by Liz Mangelsdorf

“We must give to others and the world.  It is not ours to own and we must leave a positive impression as we pass by on our journey.”

Local entrepreneur, mother and community leader takes her passion to the presses.  Ashley Parks, CFP®, has released her new book: The Saving Seed: Growing a Financially Healthy Family Tree to help families and communities uncover what financial roots they have and how to model positive financial behaviors with their children.

Ashley is actively involved in her community and feels deeply that we are all products of our surroundings.  We all have a personal root system that has been developing throughout our lives.  Ashley’s career has offered her amazing insight into the personal lives of individuals that she comes in contact with on a daily basis.  That insight, along with her own personal journey, spurred her to put her passion on paper.  The stories and personal experiences over her career motivated her to write a book geared towards helping families gain not only personal well-being, but financial well-being too.  The Saving Seed is Ashley’s gift to others.  Her philosophy on life is one of becoming self and becoming greater than our temporal world suggests.  “What can we do that will positively impact others and allow us to grow?”

Ashley Parks had been practicing financial planning for over a decade.  In her daily client interactions and in simply talking with people about her profession, people began sharing their personal stories of family roots and where the good and bad financial habits began.  What led Ashley to write her book was a culmination of forces.   At work she was being exposed to why people viewed and used money the way they did and the stories behind them.  The daily media coverage was painting a picture of families who were living above their means and taking on too much debt. As a mother, she saw firsthand how modeling behaviors planted seeds in our children and how habits take root.  As Ashley puts it, “I felt compelled to make an impact on the world and could no longer try to make changes one conversation at a time.  I had to do something bigger.”

“The seeds we plant in our children, as the seeds that were planted in us, shape who they are and who they grow up to be.  Those seeds determine the strength and character of the root system that develops.  The financial seeds that are planted determine what our family money tree will look like.  What seeds are you planting?  Is your family money tree healthy and strong?  This book will help you to understand what seeds to plant, determine what kind of roots you have and how to grow a financially healthy family money tree,” says Parks.

The Saving Seed uses the author’s personal and professional experiences to help people uncover the roots of their financial behaviors, improve the financial health of their family tree and teach the next generation to be financially healthy.

Ashley Bogard Parks, CFP® holds a Bachelors of Business Administration from Texas A&M University and a Graduate Certificate in Financial Planning from Southern Methodist University.  She has been advising clients since 1999 in her hometown of Dallas, Texas where she resides with her family.