Douglas P. Hanke, CFP®, EA

Doug founded Florida Financial Advisors, Inc., in 1984 to provide financial advice on a fee-only basis. He has extensive knowledge in the areas of income tax planning and tax preparation, estate planning, retirement planning and investments.

Prior to founding Florida Financial Advisors, Doug was a principal and officer for FCA Corp. (formerly First Commonwealth Associates), a subsidiary of UST Corp. of Boston, an independent financial advisory firm. Between 1970 and 1980, he served as vice-president and trust officer for Flagship Bank of Tampa (now Sun Bank) and as trust real estate officer for First National Bank of Florida.

In addition to being a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional, Doug is an Enrolled Agent (EA) licensed to practice before the IRS. He is a member of the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA), the National Association of Enrolled Agents (NAEA), and the Tampa Bay Estate Planning Council.  His company, Florida Financial Advisors, Inc. is a Registered Investment Adviser (RIA) with the state of Florida.

Doug has taught CFP courses as an adjunct professor with the University of South Florida, Nova Southeastern University, Florida Institute of Technology, and Rollins College. He also holds a Florida real estate license and serves on the advisory boards of several local charitable organizations.

Doug's educational background includes a bachelor's degree in business administration, with honors, from the University of Florida in 1970, additional studies in the master of business administration (MBA) program at the University of South Florida, and a three-year Florida Bankers Association Trust School program. He also completed a two-year program through the College for Financial Planning and the University of Tampa leading to his CFP certification.

Doug and his wife have five children, eleven grandchildren, and he enjoys traveling, reading, music, and genealogy.

Julie W. Lawrence, CFP®

Julie joined Florida Financial Advisors, Inc., in February 2006 as a Financial Advisor. She brings with her over 22 years of experience in finance and management, handling large budgets, restructuring, and overseeing a regional team while at Aetna. She holds a B.A. in Management from National Louis University. Julie passed the rigorous, ten-hour comprehensive CFP® Board examination in 2003 and fulfilled the CFP Board of Standard’s specific financial planning experience requirements in 2006.

Both Julie’s professional experience and maturity prepared her for personal financial planning. As a wife and mother of three, she knows the challenges of funding college educations, timing retirement, managing investments, selecting insurance, and developing estate plans. As a successful manager, Julie has worked in both large and small firms, helping to shape and prioritize their goals, forecast their spending, monitor their results and select their benefit programs.

Julie is a member of the following organizations:

• NAPFA (National Association of Personal Financial Advisors)
• Carrollwood Service League

She has been quoted in Financial Planning magazine, Investment News, NAPFA Advisor magazine, the Saint Petersburg Times, MSNMoney.com, FinancialPlanning.com, and the Chicago Tribune. Julie has also been interviewed by Channel 13 FOX News.

Julie has lived in Florida since 1977. She is married with three children. In her spare time she teaches classes at the Spring of Tampa Bay, practices yoga, fishes and goes kayaking.

 

Cheryl B. Bott, CFP®

Cheryl Bott has been with Florida Financial Advisors, Inc., since shortly after the company was founded. After two decades as a Registered Financial Paraplanner and office manager for the company, Cheryl became a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional in 2007, and she is now putting her years of experience and knowledge to work as a staff financial planner.

In addition to direct planning duties for new and long-term clients, Cheryl oversees client relations for the firm and supervises the day-to-day office administration.

“During my years at Florida Financial Advisors, I have seen many changes in our industry. Clients’ financial planning needs have shifted as investment markets, tax laws, estate planning laws, the economy and information accessibility via the Internet have evolved. Many people struggle with information overload and find it frustrating to sort through the many (and oftentimes conflicting) alternatives. With the baby boomer generation transitioning into retirement, more people than ever are dealing with longer retirement periods, the need to both grow and protect their investment assets, health insurance and long-term care issues, caring for aging parents, etc. My goal is to objectively help our clients prioritize and narrow their choices so that they can make the correct decisions for their individual circumstances. I want them to feel confident about the financial decisions they make.”

Cheryl is married and has one grown son and a daughter in college. In her spare time she enjoys grooming and riding her horses, reading, antiquing, and training/volunteering with her dogs for pet therapy.

Karen joined Florida Financial Advisors, Inc., in March 2007. She holds a B.S. degree in Management from Binghamton University in New York. She brings with her the Human Resources and administrative experience gained from her previous employment with J.P. Morgan and Rhinebeck Savings Bank.

As Office Manager, Karen oversees client relations for the firm, and supervises day-to-day office management.

Karen is married and has one son is high school, and a son and twin daughters in middle school. She is a coach for her daughter’s softball team and enjoys scrapbooking, reading, and going to the beach.