CSF History: 1997 - 2023
Christopher Street Financial’s founder, Robert Casaletto, passed away in 1996, but not before leaving the business in a Charitable Remainder Trust for the benefit of the ACLU’s “Gay and Lesbian Project”. To read about our early history, click here. A little over a year later, four partners purchased the firm from the ACLU. One of those partners was Christopher Street Financial’s current president, Jennifer Hatch.
Previously a salesperson of the institutional securities departments at J.P. Morgan and later Bear Stearns, Hatch chose to purchase CSF because “Christopher Street was a known name in the gay community, and this was a chance for me both to use my financial experience and to be an openly gay person,” she said in an Investment Advisor article in 2001.
“As a young woman on the trading desk, and in the closet, I had been aware of Christopher Street for many years before it would become a part of my story,” said Hatch. Christopher Street was not only a place for clients seeking financial advice in the community, but was also becoming a place where LGBTQ+ financial professionals wanted to work.
With the help and hard work of many partners, professionals, friends, and mentors, Hatch and the new leaders transitioned Christopher Street from primarily investment advice to comprehensive and holisistic financial planning, continuing the specialization in the unique financial issues of the LGBTQ+ community.
Under the new leadership, the firm stayed true to the company’s original mission of serving the LGBTQ+ community. And the new owners continued the legacy of giving back to the community though charitable donations and support, a legacy you can read more about here.
CSF started to receive mainstream media attention with Hatch not only appearing frequently as the financial expert in The Advocate but also quoted in articles in The Wall Street Journal, ABC News, Newsweek, New York Magazine, and industry rags like Investment Advisor and American Banker.
Jen Hatch and Christopher Street also garnered many awards for work in the community, including:
- Anti-Violence Project Courage Award for working to make the world safer for LGBTQ and HIV-affected communities
- Outstanding Philanthropic Achievement - Small Business – Association of Fundraising Professionals, NYC
- SAGE Award for Community Service from SAGE USA (Services and Advocacy for Gay and Lesbian Elders) for pioneering work helping same-sex couples navigate the legal and tax world
- Stonewall Community Foundation Award for Community Action and Leadership
- Manhattan Borough President’s Proclamation for being a visionary leader in the campaign to build and demonstrate LGBT economic power and entrepreneurial savvy
- Out Magazine’s OUT 100 List identifying the year’s most influential, important and interesting people
For the LGBTQ+ community, the years that followed brought many changes and advancements, particularly marriage equality. Marriage equality simplified many of the planning strategies that once complicated financial planning for LGBTQ+ individuals and couples. But even after having won the right to marry, Hatch and the team recognized that they could continue to provide a safe, welcoming, and open environment that remained invaluable to LGBTQ+ individuals and increasingly to their friends, their families, and all their other allies who share our values.
With an eye towards growth – an ability to reach more people who could benefit from the services and experiences that CSF provided – Hatch realized she needed a team of leaders who could each bring skills to Christopher Street that were unique to her own. She needed partners whose talents would complement hers. In short, she wanted to form an Ensemble Practice, which she knew was essential for the future of Christopher Street Financial.
But she couldn’t do it alone.
In 2020, Jen was introduced to Mark Franczyk, an openly gay former investment banker and then stay-at-home dad and financial business consultant. In meeting Mark, Jen realized it was a step towards realizing her vision for the future, a vision where the team would come together behind a single mission, where others would take leadership roles, and where Jen could have more time to focus on servicing clients.
Originally, Jen offered Mark an opportunity to take on a few financial consulting projects with Christopher Street. From there, things moved quickly. Mark had been honest with Jen in their first meeting, telling her he wasn’t good at sitting still. He quickly became Director of Finance. And, in short order and in recognition of all of the areas of the company that he was overseeing, he became CSF’s Chief Operating Officer. He had relieved Jen of many responsibilities, and together they were building a team that supported Jen’s vision.
An Ensemble Practice was taking shape. There was a clear, unified vision. Jen had found a partner with shared values who could turn that vision into a reality. But there was still one question to be solved: what about Jen’s future? Having counseled hundreds of individuals to live their best lives and planning for their dream future, it was time for Jen to do the same. She had nurtured and grown Christopher Street beyond what Bob would likely have imagined was possible. And though still years in the future, Jen knew it was time to plan for a Christopher Street after her.
Click here to read the third and final installment of CSF’s History.