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Professional Advisor Spotlight: Cheryl Jankowski
“I’m an extremely practical person. I think people will tell you that when they work with me,” said Cheryl Jankowski, CPA.
That practicality led Cheryl to study at the University at Buffalo and pursue a 30+ year career in public accounting. Today, she is a partner at Lumsden McCormick, where she specializes in planning and tax compliance for closely held businesses and high net worth individuals.
“As you become a trusted advisor, clients are not necessarily calling you about the basics. They’re calling you about potential solutions or for ideas. I really enjoy working with business owners, thinking prospectively and helping them with whatever their business challenges or opportunities are,” Cheryl said.
Over a decade ago, Cheryl first heard of the Community Foundation and learned more about it by attending an early Impact Bus Tour. “I was amazed at how high level the Community Foundation was and how it takes this holistic, strategic view about how to cohesively make systems change,” she noted, adding that her relationship with the Community Foundation has evolved over time. “The Community Foundation is so invested with collaborating with other partners and listening to see how it can help support the good work that’s already being done in the city of Buffalo.”
Cheryl joined the Community Foundation Board, and serves on its Professional Advisor Council, all while continuing to connect her clients to the Community Foundation to help them meet their charitable goals.
Various scenarios will prompt Cheryl to reach out to the Community Foundation to leverage its deep local knowledge, including:
- Private foundations whose original founders are leaving the legacy to the next generation, who may not be prepared to handle the compliance. In those cases, partnering with the Community Foundation could be a way to meet their long-term philanthropic goals as a family without having the administrative burden.
- Nonprofits that are looking for some guidance can take advantage of the Community Foundation’s depth of knowledge and endowment options to support their efforts in perpetuity.
- Individuals who are philanthropically inclined but may not know the depth of needs in Western New York can benefit from the Community Foundation’s expertise in developing family philanthropy and guiding generational support.
Cheryl encourages her peers to consider the Community Foundation when working with clients who are planning their charitable legacies. This partnership offers customized solutions with high-level client service that structure giving and best achieve their clients’ philanthropic goals.
“When professional advisors work with the Community Foundation, they get some of the best guidance out there. The Community Foundation respects the advisor’s relationships with their clients and there is a mutual trust that ensures the clients’ needs are met,” said Cheryl.