Education and Charity Trusteeship.  What has come to light through the recruitment drive into these groups, are some amazing stories of CFA UK members doing great things for charity.

Nick Rakowski – Rowing the Atlantic for Cancer research

1996 saw the launch of the Atlantic Challenge, a race from La Gomera in the Canary Islands to Antigua in the Caribbean that has since grown to be the premier event in ocean rowing. To this day it is considered by many to be the ultimate test of strength and endurance.

In December 2018, Nicholas Rakowski, CFA UK member and volunteer, will be embarking on this expedition with four friends, as the skipper of The Nauti Buoys rowing team. All of the Buoys have close family who have suffered from cancer and were keen to raise money for a cause close to their hearts. They have chosen to support Cancer Research and the Buoys have set themselves an ambitious fundraising target of £300,000. You can find out more about Nick and The Buoys’ fundraising endeavours at www.thenautibuoys.com.

Nigel Sillis CFA – Raising money for East Anglia Air Ambulance, who saved his life

After having his life saved in extraordinary circumstances by a range of medical professionals on one afternoon, from a passing Doctor, Paramedics and the Air Ambulance services, Nigel turned to focus on how he could use the skills and experience he’s gained from many years in the City to give a little back and now volunteers as a corporate fundraiser for the East Anglian Air Ambulance trust.

Nancy Utterback CFA – currently a member of the Board of Trustees for The Soup Kitchen, a London based charity which seeks to help the homeless and others by providing meals and other support.  “I find the teamwork with non-financial professionals very refreshing, and also have the satisfaction of knowing that my particular competences (financial and compliance oversight, listening, analysing, and offering constructive solutions) are put to good use and appreciated. “

Marshall Bailey OBE CFA – is on the board of the East End Community Foundation that covers a great variety of aspects of life in the east end of London. “My career has been richly rewarded in many ways, and for me, this means I should share in ways that are meaningful. Giving back these rewards to the EECF charity makes sense, from sharing skills and leadership to assisting with fundraising... all sorts of career developments can be used to return the favour to our society.”

Patrick McKenna CFA– is currently a Director/Trustee and Treasurer for the Volunteer Centre Tower Hamlets. “I believe CFA members could really help charities especially on financial matters, I have noticed many trustees struggle on the topic.”

With 28 applications in from members who want to volunteer in these working groups, the voice of member motivation is varied, strong and consistent:

“How does the layman identify the right products?”

“There is no basic framework for making financial decisions for every day people choosing mortgages or wanting to invest their money”

“Supporting vulnerable individuals to make better choices around loans and understanding the implications”

“So many people don’t get compound interest”

“We have to get communities to trust our sector” 

Jane Coffey, CFA UK volunteer and VOIP Advisor has this to say:

The formation of these two groups were the recommendation of the work of our VOIP project members.  They believed many CFA UK members would like to use their skills to the benefit of charities but given their busy professional lives, had not had the time to seek out the right opportunities. One group will aim to increase the awareness amongst Charity Boards and their recruiters of the raft of CFA skills that would be useful as a Charity Trustee and to encourage and help CFA UK members become Trustees. The other will concentrate on building relationships with charities involved in financial education, an area that is close to many member’s hearts. We want to find out how our members can best support their projects and get involved to improve financial literacy and confidence in the general public and particularly the young.

The groups are starting work this month and we will keep you informed of progress. So if you have thought of getting involved in charitable work, watch out for how the CFA UK can help you start in 2019!