Financial Services, Speaker and Coach

A giant of the financial planning industry, John P. “Jack” Walsh, Founder and Chairman of the Board of Money Concepts Wealth Management & Financial Planning, is gone, but not forgotten. Jack was a mentor to me. I just received a call that he passed away after a long battle, and I mean BATTLE, with Parkinson’s Disease. Jack was tough as shoe leather. A Jesuit-educated, street smart businessman, he battled every challenge he ever tackled. He never quit, he pressed on, he persisted.

Jack was always on the cutting edge of his industry. In 1979 he started a financial planning company before most people had ever heard of financial planning. After a tremendously successful career in the life insurance industry, he decided that people needed more than the single-silo product solutions offered by insurance companies, banks, and broker-dealers.

Jack was a family man, fiercely loyal, proud of his Irish heritage, and a true visionary. He demanded excellence from everyone with whom he associated. His children were no exception. His son Denis Walsh, CFP®, CEP, CFS, RFC has been at the helm of Money Concepts for years, and Jack trained him well. Jack challenged Denis, pushed him, and expected nothing less than the best…and got it. His management team, including his twin daughters Terri and Susan, are top-shelf professionals. The company enjoys long-service leadership from people such as Mario Monterro, SVP, CIO/COO. The company Jack left is in most capable hands.

From The Money Concepts website:

“Forty-three years in the Financial Services industry gave Jack Walsh an inside view into the business of financial planning.  Starting his career as an insurance agent with Franklin Life in 1959, Jack moved steadily upward through the ranks to General Agent, Regional Manager, Executive Director, Superintendent of Agencies and Vice President, and was elected President in 1974.  He also served on the Board of Directors for both the Life and Casualty companies of the American Bankers Insurance Group.”

“Jack’s tenure in insurance gave him a great deal of vision.  He recognized the lack of a knowledge most people have when it comes to money management and planning for a secure financial future, and he recognized that sweeping changes would occur in the Financial world.  In 1979, he founded Money Concepts International, Inc., where people could turn for comprehensive and unbiased personal financial planning services.”

About five years ago I flew to south Florida to spend the morning with this great man. His health was failing badly, but our morning turned into a full day, including lunch at his favorite Irish pub. It was important to me that I tell him how much I learned from him, and what he had meant to me. It was a day well spent, and one I will treasure forever.

Jack, you were a warrior, a visionary, a leader. This world sorely needs more people with the conviction, brains, and passion you shared with us. May you Rest in Peace.