HAUNTED HERALD
AMS INTERNAL NEWSLETTER
Tom Thornton’s Tales & Top 5
Welcome to Freedom of the Press, early November 2023 “spooky” edition!
My life story is short – I found AMS when I was 24 years old, now I am 56. The end. Actually, I could write a short novel about our department, with the growth of the various AMS areas, the computer systems that have come and gone, the wonderful co-workers who worked hard for clients then retired or moved on. With that said, my unbiased opinion is that RJ is still the place to be, and AMS is definitely still the place to be.
After 33 years removed from the gloomy Midwest, the fall months do bring me some nostalgic thoughts: for cooler “football weather,” the leaves changing colors, cornfield parties, and also fun holidays like Halloween and Thanksgiving for sure. When I was a kid, we were allowed one soda pop per week (on Saturday or Sunday) and one piece of candy a week also. So Halloween for me was actually my favorite holiday because of the free candy, nudging out Christmas where actual good memorable gifts were involved, if Santa thought we were good that year (we were always good evidently).
Halloween night for me, my siblings and friends was a four-hour sprint through rolling acres from house to house, hoping to fill up our pillowcases with candy, and we did. Then it was a night of barter and trading with my brothers: two Almond Joys for a Snickers bar, a Starburst pack with some Smarties for some M&Ms and some candy cigarettes – really a fun time. I am still mad at the inventor of “fun size” candy bars, oh well.
My wife, who was born and raised in Clearwater, doesn’t know what football weather means, but my Florida family definitely enjoyed Halloween here when our kids were younger (see pictures), even when trick or treating weather was very hot and humid some years.
Finally, I can’t help myself with my lists, I found five historical tidbits related to Halloween:
- The tradition originated with the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain (end of summer in Celtic, November in old Gaelic), when people would light bonfires and wear costumes to ward off ghosts. Thanks also to the darkness and the masking it was believed that celebrants could more easily cross the barriers between the physical and spiritual universe, thus finding an opportunity to interact with the inhabitants of the other world.
- In the 8th century, Pope Gregory III designated November 1 as a time to greet and honor all saints. Soon, All Saints Day incorporated some of the traditions of Samhain. The evening before was known as All Hallows Eve, and later Halloween.
- In the 1700s and 1800s, unmarried women performed rituals on Halloween in hopes of finding a husband. Single ladies used to throw apple peels over their shoulders, hoping to see their future husband’s initials in the shapes the peels formed where they fell. They also competitively bobbed for apples at parties, believing the winner would marry first.
- The holiday we celebrate as Halloween today really started taking off in the U.S. in the middle of the 19th century, when a wave of Irish immigrants left their country during the potato famine. The newcomers brought their own superstitions and customs, including the jack-o'-lantern, which started with turnips and beets before pumpkins.
- The custom of trick-or-treating also is thought to have Irish origins, possibly from a practice of going door to door to collect money and cake or another custom begging for soul cakes or offerings for one’s dead relatives. Failure to supply a treat would result in a practical joke.
Enjoy your fall everyone!
Ghoulish Gossip
AMS top five favorite candy!
Reese's Peanut Butter Cups - 29.6%
Snickers - 23%
Skittles - 18.6%
Gummy bears/worms - 17.8%
Twix - 11.1%
PS: The 6th favorite candy was a tie between Twizzlers and Candy Corn.
RJ HALLOWEEN BEST OVERALL COSTUME
Halloween at Raymond James is the event of the year! Our very own Advisory Consulting team participated for the first time and won “Best Overall Group Costume” with “Barbieland”
Executive Barbie: Daren Pippio
Coffee Shop Barbie: Amanda McCafferty
Film Director Barbie: Jenn Mancini
Latina Barbie: Jessica Conrado
Hippy Barbie: Amy Mursell
Exercise Barbie: Christine Paulton
Cowgirl Barbie: Michelle Carothers
Tennis Barbie: Riley Casey
Dream House Barbie: Jasmine Benito
Doctor Barbie: Rachael Connor
Weird Barbie: Rebecca Zwerin
Hip Hop Ken: Forrest Field
Alan: Chris Jett
Trick or Treat Trivia
Want a gift card?
Check out the 3Q23 Swag Bag winner, Nicole DeVore!
Are you interested in winning? What about winning a gift card?
Did you read the newsletter? Let's see…
How to win:
- Read the newsletter.
- Click on the link to reply with your answers, and don't forget to find the bonus.
- All entries that answer the questions correctly will be entered into a pool and 10 random winners will be selected for a $15 Target gift card.
- If you answer all the questions and find the bonus correctly, you will be entered to win a $50 gift card to Target in addition to the other gift cards.
Questions:
- What did someone have on a Saturday or Sunday per week?
- Who was Weird Barbie?
- Who’s a 14-year-old dinosaur?
- Who resembles Pulp Fiction characters?
Bonus: So you know the game: Where's Waldo? Where you look in the photo (in this case, the newsletter/sections) and try to spot Waldo (in this case, Jeff Dowdle dressed up as Waldo). Well…can you find Where's Dowdle?
Entries must be emailed by December 1, 2023. Winners will be notified shortly after.
Extra Credit
$100 Target gift card trivia
Winner of 3Q23 Extra Trivia: Alexandra Harriman! Congratulations!
Now, let's see how many of you can answer these questions. You can use the internet to help you.
Answer all the questions correctly and you could win the grand prize: a $100 gift card to Target!
Send an email with subject line “extra trivia” to AMSNewsletter@raymondjames.com with your answers.
- All you have to
- do is send
- in an email
- for a chance to win.
- Trick or Treat!
Memphis mayhem – AMS summer bbq picnic event
This event was for the whole AMS department and was offered in appreciation of our department’s hard work. The event offered good company and tasty BBQ, catered by Corky’s BBQ.
Pumpkin Patch Pets
Missy
Owner: Stephanie Walden
Stephanie’s 14-year-old dinosaur.
Luna
Owner: Chris VanWert
Luna Tuna dressed as a bat.
Mr. Man
Owner: Nicolas Louis
Mr. Man looking dapper with his Star Wars bow tie.
Yeti
Owner: Ashley Bradshaw
Yeti looking great in orange.
Nicki McFluffers
Owner: Wanda Hansen
Nicki McFluffers all cowboyed up.
Lucy
Owner: Ivan Carrero
Lucy as LUCY VAMPIRE.
Maddie and Daisy
Owner: Rebecca Zwerin
Maddie dressed as an Ewok and Daisy as Yoda.
Model Citizens
Ronald McDonald House
It was awesome to be able to have two Ronald McDonald House events in both our locations at the same time. That’s a first in the AMS CIC history! I’ve attached a few photos of the groups at the events. I can speak to the smiles the dinner in St. Pete brought to the families’ faces when they saw the spread from Mazzaro’s. Who doesn’t love a good Italian meal? The fellowship we shared as a group before and during the dinner was also great. It reminded me of how great a department we really work in. Derron Ragland shared the joy of coordinating all the family activities in Memphis. Those activities gave families a chance to blow off a little steam during an incredibly stressful time. They played bingo, frisbee, baseball and football. They even helped some kids play on a new playground dedicated earlier that day.
Special thanks again to our AMS senior leadership team who donated the resources to make this event possible. We appreciate their support as always!
I always like to throw in a pitch that we want our AMS CIC team to grow. If you have a passion for serving the communities we live in and would like to join please talk to your leader and let us know. We meet one to two times a month to plan activities depending on what is on our calendar. Please reach out to Jeff Hartnett if you would like to participate.
The firm has asked that we log volunteer hours on RJ Community. I’ve attached instructions on how you can do that.
DEI Committee’s Family Feud Event
The AMS DEI hosted a Family Feud event in both St. Pete and Memphis on September 26 and had a FANTASTIC TIME!
St. Petersburg
In St. Pete Team 1 was named “Office Gladiators” with Sue Kuczynski, Rachel Ramos, Mike Paz, Darius Sabbides and Tom Thornton. Team 2 was "Office Legends,” which included Zee Perez, Kevin Beckett, Chris Vanwert, Tom Keech and Jerlonda Cash. Office Gladiators was the winner!
Memphis
“Why be a star when you can make a constellation?” George DEI, Professor at University of Toronto
The Family Feud event was an AMS DEI-sponsored event. It was their third-quarter event for fun and engagement for our AMS associates in both locations. Team 1 was named “We're All That,” with Kellee Dennis, Joyce Brandon, Arnell Dickerson, Darnell Galloway and Ashley Bradshaw. Team 2 was "And a Bag of Chips,” which included Will Landrum, Melissa Coleman, Tya Holley, Shequita Taylor-Crawford and Renee Parkman. Team 1 was the winner!
We hope to see you all at future events.
Warm Regards,
Jessica Conrado, Vice President, Advisory Consulting, AMS DEI Chair
Derron Ragland, Supervisor, Operations, AMS DEI Investment Committee Member
Iris Wang, Director, AMS Research, AMS DEI Investment Committee Member
Rebecca Zwerin, Advisor Relations Director, AMS DEI Investment Committee Member
New Hires and Transfers
- Sharonda Williams
- Samantha Munson
- Alyssa Cantu
- Leah Martindill
- Taela Thomas
Anniversaries (September – November)
| Grace Krehmeier | 1 |
| Tricia Callihan | 1 |
| Kevin Wunker | 1 |
| Marsela Zyfle | 1 |
| Sierra Jenkins | 1 |
| Kathleen Wolfe | 1 |
| Linda Schaefer | 1 |
| Kevin Beckett | 1 |
| Ivan Carrero | 1 |
| Megan Lisenbee | 1 |
| Roberta Parkman | 1 |
| Derron Ragland | 1 |
| William Landrum | 1 |
| Domenic Castelli | 1 |
| Lindsey Beswick Luk | 1 |
| Jason Engelman | 2 |
| Dean Garza | 2 |
| Christopher Vanwert | 2 |
| Ashley Bradshaw | 2 |
| Jordan Domin | 2 |
| Austin Hunt | 3 |
| Jennifer Osterman | 3 |
| Sherron Plummer | 3 |
| David DeForest | 4 |
| Jennifer Cherry | 4 |
| Jasmine Benito | 4 |
| Joe Sheppard | 5 |
| Brittany Carpenter | 5 |
| Nicolas Louis | 5 |
| Fallon Knox | 5 |
| Jessica Roberson | 5 |
| Micole Lockett | 5 |
| Amy Mursell | 6 |
| Lauren Alleman | 6 |
| Taajaha Taylor-Shannon | 7 |
| Aaron Lazalde | 7 |
| Jennine DeVore | 8 |
| Mark Arkelian | 9 |
| Griffin Suit | 9 |
| Hani Haddad | 9 |
| Jordan Hobbs | 11 |
| David Harrison | 11 |
| James Stalnaker | 12 |
| Kimberlie Jackson | 16 |
| Joyce Brandon | 22 |
| Michael Hayman | 23 |
| Leon Faust | 24 |
| Glenn Elmblad | 26 |
| Sue Kuczynski | 28 |
| Scott Horack | 28 |
| Rob Eckardt | 28 |
| Theresa Giachino | 28 |
| Angela Nye | 30 |
| Laura Ruffner | 32 |
| Tom Thornton | 33 |
Newsletter Committee
Our contributors:
- Truc Bui
- Rebecca Zwerin
- Meredith Mansfield
- Sue Kuczynski
- Lauren Alleman
- Dee Lucas
- Connie Quinn
- Sean Bates
- AJ Lukosavich
- Nate Gozlan
- Shelby Newsome
Not for Client Use
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