HISTORY OF DECKER & ASSOCIATES, INC

In 1981, Decker & Associates, Inc., was created by Lorraine Decker, CLU, ChFC, MSFS to provide objective financial planning to clients who wanted to achieve personal financial goals while working to change the world. By working on an exclusive hourly fee and not managing client’s assets for a fee or percentage, Decker was the first legitimate fee-only financial planning firm in Texas.

Our clients valued receiving professional advice, and they recommended Decker to their friends. Our clientele grew as we focused exclusively on our clients achieving their goals.  Many of our clients were medical school professors, teachers, performing artists, entrepreneurs, social workers, doctors, lawyers, investment managers and company executives.

KEN JOINS D&A

In 1984, as our practice expanded, my husband, Ken Decker, CPA-PFS, CFP, left a Big Eight accounting firm, to join Decker and Associates. I joked, “Now we have someone to answer the phone when they ask for Mr. Decker.” They were excited to work together. As an international tax manager, the services offered included tax planning and preparation, estate planing and international planning. Companies, referred by HR and clients, hired D&A to provide corporate-paid workshops and individual counseling. Programs included workshops for recruiting, retention, and employee relocation. When companies had a downturn, Decker provided workshops and counseling to help employees who were downsized or offered early retirement.

Twenty years flew by as we travelled the globe together. Our original clients had achieved their goals and as did our corporate employee clients. We received phone calls and emails as they celebrated reaching their goals. Life was good and we felt the work we did was meaningful.

THE PLANS CHANGE

Ken and I agreed to provide 32 workshops in the Middle East for international employees of an energy company. Logistics were a challenge since there were countries where I could not be a workshop presenter. We were excited about this opportunity as we flew to New Jersey to help with an Irish Phama firm that was merging with a New Jersey firm. We were retained to provide employees and their families with the support needed to decide if they would relocate to South San Francisco or accept a voluntary termination. Ken was in Princeton and I in Morristown holding workshops and counseling. We had planned to rendezvous at the Newark Airport when the planes flew into the World Trade Center.

BEST LAID PLANS

We traveled the world together. We were in New Jersey, counseling pharmacy employees on relocating to South San Francisco. We would meet at the Newark Airport to fly home when the planes flew into the World Trade Center. On the way driving home, we decided to create a non-profit and provide workshops to help families make better financial decisions. We worked with Habitat for Humanity, TEA, HISD, Baylor College of Medicine, University of Houston, United Way, and many other NPOs. We continuously measured outcomes. Our firm was seven strong professionals, all dedicated to making a difference in the lives and the futures of the families, many of whom were single mothers. Teens started to attend their parents’ workshops. I loved working with teens, but I didn’t want to conduct fun and game financial literacy that resulted in no change. So after much research, I consulted with Baylor College of Medicine, where we were working with the college with interns, I learned of research on the pre-frontal cortex and that if we could create a challenging program that required critical thinking, etc.