What's in a Name?

I’m Terence O’Grady.  But most folks call me Terry.  My dad named me after an Irish author who also spelled Terence with one “r.”   There’s a few other one “r” Terences.  Terence Stamp, the English actor.  Terence Hill, the Italian actor.  And Terence Young, the director of three James Bond films, including Dr. No.

Director Terence Young and Sean Connery

Terence Stamp

Terence Hill

Personal Life

I married a beautiful Puerto Rican girl, Enid.  Like Enid, Oklahoma or Dr. Kelso’s wife on Scrubs.  Enid's newfound interest in professional tennis continued to amaze.  I was the last line of defense between her and Argentina's Juan Martin Del Potro.  Dr. KelsoDespite my live-in tutor, I’m still stuck in Spanish for Gringos, Level One. 

Enid passed away in 2023 after her lifelong battle with Sickle-cell Anemia.

I grew up in St. Petersburg, FL, the oldest of three kids in what I’ve concluded was a relatively typical middle-class American family.  My parents joined a tennis club so we could all use the pool.  Once we found the tennis courts though, we never dipped a toe.

I never imagined that I’d be in financial services, much less a CFP® professional.  What kid dreams of being a financial planner?  I wanted to be like Jim Reed, the cool cop on Adam-12.

Pete Malloy & Jim Reed

Even with a father and sister in the industry, both CFP® professionals, I still wasn’t interested in the family business.  

Turning Pro

In need of a gig, I took a call center job with T. Rowe Price.  A solid mutual fund provider, learned a lot, even picked up my CFP® designation.  Despite how much fun those Discover Card phone reps seem to be having with their doppelgänger, fielding phone calls all day was not my lifelong dream.

A couple more jobs in the industry before I realized I could do this the way I wanted and with who I wanted.  And now I’m what’s called a Registered Investment Adviser.  Technically I’m an Investment Adviser Representative of a Registered Investment Adviser (RIA).  In this case, it’s one and the same.  I’m the owner of the firm, the RIA, O’Grady Financial LLC, as well as the Investment Adviser Representative.

There’s no longer a manager telling what to do, what to sell, and who I should sell it to.  No products to push or quotas to make.  As a fiduciary, I’m legally bound to do what is in the best interest of my clients.

A New Mission

A chance encounter at an industry conference in Boston last summer opened my eyes to a new outlook on handling finances.  New to me anyway.  I’m Christian and even led Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University at my church a few times.  But it wasn’t until I met a group of fellow advisors, part of Kingdom Advisors®, that it really hit me.  It’s all God’s anyway.  We’re just trying to be the best managers of the assets He’s entrusted to us while we’re here.

Like most advisors, when it came to the investments, I focused on Modern Portfolio Theory, asset allocation, and aligning risk tolerance with appropriate portfolios.  I never gave a second thought to what the underlying companies did, promoted, or practiced as long as their returns were comparable to accepted standards.

But maybe what we’re invested in, is as much, or an even more critical part of the process.  That’s what Biblically Responsible Investing (BRI) is all about.  Do the companies you’re investing in, either directly or through mutual funds, align with your values? 

I can filter out the companies that participate in the industries that don’t honor God, and screen in the ones that do. We can match a portfolio to your values, beliefs, and convictions…a portfolio that honors and worships God.

I’m not a theologian or Bible scholar.  Never been to seminary.  But as a CFP® professional, I’ve been trained in the techniques our culture uses to handle money.  I’m digging deeper into the principles God wants us to use to manage his money.  Techniques may change...principles remain.  If you’d like a seat on this journey, I’d be honored to be your guide.

Dakota - Head of Security

Dakota is one half of the security team.  We adopted her from a rescue group set up at PetSmart when she was 8-weeks old.  Told she was a German Shepherd mix, but DNA results confirmed Shiba Inu, Chow Chow, and Mastiff mix.  Weighing in at 77 pounds, Dakota is good at keeping Amazon packages on the porch.

Kansas - Detective

Kansas is also a rescue find after the original owner realized she wasn’t growing into the Alaskan Husky he desired.  Because she’s not.  DNA results say Chinese Crested, Samoyed, and Shih Tzu crossed with Chow Chow and Rottweiler.  Kansas is the other half of the security team, usually playing the role of bad cop.