The Katy Trail not only connects Kansas City with St. Louis. It also connects thousands of Missourians with their state’s natural beauty and proud past.
“The Katy Trail is now one of the longest recreation rail-trails in the country, and sections of it are part of the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail and the American Discovery Trail,” says Joseph Hyde, financial advisor with Edward Jones in Lee’s Summit. “Today, the trail attracts 400,000 hikers, cyclists and joggers each year.”
Edward Jones has played a vital role in creating the trail and preserving the past, even as it helps clients plan for a secure future. Its 14 financial advisors in Lee’s Summit were excited when they announced that the Rock Island Trail Head, connecting Kansas City to the larger Katy Trail, would be located here in the community they serve.
“The culture of volunteerism is deeply woven into the fabric of Edward Jones,” Hyde says. “Ted and Pat Jones set the example years ago by helping to create the Katy Trail State Park in Missouri. We believe that by supporting the betterment of the community, Edward Jones will be a better organization.”
Edward D. Jones Sr. founded the firm in 1922. After working a rural territory in Missouri and Illinois, Ted Jones, the founder's son, positioned the firm in the increasingly competitive marketplace as a specialist in providing investment advice to individual investors. Although the firm's size has changed (more than 17,500 financial advisors who care for more than 7 million clients in the United States and Canada), its set of business principles retains the same focus.
“First, the firm serves just one client: the serious, long-term individual or business investor,” Hyde says. “Second, the firm's investment philosophy emphasizes quality and a well-balanced portfolio. Finally, it fosters an environment that greatly values personal relationships.
“If you are looking to develop a personal relationship with a financial advisor, we would love to meet with you!”
Edward Jones financial advisors focus on three core principles, he says:
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“We want to understand what's most important to our clients.”
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“We use an established process to build personalized strategies to help our clients achieve their goals.”
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“We partner together throughout our clients’ lives, to help keep them on track.”
Ted Jones lived out these principles, on and off the job. He and his wife, Pat, shared a love of conservation and wanted to give back to the people of Missouri. In the late 1980s, they decided to turn a 225-mile stretch of abandoned railroad into the Katy Trail State Park. The corridor's conversion from a railroad to a trail was made possible by the National Trails System Act of 1968 and through a personal donation from the Joneses in 1987.
Local advisors are proud to carry on this tradition of giving back to the community it serves. “The Edward Jones financial advisors in Lee's Summit are truly focused on building a better community and giving back to all the great philanthropic organizations in our city,” Hyde says.
For more information, please visit www.edwardjones.com.