AMS Newsletter | Raymond James

FREEDOM OF THE PRESS

AMS INTERNAL NEWSLETTER

Erik’s Journal

I was sitting at the beach on a recent Saturday, and I found myself reminiscing about past summers. I often do this during summertime. Maybe because the days seem a little longer and things slow down just a bit, allowing for time to float and reflect. Anyway, I thought I’d share a few memories.

The year was 1976, and it was America’s bicentennial. I remember that Fourth of July celebration was like no other. The fireworks show on the beach seemed to last forever! I remember twirling sparklers with my cousins well into the night. I was 7 years old. I also remember a popular song from that summer, “Afternoon Delight,” by Starland Vocal Band. I belted out the refrain, “Skyrockets in flight, afternoon delight,” often that summer. It was a few years later I learned the supposed meaning of that song – it’s good to be naive.

In 1981, when I was 12, I peaked as a baseball player. Like some of you, I love baseball and played competitively through high school. That year I enjoyed some true “boys of summer” moments as our little league team made a deep run into the playoffs. We fell short of a state title, though, as the competition was pretty good in our area. Belmont Heights Little League, from Tampa, Florida, made it to the Little League World Series (LLWS) that year! They lost in the championship game to Taiwan, but they were an unbelievable league that made it to the LLWS several times in that era and produced notable major leaguers like Dwight “Doc” Gooden and Gary Sheffield. I still enjoy baseball. I am so happy to be able to follow the Rays and attend a few games each year.

In 1985, I spent the entire summer hanging out with friends at the beach behind The Don Cesar on St. Pete Beach. I remember Don Henley’s “The Boys of Summer” was the popular cassette tape blast from our radios. The “pink castle,” or “The Don,” as locals refer to it, has been a landmark since the 1920s. It’s worth a visit if you haven’t been there. The views are breathtaking, and the building has an interesting history. It has taken on an even greater meaning for me as my wife, Wendy, and I spent our wedding night at the hotel. I chose room 718, which corresponded to our wedding date of July 18, 1992.

I was 23 years old when I married, which seems really young now. But Wendy and I made the right choice as we’ll celebrate our 30th anniversary this summer. And in between, we’ve had hundreds of great memories, from the birth of our first son in July 1999 to family vacations, celebrations and now graduations. It has been a whirlwind, some days are long, but the years are short (OK, maybe not 2020)!

Thanks for allowing me to share some memories from my past. I hope one night this summer, as you watch a sunset, you’ll have some time to reflect on some great memories from your past as well. If you do, please share them with me – I’d love to hear what stands out to all of you. Hopefully, you’ll also make some time to create new memories! Life is short; soak it up. Enjoy the summer.

Erik

NEW FOLKS ON THE BLOCK

New Folks on the Block has been used to introduce new AMS associates on a quarterly basis. Given the rate that AMS is growing, we want to use this as an opportunity to highlight as many of these associates as possible. Please join us in giving a warm welcome to the following associates!

Dennis Merritt
Dennis Merritt

AMS Operations, Trading Support Associate, St. Petersburg, FL

  1. Where are you from?
    1. I live in South Tampa
  2. Tell me about your role in the department – what is a typical day like for you?
    1. Financial advisor discretionary trading, helping advisors convert to the new Rebalance system
  3. What do you like to do away from work – hobbies or activities?
    1. Photography and videography
  4. What or who has influenced your life the most?
    1. My father and my daughter
  5. How big is your family?
    1. My daughter and fiancee
  6. What accomplishment are you most proud of?
    1. Raising my daughter
  7. What was your favorite job?
    1. AmSouth investment advisor
  8. Do you have any side hustles?
    1. Aerial photography
  9. What is your favorite family tradition?
    1. Family reunion
  10. What TV show are you currently binging?
    1. “Yellowstone”
  11. What three items would you take on a deserted island?
    1. Swiss Army knife, water, fire starter
  12. Describe your dream vacation?
    1. Milan, Italy; Venice, Italy; Lake Como, Italy; and Luzern, Switzerland – I just returned
  13. Top three bucket list items?
    1. Motorcycle ride through the Swiss Alps, attend a Formula One race in Monaco and seeing Greece
  14. Favorite sports team?
    1. Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Lightning
  15. If you could instantly acquire one talent or ability, what would it be and why?
    1. Singing, so I could lead happy birthday songs in tune
Kyle Imbrescia
Kyle Imbrescia

AMS Sales, Portfolio Specialist – St. Petersburg, FL

  1. Where are you from?
    1. Pittsburgh
  2. Where did you go to school?
    1. Penn State University
  3. What do you like to do away from work – hobbies or activities?
    1. Sports, working out, going to the beach, cooking and experiencing new things
  4. What’s your favorite family tradition?
    1. Feast of the Seven Fishes
  5. What or who has influenced your life the most?
    1. My brother and David Goggins
  6. What TV show are you currently binging?
    1. “Peaky Blinders”
  7. Top three bucket list items?
    1. Go to a Super Bowl that the Steelers are playing in, go on a trip to Europe and go on a safari in Africa
  8. Favorite Podcast?
    1. “The Joe Rogan Experience”
  9. Favorite sports team?
    1. Pittsburgh Steelers
Nate Gozlan

AMS Sales, Portfolio Specialist – St. Petersburg, FL

  1. Where are you from?
    1. I was born and raised in northern New Jersey
  2. Where did you go to school?
    1. Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, FL
  3. Tell me about your role in the department – what is a typical day like for you?
    1. Running reports for awesome colleagues and their financial advisors
  4. What do you like to do away from work – hobbies or activities?
    1. I enjoy nature and yoga. If I get a chance to camp with friends, I usually take it. I love music a lot!
  5. What or who has influenced your life the most?
    1. My dad! He was seriously the most hard-working and inspiring person I’ve ever met or read about. He was a giant among men!
  6. How big is your family?
    1. My sister, my mom and I are my immediate family. If we count extended family (I have some in the Northeast and Israel on my dad’s side), it’s way too big for me to track.
  7. What accomplishment are you most proud of?
    1. I organized and delivered a music festival in 2017. It was lots of work but one of the best days ever!
  8. What was your favorite job?
    1. When I was an external sales in San Francisco Bay with a consumer-packaged goods company. It was really fun being on the road. I got to meet people and build relationships with buyers around San Francisco.
  9. Do you have any side hustles?
    1. In the future, I’d love to get back into photography and music if given the opportunity
  10. What’s your favorite family tradition?
    1. Shabbat (Sabbath) dinner with my mom, every Friday night
  11. What TV show are you currently binging?
    1. “Ozark,” but there’s not as much time to binge it as I might like
  12. What item(s) would you take on a deserted island?
    1. Is the island big enough to drive on? If so, I’m bringing my car. I may have an unhealthy amount of love for that money pit.
  13. Describe your dream vacation?
    1. A very long vacation exploring Japan
  14. Top three bucket list items?
    1. Skydive; Own a fleet of classic cars (Jay-Leno style!); Be in a position to set my family up for anything they may need
  15. Favorite Podcast?
    1. “The Joe Rogan Experience”
Nina Diaz
Nina Diaz

AMS Sales, Intern – St. Petersburg, FL

  1. Where are you from?
    1. Born and raised in Miami, Florida
  2. Where did you go to school?
    1. I am about to start my last year at the University of Florida (Go Gators!)
  3. Tell me about your role in the department – what is a typical day like for you?
    1. I am an intern for the summer working under Cecelia Perez, helping run various reports for the sales side of AMS
  4. What do you like to do away from work – hobbies or activities?
    1. I am a big boater, so I love free diving, spearfishing or just about anything on the water
  5. What TV show are you currently binging?
    1. I am rewatching “Peaky Blinders” since the sixth season just came out
  6. Describe your dream vacation?
    1. Living out of a sailboat, sailing through all the Bahamas Islands
  7. Top three bucket list items?
    1. Climb Machu Picchu, dive the Great Barrier Reef and ride an elephant
  8. Favorite sports team?
    1. Definitely the Miami Dolphins and the Heat, but of course the Gators when it comes to college sports
pet corner

Pet Corner

Binx and Poe
Binx and Poe

Owner: Cassie Coleman

Binx is about to be 3 years old and he is a sweet boy. He was found in a barn at a friend’s wedding (the best wedding favor ever). Poe is just over 2 years old and is a little scaredy-cat. He is impossible to hold but demands pets all day. Originally, he was a foster cat but had bonded with his big brother and turned into a foster fail.

Bubba
Bubba

Owner: Nicolas Louis

Bubby loves squirrels. He just moved into a new home with hard floors and is enjoying exploring for lizards and stretching out. We can’t forget belly rubs.

Flash
Flash

Owner: Amanda Admire

My name is Flash, and I am an American Staffordshire terrier and greyhound mix. I turned 5 years old on January 17. I like to cool off in the summer by playing with the garden hose with my big human brother, Bear. I love taking naps in the daytime and barking at the birds in the yard. The best part of the day is when mommy says, “It’s bedtime,” which really means it’s playtime.

Jaxx
Jaxx

Owner: Jeff Miller

This is Jaxx. He just had his first birthday. He is very curious (tilting his head whenever you talk to him), and he is also mischievous. He loves to chew on anything he can get ahold of. He plays with our two cats and our other dog all the time. He is so adorable and tiny you just want to bring him with you everywhere you go!

Koda
Koda

Owner: Danielle Marcel

Koda, or Koda Bear, is the newest edition to our family of four. We’ve had him just over a month now. He’s a three-pound, 3-month-old Yorkie we adopted from my best friend, Tyler (he still sees his mom and sister regularly). He loves to nibble on just about everything and is the best little snuggler.

Luna and Stella
Luna and Stella

Owner: Chris Vanwert

Luna is a rescue from a North Carolina kill shelter. She is extremely timid. Thankfully, she has her younger sister. Stella’s a bulldozer for attention and pets. They both play like there’s no tomorrow and love taking up all the room on any bed or couch.

Max
Max

Owner: Andrew Kovach

This is Max the cat!
Favorite Food: Crab
Favorite Place to Sleep: In a shoebox
Favorite Family Member: Me, of course!

Meeple
Meeple

Owner: AJ Lukosavich

Meet Meeple Lynn Disney Lukosavich (her first name comes from board game pawns shaped like people).
Breed: Terrier mix
Sex: Female
Favorite treat: Peanut butter (just like her daddy)
Favorite sound: Meeping (the whimpering noise she makes when she wants something)
Favorite weather: Cold (it gives her the zoomies!)
Favorite scratches: Chest and belly
Favorite naps: On the bed
Favorite time of day: When daddy comes home from work
Favorite toy: Tug of war duck

Roxy
Roxy

Owner: Erik Fruland

This is Roxy, our 10-year-old Australian sheperd. She loves swimming at the beach, going for bike rides and playing Frisbee!

Shelby and Obi
Shelby and Obi

Owner: Sara Witt

My husband and I adopted both Shelby (left) and Obi (right) over the two years that we were working from home. Obi has been with us since March 2020, and he is a typical dramatic husky who loves talking back and taking long naps. He is most often found sleeping in our bay window, serving as the president of our neighborhood watch program. We adopted Shelby in February 2021. She is the complete opposite of her brother. She loves being around people and getting all the attention. She’s either completely mellow, affectionate or the energizer bunny running circles around the house. Shelby made an appearance at the most recent Tampa Bay Heart Walk, supporting team AMS helping hands.

Model Citizens

Beach cleanup

Model Citizens

Special thanks to the volunteers pictured – Alex Matacchiero, April Dallas, Cassie Hutchinson, Damian Kamieniecki, Dan Regner, Darius Sabbides, DeAndre Lewis, Denise Brackett, James Bartha, Jeffrey Hartnett, Joe Sheppard, Julia Broderick, Michael Grande, Mike Meleen, Nate Gozlan, Nicole Maynard, Ross Klaskow, Sara Witt, Sean Bates, Steve Romanoff and Trevor Hendricks

The AMS Community Involvement Committee would like to thank the AMS associates, and their families and friends, who helped make this year’s event a huge success! Over 30 AMS volunteers, in collaboration with Keep Pinellas Beautiful and other members of our community, removed over 740 pounds of trash from Gandy Beach on May 28! Every pound of trash removed by volunteers has a profound impact on our environment and the entire ecosystem benefits – from the ospreys to the sea turtles. This ensures our native flora and fauna continue to thrive for generations to come and, in turn, future residents get to enjoy the natural splendor that makes Pinellas County the beautiful place it is.

Thank you again volunteers for taking part in Raymond James Cares Month!

Parc Center for Disabilities

The Parc Center for Disabilities was founded in 1953 and serves children and adults with intellectual and developmental abilities and provides opportunities for their clients to exercise their independence and experience life to the fullest.

Their programs include a life skills development program that provides opportunities for many of their clients, which includes Parc Center Industries. Parc Center Industries has strong community partnerships to provide the participants with work opportunities at local businesses to provide assembly, packing and shipping needs. Participants are compensated minimum wage for their work and are granted the ability to work as much as they please.

The Parc Center for Disabilities also provides its clients with the opportunity to participate in a variety of art programs. Some are visual arts classes where paintings, digital artworks, jewelry and clay figurines are created by the participants. The artists receive 50% of the proceeds, with the remainder of the funds will be used for materials and supplies. The Parc Center for Disabilities also supports its clients in community-based, long-term residential settings through the residential services program. Finally, the Parc Center for Disabilities provides a children’s services program that has been recognized nationally for its programs such as the Discovery Learning Center, onsite therapy, family focus and caregiver relief.

Raymond James was honored with the community service award for 2020-21, and the firm sponsors many of its events and supports its services. Many individual Raymond James associates work with the Parc Center for Disabilities, such as Paul Manfrey, who is the Carillon branch manager, is on the board, while Jesse Bernhardt and Ben Crayton chair the annual golf tournament. Jessica Conrado, Daren Pippio, Scott Ford and several other Raymond James associates supported its annual event, which raised $110,000 – a record year!

Parc Center for Disabilities

DIVERSITY & INCLUSION

DIVERSITY & INCLUSION

Celebrating differences with Sandrina Riddell

Sandrina joined Raymond James as an analyst in the AMS Research team in 2015. An interesting fact about her is that she is originally from Romania! Her Romanian mom, a physics teacher, and her Congolese dad, a veterinarian, met in college. While Sandrina spent some of her early childhood days in Africa, she grew up in Romania and moved to the United States after college. She’s a mom of two absolutely adorable girls, Daniela, 3, and Eva, 2. Her toddlers are full of energy and still uninhibited – they love to wave, smile and start conversations with strangers everywhere they go.

Sandrina became a member of our Diversity and Inclusion committee to increase awareness. She believes that “the workplace should be a meritocracy, where people are judged by their accomplishments and not some arbitrary or superficial characteristic.” As a parent, she thinks about the future a lot and “would love the opportunity to contribute to a positive change.”

Her favorite quote is, “Diversity is being invited to the party. Inclusion is being asked to dance.” To her, it means that “while we can bring diversity into our space, authentic inclusion means that we feel comfortable around folks that don’t look like or talk like the ones we grew up with. Inclusion is a lofty goal, but with perseverance and an open-mindset societal change can be achieved.”

“Diversity is being invited to the party. Inclusion is being asked to dance.”

Vice president of inclusion strategy at Netflix, Verna Myers

Trivia

Want a gift card?

Check out the 1Q22 Swag Bag winner, Jordan Jacobs!

Trivia

Are you interested in winning? What about winning a gift card?

Did you read the newsletter? Let's see…

How to win:

  • Read the newsletter.
  • Click on the link to reply with your answers. Don’t forget to find the bonus.
  • All entries that answer the questions correctly will be entered into a pool and 10 random winners will be selected for a $15 gift card to Target.
  • If you answer all the questions correctly and find the bonus, you will be entered to win a $50 gift card to Target in addition to the other gift cards.


Questions:

Trivia
  1. How old was I when I peaked as a baseball player?
  2. Who wants to go a Formula One race?
  3. Who wants to live in, “The Simpsons”?
  4. Was 470 pounds of trash removed on May 28?

Bonus:

Do you know the game Where's Waldo? You look at an image (in this case, the newsletter) and try to spot Waldo (in this case, Jeff Dowdle dressed up as Waldo). Well…can you find Where's Dowdle?

Entries must be emailed by August 5, 2022. Winners will be notified shortly after.

Extra Trivia

Target Gift Card

$50 Target gift card trivia

Winner of 1Q22 Extra Trivia, Nicole Dumas! Congratulations!

Trivia

Now, let's see how many of you can answer these questions. You can use the internet to help you.

Answer all the questions correctly, and you could win the grand prize – a $50 gift card to Target!

Send an email with subject line "Extra Trivia" to AMSNewsletter@raymondjames.com with your answers.

Name the city in which these two U.S. interstate highways intersect:

  1. 90 and 93
  2. 80 and 15
  3. 35 and 94
  4. 25 and 40
  5. 70 and 71

MEMPHIS MEMOS

Erik Fruland visited the Memphis team and shared some thoughts about his trip.

It was awesome to be back in Memphis for a site visit after a couple years of travel restrictions related to the pandemic.

I was privileged to host an associate appreciation event to thank our current and former AMS associates for all their hard work on behalf of advisors and their clients. It was great to reconnect with some of our more tenured leaders and associates and a thrill to meet and get to know some of our newer associates as well. I’m thankful for all who were able to attend!

I’ll be in Memphis again later this year, as will other members of our leadership team, as we look to reestablish our in-person presence and connectivity with our AMS co-workers in that location. I look forward to seeing everyone again soon!

– Erik

Memphis Memos
Cheers

New Hires and Transfers

  • Melissa Perez
  • Amber “Simone” Jackson
  • Zach Mayes
  • Damian Kamieniecki
  • Kyle Imbrescia
  • Jessica Reinhart
  • Dennis Merritt
  • Wyatt Hunter
  • Hunter Hall
  • Luca Petrachi
  • Matthew Buonanno
  • Conner Wilkinson
  • Katelin Freeman
  • Shemeeka “Meeka” Hurns
  • Zachary "Zach" Long
  • Cheyanne Lovan-Youkhong
  • Nathaniel Gozlan
  • Jason Visbeck
  • Michael Ryan
  • Hope Dorcas
  • Curtis Reeves
  • Laura Ruffner
  • Logan Green
  • Jesse Willis
  • Kristoffer Sun
  • Kerry Gritzner
  • Victoria Hill
  • Nicholas Callahan
  • Nina Diaz
  • Brenden Gorman

Anniversaries (June – August)

DeAndre Lewis 1
Aimee Valdes 1
Matthew Karpay 1
April Dallas 1
Racquel de Lama 1
Tracy Kocses 1
Christian Dodson 1
Kimberly Madgwick 2
Evelyn Mathis 2
Allston Jacobs 2
Alexis Hemphill 2
Xavier Santiago 3
Brittney Miller 3
Leslie Murillo 3
Kaitlin Patterson 3
Christine Paulton 3
Viktoriia Tondre 3
Chandler Hackbarth 3
Courtney Salinas 4
Jasmine Bouie 4
Kyle Zuck 4
Joshua Geary 4
Alex Robinette 5
Lerick Hardin 5
Jordan Jacobs 5
Chad Zintel 5
Michael Paz 6
Nicholas Gorglione 6
Morgan Hilton 6
Anupam Singh 6
Allison Hult 6
Cecelia Perez 6
Sean Bates 7
Svetlana Bardos 7
Kyle Troxel 8
Alexandra Harriman 9
Stefanie Daley 10
Andrew Schwartz 10
Kyle Thomas 10
Le Brielmaier 10
Anna Matos Pastorick 10
Andrew Gillis 12
Jason Hairelson 12
Nicole Devore 12
Yulia DeArmond 12
Stefan Monev 12
Truc Bui 14
James Webb 16
John-Henry Fisch 16
Constance Quinn 17
Robert Lyublanovits 17
Tammy Mercier 22
Matthew Todd 22
Lisa Marshall 22
Daren Pippio 23
Justin Malizia 24
Kevin Pate 26
Dayna Columbia 26
Aloma Shears 28
Steven Romanoff 30
Erik Fruland 31
Aileen Kremer 32
Michelle Carothers 34

If you would like to submit content for the next AMS newsletter, please email AMSNewsletter@raymondjames.com.

Our Contributors

  • Truc Bui
  • Rebecca Zwerin
  • Meredith Mansfield
  • Sue Kuczynski
  • Dominique Ingold
  • Lauren Alleman
  • Dee Lucas
  • Connie Quinn
  • Denise Brackett
  • Hannah Archer
  • AJ Lukosavich
  • Bria Mitchell
  • Sara Witt
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