Meet the 4 winners of FPA's Heart of Financial Planning Award

Three planners and a pro bono committee of financial advisors took home the Financial Planning Association's highest honor this year.

The FPA's Heart of Financial Planning Award recognizes advisors and other planning professionals who "exemplify the primary aim" of the organization, which is to "elevate the profession that transforms lives," said James Lee, this year's FPA president and the founder of Lee Investment Management in Saratoga Springs, New York. 

Past winners include Externship training program founder Hannah Moore, advisors Lazetta Rainey Braxton and Louis Barajas, pro bono financial counseling nonprofit Savvy Ladies and life planning pioneer George Kinder.

An FPA committee reviews nominations and recommends winners to the organization's board, which then votes on the recipients. Now in its 18th year, the award focuses on "service to the profession and the community" through financial education, pro bono work and in other areas, according to Lee.

"At its core, financial planning is a helping profession, so of course financial planners and members of the FPA help their clients in their business," Lee said. "That helping instinct doesn't stop at just helping their clients. They also want to help those who are traditionally underserved by the financial services industry. They want to help young people learn good money skills and habits. They want to help each other through activities at the FPA chapter level."

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Scroll down the slideshow for information about the 2023 winners of the FPA's Heart of Financial Planning Award. For tips on retaking the CFP Examination, click here. To find information about a new conference for Hispanic advisors taking place in September just before the FPA's annual gathering, follow this link.