Donor Profile: Romi Gonzalez, III
First Vice President, Wealth Management, Financial Planning Specialist, The Spiro Group, Morgan Stanley Smith Barney
Volunteers of America's work with veterans in crisis touched Romi Gonzalez.
As a first-time guest at Volunteers of America's annual Reach For The Stars Breakfast, Gonzalez was impressed by a veteran who spoke to the group about how our Veterans Transitional Housing Program saved his life.
“Assisting veterans who come back after serving all of us had always been an important cause to me, but I never explored how to effectively give to that, specifically. Volunteers of America gave a great presentation,” he says. Gonzalez already volunteers to help Louisiana National Guard members get their financial lives in order before deployment.
He decided to support Volunteers of America with a gift of stock.
“If I am lucky enough to have a stock that is worth substantially more than what I paid for it, I am happy to give some to charity. It is the definition of a win-win scenario. The charity gets the stock, and I get the benefit of the charitable gift in a more tax-efficient manner.”
Gonzalez says donating was easy and convenient. He now recommends our organization to others as a worthwhile charity. “Volunteers of America does a lot more than you realize,” he says, adding that every person should find a cause that touches their hearts among Volunteers of America's many helping programs.