Military Money: Personal Financial Readiness

Moderator

Donna Lowry is an award-winning journalist who combines a passion for storytelling and a desire to empower others with communication and critical thinking skills surrounding political, educational, and financial  issues.

Through her firm, Donna Lowry Communications, she provides consulting, writing, and producing services for educational, media, professional, and business outlets.

Donna serves as host for several programs, including Lawmakers on Georgia Public Broadcasting.

Donna is an eight-time Emmy award winner, a three-time national Gabriel Award recipient, and has garnered honors from countless organizations, including the National Association of Black Journalists, Atlanta Association of Black Journalists, Georgia Associated Press, Society of Professional Journalists, Georgia Association of Educators (GAE), and the Professional Association of Georgia Educators (PAGE).

Her media peers inducted Donna into the prestigious NATAS Southeast Silver Circle to recognize her lasting contributions to the broadcast industry.

Donna has a master's in Journalism from Northwestern University and a Bachelor's in Mass Communications and Administration and Management from Chatham University.

Her professional affiliations include the Atlanta Press Club, the Atlanta Association of Black Journalists, the National Association of Black Journalists, and the Southeastern Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS SE). 

In her 15th year as a Girl Scout Leader, Donna has led girls ranging in age from kindergarten through 12th grade. Her community service affiliations also include Magnolia (GA) Chapter of Links, Inc., and Nu Lambda Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated.  

Donna and her husband, Army Major (Ret) Bennet W. Reid, Jr., are the parents of three daughters. 

Strategic Partnerships Lead at BBB Atlanta & NE Georgia

Kimber Armstrong has worked in the non-profit sector for 10 years, with roles in program development and business development. She’s been with Better Business Bureau for 5 years, initially in Nashville serving as Regional Vice-President in Williamson County. She came to BBB of Atlanta & NE Georgia in early 2021. She’s BBB’s Strategic Partnerships Lead – managing and growing the organization’s partnerships and programs.

Financial Readiness Manager, FINRA Investor Education Foundation

Shay is the Financial Readiness Manager for FINRA Investor Education Foundation. Shay has a bachelor’s and master’s degree in psychology. She is also an Accredited Financial Counselor^® (AFC^®) and Financial Fitness Coach^® (FFC^®).

Shay found her way into the financial services field while working for a federal credit union and the Air Force’s Airman & Family Readiness Center in Turkey. Since then, she has used her AFC^® certification to oversee & promote financial readiness and several other family services programs at Walter Reed’s Army Community Service and Coast Guard Headquarters. Since 2016, she continued to support financial readiness initiatives through her organization, Crusaders for Change, LLC, through which she serves as manager of the FINRA Foundation’s military financial readiness project.

Shay lives in Maryland with her retired Air Force husband. They also have a daughter who graduates from University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC) in May 2023. 

Financial Journalist

Kimberly Lankford has been a financial journalist for more than 20 years. As the “Ask Kim” columnist at Kiplinger’s Personal Finance Magazine, she received hundreds of reader questions every month about insurance, taxes, retirement planning and other personal finance issues. She now writes primarily for AARP.org, AARP the Magazine, Military Officer Magazine and U.S. News & World Report. Her financial articles have also appeared in the Washington Post, Boston Globe, PBS Next Avenue and Bloomberg Wealth Manager, and her syndicated columns were published regularly in the Chicago Tribune, Denver Post, Baltimore Sun and other papers.

She received the personal finance Best in Business Award from the Society of American Business Editors and Writers, and she has written three books: The Insurance Maze: How You Can Save Money on Insurance – and Still Get the Coverage You Need, Rescue Your Financial Life, and Ask Kim for Money Smart Solutions.

One of her favorite projects was writing The Financial Field Manual: Kiplinger’s Personal Finance Guide for Military Families, which is in its 4th edition and is distributed to military bases throughout the world. As a military spouse -- her husband retired from the Army after 21 years as an Army doctor – she is particularly interested in writing about special financial issues for military families.

Growth Development Director & Financial Advisor

In addition to working as a Financial Advisor & Growth Development Director at Northwestern Mutual, Jordan is an Officer in the Army National Guard & Special Operations Community with multiple assignments across the middle east. He has a passion for advising veterans, athletes, business owners, attorneys & their clients; though he enjoys working with people of all backgrounds. In conjunction with knowledge gained from law school; Jordan assists many of his clients with wills, estate organization, trust establishment, personal planning, as well as closely-held business planning. When not spending time with his wonderful wife, Savannah, and their two dogs; he allocates his spare time to presiding over an altruistic networking non-profit he co-founded in 2018; the Young Professionals of Atlanta. Views expressed are his own.