News by SB Informer

Community Professionals Come Together to Form 'One-Stop Shop' for Seniors

SB Informer
Wednesday, February 21, 2007; 02:05 AM

As many seniors know first hand, planning for retirement includes much more than getting a 401K in order. With that in mind, a group of Montgomery County professionals have come together to ensure that seniors can find trusted and professional services to meet their financial, legal, residential, building, construction and even organizational needs.

The group of seven professionals has formed the SR Alliance of Suburban Maryland, a networking organization based in Rockville, MD.

"We have each been serving the needs of seniors on an individual basis for many years," noted Lois Fishman, Executive Director of the SR Alliance, which stands for Service and Respect. "We chose to join forces and essentially offer seniors one trusted, central resource that would fit many needs."

Current members of the group include: Shelton Binstock, attorney; Ron Landsman, elder law attorney; Stephen Hage, contractor; Mark Hudson, realtor; Ed Hutman, long term care insurance specialist; Brian Rozen, professional organizer; Joseph Zalis, mortgage broker and executive director, Lois Fishman, Certified Financial Planner. All members live and practice in Montgomery County, MD.

The SR Alliance of Suburban Maryland is part of a national organization bearing the same name, with similar service groups throughout the country. The organization was created in 2005 and has more than 500 chapters across the country.

Brian Beers, a representative of the national SR Alliance, credits the rapid growth of chapters across the country to the value that is immediately passed along to its clients. "When you're researching professional services individually, there is often much time and research needed in each decision. However, when seniors are given one go-to resource that can fill many different needs, along with the assurance that each professional has long served the senior market, there's an immediate sense of trust and comfort."

Seniors, family members and caregivers in Montgomery County can now visit one website (www.srasubmd.com), or call one telephone number (301-330-9455) to find contact information and details on each business involved in the Alliance, along with trusted resources to assist in their pre- or post-retirement planning.

"We are quite discerning in choosing new members for the Alliance," added Ron Landsman, a core member of the group. "Each member is established and knowledgeable, with a proven dedication to the senior market. And, while we are only at seven members right now, we hope to continue to grow." The group hopes to add services such as care managers, home healthcare providers, transportation services, moving specialists and personal services like home shoppers.

The Alliance is led by financial planner and Certified Senior Advisor (CSA) Lois Fishman, who has been professionally accredited by the Society of Certified Senior Advisors to ensure that her Alliance is properly trained to focus on the issues of seniors and their families. The group meets monthly to learn about the most pressing issues among the senior community, how they can better serve seniors and how they can accelerate their own professional development.

"It's really about serving the community," noted Fishman. "Our plan is to host a series of brunches to introduce ourselves to the community- both seniors and other professionals."

For more on the SR Alliance of Suburban Maryland, please visit www.srasubmd.com or call 301-330-9455.

The SR Alliance of Suburban Maryland is a network of small business owners dedicated to serving the needs of seniors throughout Montgomery County. Led by Certified Senior Advisor (CSA), Lois Fishman, the group of community professionals offers a complete range of services and resources to assist seniors and their families in the retirement planning process - everything from financial planning to real estate, legal services to insurance - and are each trained in the issues that matter most to their senior clientele. To learn more, visit www.srasubmd.com

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