What is something important you learned from your mother and father about money and finances?

In honor of Mother’s Day this May and Father’s Day in June, Coldstream employees shared what they learned from their mothers and fathers about money. Here, we offer some of that collective wisdom to our readers:

Elaina Shemeta, CFP®, Team Lead & Wealth Manager

One of the most valuable lessons my mom instilled in me was the power of mindful spending and intentional saving. She taught me to distinguish between needs and wants, and showed me the value of trade-offs. By foregoing small pleasures, like eating out, we saved for bigger joys, like family vacations. She taught me that by being mindful with smaller expenses, we could achieve bigger dreams and that thoughtful saving for future goals brings greater fulfillment — a wisdom I’m now passing on to my own children.

One of the most enduring lessons my dad taught me was the importance of being prepared for the unexpected. He always emphasized the need to “save for a rainy day,” building a financial cushion to weather any storms life might bring. This wasn’t about being pessimistic, but about being responsible and ensuring a sense of security for the future. That lesson in proactive saving has been invaluable, and it’s a principle I strive to live by and pass on.

Melody Behnke, MBA, CFP®, Wealth Manager

What I learned from my dad: You will work when you turn 16!!! I was too afraid to learn what would happen if I didn’t. And do not get by on credit!

Anne Marie Stonich, CFP®, Chief Wealth Strategist

Everything I know about money, I learned from my dad—an 89-year-old force of nature who paddle boards every day and is training to break the Guinness World Record for oldest person to slalom ski. He taught me to love the outdoors—water skiing, snow skiing, sailing—but more importantly, he taught me the value of hard work, integrity, and putting others first.

He spent 35 years at the same company, rising from salesperson to vice president of quality, always focused on delivering the best client experience—something I now strive to do in my own career. My dad is humble and wise: never flashy, always prudent, and quietly brilliant with money. He made thoughtful real estate decisions, saved diligently, and still finds time to give back—running a local food bank and working with grocery stores to reduce waste and feed the community. He is my hero and my role model, in finances and in life.

Arthur Coyne, CFA®, ISG Analyst

I learned from my mother that asking prices can often be negotiated down.

I learned from my father not to be afraid to invest in stocks. Their values fluctuate but they tend to go up over time.

Jillian Perkins, Communications Manager

My mom taught me about the joys of being thrifty, and of finding ways to creatively repurpose or reuse items. Her mother grew up during the Great Depression and so she learned from her mother the value of making use of materials at hand and reusing when possible.

My father taught me that no amount of money is worth sacrificing my integrity or my wellbeing.

Ryland Moore, Business Development Officer & Wealth Manager

Personal finance was front and center in my household growing up. My father was a stock broker and my mother founded several non-profits, served on several Boards, and was the Executive Director of several non-profits, so while saving and investing were instilled in me from an early age by my father (I opened a custodial Roth IRA at 12 years old), I also was making donations at 12 years old to local non-profits. From my lawn mowing business I started with my brother at 12, I was encouraged to save and invest 1/3, donate 1/3, and use the remaining 1/3 for spending from whatever I brought in each week. This weekly ritual taught me several things over the last 35 years:

1. Compounding over long periods of time actually works!
2. You will feel better about donating and giving of your time and talents than you will about spending.
3. Living within your budget and means simply makes life easier.

David Bigelow, CFP®, MBA, Wealth Manager

My mom was a nurse, first in the Navy, and later in a private practice. Once she had retired from the Navy, she would fluctuate between full-time and part-time shifts, based on what was best for our family and what her team at work needed. Sometimes, that meant reducing her hours so she was around more for my brother and me. This taught me that it’s not always about making that next dollar.  She is a great cook, and when she was working less, we all benefited from her having more time to prep lunches and dinners, and to see us off to the bus stop in the morning. She taught me that there were tradeoffs, and sometimes having less money for discretionary spending as a family was worth it in order to have more time together.

My Dad taught me that the quality of something isn’t necessarily the one with the fanciest features or “flash.”  I remember mini-van shopping as a family; I was eight or nine. It was time to move on from the family car of my childhood up to that point, a Buick Station wagon we had driven across the country from North Carolina to Washington, nicknamed “The Griswold Mobile” (I had no idea what that meant at the time).

We test-drove a minivan that was a Warner Bros edition and branded with Bugs Bunny. Most importantly, it came with a DVD player in the back! I was hooked. “This is the one!” But, of course Dad had to do more research… and instead, we went with the Honda Odyssey. “Reliable,” “Safety ratings,” and “well made” were not exactly features I cared much about in comparison to a DVD player with *wireless* headphones. I absolutely could not wrap my head around it. Why can’t we ever get cool stuff?

We drove that Honda for 15 years, with hardly any issues or headaches. Great car. Dad was right. But you’d better believe that on every long road trip, I made some snarky comment about “if only we had a DVD player back here.” As a dad now, I’m ashamed!

Thanh Evoniuk, CPA, CFP®, MSF, Associate Wealth Manager

My mother taught me an invaluable lesson: money without financial insight is at risk. Lacking knowledge about money, our finances are vulnerable to loss, stemming from both our own actions and those of others. True security and growth stem from being informed and grasping how money operates.

As a single mother lacking a financial background, after a divorce, she devoted herself to learning and saving so she could provide my younger sister and me with a brighter future. One that is different from hers, as she usually said. Her determination was evident in her huge sacrifice to save money and persuade my father to pay for my international tuition in the U.S., a cost three times greater than the standard in-state amount. My journey toward financial understanding wasn’t just for my own benefit; it was also to empower her and others around me. I firmly believe that financial literacy is essential for safeguarding and growing wealth because money that is misunderstood can lead to stress, whereas money that is understood can be powerful.

*Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc. owns the certification marks CFP^®. CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ and CFP^® in the U.S., which it awards to individuals who successfully complete CFP Board’s initial and ongoing certification requirements. The CFA Institute owns the certification marks CFA^® and Chartered Financial Analyst^®.