Charles McDonald

I believe financial education changes lives, and I've spent over two decades proving it.

After earning my engineering degree from the University of Michigan and MBA from the University of Washington, I spent more than 20 years at UBS Financial Services on an advisory team managing over $1.2 billion in assets. I worked across portfolio management, financial planning, compliance, marketing, and staffing for hundreds of families.

But my most meaningful work often happened in the smallest moments. I once spent 20 minutes with a client's grandson talking about his first job, walking him through benefits and retirement plans. That conversation probably shaped his financial future more than anything he'd learned in school. Those exchanges are why I left engineering and chose this profession.

Today, I work independently with business owners navigating transitions. As a Certified Financial Planner and Certified Exit Planning Advisor, I bring experience from being genuinely part of my clients' lives, not just their portfolios. I've attended their retirement parties, weddings, and graduations.

I've also served the CFP Board for seven years, performing curriculum reviews and creating exam content. Now I teach business administration at Central Oregon Community College, focusing on underrepresented communities, including the Warm Springs Consolidated Tribes and Oregon Department of Corrections students.

I grew up in Grand Rapids, the first in my family to attend college. That shaped everything I believe about education creating opportunity. After 30 years in Seattle, I moved to Bend with my wife of 29 years. Our two children graduated college debt-free, one now in medical school, the other a junior. That's among my proudest accomplishments.

Outside of work, I teach yoga, play golf, work on cars, and make music. I played professionally in a Seattle band years ago. I'm a continuous learner who loves trying new things and meeting new people.