From Public Housing to Financial Freedom—Here's How Planning Helped This Executive Turn Possibility Into Legacy

This client grew up in the public housing projects of Pittsburgh's Historic Hill District. There her single mother raised her and her brother in a low-income household with a reverence for education, a strong work ethic and deep desire to strive for more. That foundation helped her become the first in her family to graduate from college. She spent more than 14 years working as a top executive in the banking industry.

But even with a strong career and a diligent savings habit, she knew there was a gap between where she was and where she wanted to be. Though she and her Northwestern Mutual advisor Deidra Willis originally became friends through their shared commitment to community and philanthropy, they soon formed a true financial partnership grounded in trust.

Willis helped her client and her client’s husband move beyond a cash-heavy approach to a diversified, strategic plan that accounted for her conservative instincts, her husband's outlook, and their hopes for their young son. That plan not only gave them security but also something wonderfully expected: options. In 2024, it allowed the client to step away from her executive role to make more space for family and to pursue her life’s true purpose.

Today, she is a successful motivational speaker, coach, and author of the book, Success Is in Your Reach: Lessons in Life, Love, and Leadership for Inner City Young Adults Ready to Rise above Their Circumstances. Here is her inspiring story.

What are your earliest memories about money?

There was no shortage of dreams in my community, but there was a very real shortage of opportunity. I watched families struggle just to make ends meet—and I saw them struggle even harder when someone passed away, because nobody could afford a funeral. People simply couldn’t afford insurance. So neighbors would come together and pass around a Folgers coffee can to collect donations. It was the original GoFundMe. I never forgot that image, and it lit a fire in me to change my family’s trajectory.

Who first helped you understand how money works?

I’ve been very fortunate to have people in my life to remind me that money is just a vehicle. My grandmother would say: “People can take your money, but they can’t take what you know.” She believed education was the most valuable asset anyone could have. She also told me I didn’t have to allow my environment define me—that I could walk a different path. Those words were my compass. Even without financial resources, my family had wisdom money couldn’t buy. Their guidance pointed me toward higher education and, eventually, toward financial services, because I saw firsthand what a lack of planning and resources could do to a community.

What was it like being the first in your family to go to college?

Intimidating doesn’t even begin to cover it. FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) was not something we talked about at home—my mom had a high school education and had never been through the process. We had to reach out to a local social services organization just to get through the application. When we sat down and reviewed my mom’s tax returns, I saw clearly that she was working poor—she worked incredibly hard every single day but couldn’t get ahead. But she had the wisdom to see gifts in her children and the humility to ask for help when she didn’t have the answers. Because of her advocacy and because education had been so deeply valued in our household, I graduated with a 3.9 GPA and earned both a need-based and an academic scholarship. I came out of college with very little debt, which turned out to matter more than I knew at the time.

You studied finance—did that mean you had your own finances figured out?

Absolutely not—and that’s one of my favorite parts of this story to tell. I studied finance and accounting. I understood debits and credits, assets and liabilities, personal versus business balance sheets. But when I graduated, I had about $20,000 in credit card debt. It was like being the doctor who becomes the patient. Realizing that was a humbling moment; it was actually the beginning of my real personal finance journey. It forced me to stop looking at how other people managed their money and ask myself: am I being a good steward of what I actually have? Can I practice what I preach? The answer, at that point, was no. But I knew I needed help—and I was willing to get it.

How did you come to work with your financial planner, Deidra?

We were in the same sorority, and one of its pillars is economic empowerment. We served on a committee together and I heard her speak about what was possible for everyday people. I thought, I have to get to know this woman. When we finally sat down together, she asked me, “Do you know you could be a millionaire?” I laughed. In my mind, millionaires were born that way—they didn’t start where I started. She pushed back, gently, and said one of her missions was to help create 30 millionaires in her career. I said, “I want to be one.” And she said, “Why can’t you be?” That one question changed everything for me. It wasn’t just about the numbers. It was about shifting my belief in what was possible.

What were you most surprised to discover about the planning process?

That I already had more than I thought. I kept showing up to our meetings thinking I didn’t have enough to even warrant a conversation—I didn’t have $10 million, I didn’t have a vacation home, I didn’t have all the trappings of wealth I’d seen portrayed in the media. But Deidra showed me on paper that I had real assets, real opportunity, and a real path to becoming debt-free.

Today, the only debt we carry is our mortgage—and our house is almost paid off. She also helped me understand that a million dollars isn’t a pile of cash in a bank. It’s net worth. It’s assets minus liabilities. Once I understood that, the goal stopped feeling fictional. Without the plan, it’s just an illusion. I used to say I had a budget—and Deidra said that’s just one part of the plan. That’s not the plan.

What goals have you accomplished since you started working together?

Three big ones: I retired early. I started my own business. And I’m leaving a legacy for my son. The fourth—paying off our home early—is still in progress, though Deidra and I agreed it doesn’t make sense right now given the interest rate environment. Beyond those milestones, we also became philanthropists, which sounds grand but really started as a tax strategy she introduced me to. We’ve established an endowment that puts students through school, and my three-year-old son, Braxton, will one day help choose who receives those scholarships. We went from a family that passed a coffee can to bury our neighbors to a family that funds education for the next generation.

The work Deidra does with me affects my entire family and everybody who’s connected to me because they see the results of working with somebody and being willing to get help. That’s the trajectory shift I always dreamed about.

What would you say to someone who thinks they don’t have enough to see a financial planner?

Well, that’s exactly why you need one. I lived with a spirit of lack for years—even when I had enough, I kept thinking I didn’t. A good planner will show you what you actually have and what’s possible. I tell everyone: Get a financial planner. I don’t care if you have five nickels to rub together. Find someone who will focus on your potential, not your past, and who will hold you accountable. Because without the plan, a dream is just an illusion. The plan is what makes it real—for you and for every generation that comes after you. It’s really not about where you start; it’s about how you finish.

This story has been edited and condensed from a recorded interview. Northwestern Mutual is the marketing name for The Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company, Milwaukee, WI.

The testimonial presented may not be representative of the experience of other clients and are not a guarantee of future performance or success.