And while we’re on the topic of “independence”, another cherished freedom is financial independence,
especially for women. But alas so many tomatoes, including The Three Tomatoes, wish we’d been far more savvy about finances
when we were younger, and now find ourselves looking for sound, knowledgeable, trustworthy money advice. With 401Ks dwindling, gas
prices soaring, and the housing market tanking, many of us are panicking that we’ll outlive our money. So, we are
delighted to announce that financial expert, Cherith
Harrison, founder and CEO of The Pin Money Club, will be a
regular contributor to The Three
Tomatoes helping tomatoes like us get a whole lot smarter about money. In her article this
month Tomatoes Rule - Closing the Retirement
Gender Confidence Gap, Cherith dispels some retirement myths. Whew, we feel better all ready.
Taking Control of our Financial Destinies
Cherith says that as a young girl, while her friends dreamed of Prince Charming and endlessly penciled their prospective married names on their
notebooks, she dreamed of a career on Wall Street where she would frantically scribble out orders to “buy” and
“sell,” moving markets with a stroke of her pen. Her dream came true when she joined one of the largest firms on Wall
Street shortly after graduating from college.
Cherith became a very successful Wall Street executive, savvy and smart in all ways about money, totally focused on her career, until one day she
met “Prince Charming”. She eventually married the Prince, moved to his kingdom in Atlanta, focused less on her
career, and let him make the big financial decisions. And then one day she found herself on the way to a divorce, with the
realization that she had come out on the losing end financially, certainly in no small part due to her lack of involvement in the larger financial
picture.
Getting back on sure financial footing was a struggle, but Cherith focused on growing her consulting business which provides marketing counsel to
financial services companies. Along the way, she started to tell her cautionary tale to other women, and found she wasn’t
alone. Whether they were single, married, divorced or widowed, common themes emerged, divorces that led to financial ruin,
marriages where money was never discussed to single women with no choice but to take charge of their financial destiny and struggling to do so.
As Cherith says, money holds extraordinary power over our lives; when we feel we aren’t in control of it, the best of us
become fearful and don’t always act rationally.
The Pin Money Club
Slowly she began to realize that she could utilize the skills and experience she had acquired in her career to help other women take control and
stay in control of their own financial destinies, and so the Pin Money
Club was born with that mission in mind.
In addition to her consulting business and the Pin Money Club, Cherith is also a published author; her articles have appeared in More
magazine, Atlanta Woman, Mergers & Acquisitions and Employee Benefit News. She is a frequent
speaker at financial services industry conferences. And now tomatoes can benefit from her experience, wisdom learned the hard way,
and financial expertise. Read her first article,Tomatoes Rule - Closing the Retirement Gender Confidence Gap, and make sure to read her advice at The Three
Tomatoes on a regular basis.
Summer Lovin’ and Rosé for Thrillin’
Our guest expert this week at The Three Tomatoes Ask the Experts, is Rev. Laurie Sue Brockway, wedding
officiate, author, newspaper columnist, and former editor of Playgirl Magazine. So who better to get some advice on putting
some zip into your love life this summer? Read her article, Summer Love. And while you’re visiting The Three Tomatoes Ask the Experts, check out Cristina Mariani-May’s
summer wine advice in her article, “White for
Chillin’, Red for Grillin’, and Rosé for Thrillin’.”
Summer Fun in the City – The 3T Insider Summer Series Events are here
We’ve got two great NYC Insider
Events on tap this summer for those of us who aren’t hanging out on a yacht in Capri, or celebrity watching in the
Hamptons. On July 30th, join us in the afternoon for a private tour and tea at the Mount Vernon Hotel Museum and Gardens, right here in New
York City. And by the way, the land originally belonged to Abigal Adams Smith, whose father, John Adams, gave her the
property. And get your voices ready and join us on August 12th for The Three
Tomatoes Karaoke night. For details and tickets, click here.
And our July book club selection is...
Bel Canto by Ann
Patchett. Several tomatoes have raved about this book which begins in South America, at the home of the country's vice president, where a lavish
birthday party is being held in honor of Mr. Hosokawa, a powerful Japanese businessman. Roxanne Coss, opera's most revered soprano, has mesmerized the
international guests with her singing. It is a perfect evening — until a band of gun-wielding terrorists breaks in through the air-conditioning
vents and takes the entire party hostage. Read the full synposis at our Book Club, start reading, and join the discussion which
starts at the end of July.
Happy Independence to all!
‘til next week,
The Three
Tomatoes
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