IN Ross Township Spring 2019 | Page 17

SPONSORED CONTENT BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT SPONSORED CONTENT Putting Parents Back in the Financial Driver’s Seat P lanning for college is one of the most daunting tasks parents and their children may ever face. From reams of forms to fill out to actually having money available for tuition, trying to tackle the process alone can quickly become overwhelming. Fortunately, Key Stone College Funding is there to help parents overcome these obstacles. Key Stone co-founder Kimberly Catale said families trying to manage everything is an all-too-common scenario in her line of work, and it doesn’t have to be that way. Parents are focused on careers and other family obligations causing them to miss filing dates. We assist families through the college financial aid process including the preparation of FASFA and completing the process with an acceptance letter and/or assistance with a possible letter of appeal. Our main goal is to focus on guiding the student to achieve his/her degree in less than 5 years instead of the national average of 5.8 years. Brian Catale, who founded Brian Catale and Associates and Wisdom Keys for Retirement Radio Show is a financial planning firm that focuses on wealth preservation and risk reduction, serving over 2,200 clients, co-founded Key Stone College Funding with Kimberly. Their databases of colleges and planning sources can help you and your child pick the best school for the best price to help ensure your tuition money goes further. “No matter what your net worth, you should do a FAFSA application,” Kimberly said. “There’s merit-based money available and financial aid if a family qualifies. Assistance can also be obtained from the schools and small organizations offer scholarships for a variety of topics. We have the resources to pull up, as well as organizations that offer grants, like local credit unions or fraternal clubs.” Brian said the sooner parents start in preparing, the more opportunities they can discover for their children. “A lot of parents feel that it’s the school who is doing this work for them, but that’s not exactly their role,” he said. “We do this daily for parents throughout the region and it’s our sole function. We have the expertise and the infrastructure in place to help parents the most.” As we age our focus has always been retirement but due to the high cost of education we as parents are switching gears to focus on educational expense and not future retirement goals. There are many variables to consider and we can assist with each and every challenge. We have seen cases of families with and without assets get the education that the students desired at private universities that they did not realize was an option. Through a series of no-obligation workshops, Kimberly and Brian work with the family on focusing on how each member needs to be involved in their part of the process. At Keystone College Funding our advisors strive to match our students perfectly; Socially, Academically, Financially and Emotionally. We call this the “SAFE” Approach. As every parent knows how important it is to assist our children through college. The ultimate goal in everyone’s life is a long happy retirement. This is always a main goal in the mind of all Keystone College Advisors. We also know that raising a child to a young adult our educational system can only do so much. Being a good parent the more we are involved with our children the better they succeed through the educational process. Now as they become young adults they are getting ready to spend hundreds, if not thousands of dollars in some cases and this is not the time to let them take complete control of their financial life. We have seen students make commitments to further their education that lasted only a semester or two just to realize they can no longer finance their education, or the college they dreamed of is not the fit for them nor the career they planned to build a life on was not a dream but a fantasy. Key Stone College Funding can guide your family to success through the college process. For more information on Key Stone College Funding and how they can help you start your college planning journey, go to keyscf.com, where you can start learning what you need for your child to succeed. Their free informational monthly workshops are reservation only. To reserve your spot today, call them directly at 888.414.8474. Start your College Planning Journey! Attend Keystone College Funding’s Free Seminar Tuesday, February 19, 2019, 6:30 PM Sewickley Public Library 500 Thorn Street 2nd Floor - Next to the Children's Library Sewickley, PA 15143 Reservation Only Please Call 888.414.8474 ROSS TOWNSHIP ❘ SPRING 2019 15