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LADY BOSS From small town to CEO BY ALISON BAILIN BATZ PHOTO BY MARK MORGAN
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ally Taylor grew up in what she calls the “ruralest” of rural Ohio. So much so, her parents encouraged her to elope and focus on being a wife once she graduated high school at age 18 rather than consider college. And, while she did, indeed, marry her high school sweetheart the summer after graduation, nothing was going to stop Taylor from seeking out a life beyond her town of less than 5,000 people. “I went to work immediately. And while I initially dreamed up being an artist, I found a niche in helping families delve through their finances,” says Taylor. “The hours were long – so long that I didn’t start college until I was 27 years old, and didn’t graduate until age 35.” Eventually earning her master’s degree in financial planning and becoming a certified public accountant, personal financial specialist and certified financial planner, Taylor moved to Arizona in 2007 to join Arcadia’s KeatsConnelly – the largest cross-border wealth management firm in North America that specializes in helping Canadians and Americans realize their dreams of a cross-border lifestyle – to really spread her wings. Less than 10 years later, she’s CEO of the firm.
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You are also heavily involved in helping women in our community. How so? I don’t want other women to go through what I did – being so dissuaded from seeking opportunities outside the home. So, I joined Soroptimist International of Phoenix several years ago, and just completed service as their president. Our network of over 75,000 members in 132 countries and territories works to educate, empower and enable opportunities for females. We have to ask – what happened to the high school sweetheart? We just celebrated our 34th wedding anniversary! UPTOWN |
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| NOVEMBER 2016