My Story

As a Ramsey Solutions Financial Master Coach, Leslie offers wisdom and cultivates hope within her clients as they progress toward their financial wellness goals. Her relationship with money over the past three decades has influenced where she is today. Join her in reflecting on the journey.

A NEW GRAD

Upon entering adulthood, money was something that I never thought about much. Graduating from college with a computer science degree meant that I would always have a ton of money - or so I thought. The year after I graduated, I married my husband Dwayne who was also a recent college graduate. We were united in holy matrimony which also included the merging of our finances. In addition to two salaries, we also brought two shiny new car notes into the marriage. These car notes combined exceeded our monthly rent payment and contributed to a total of almost $50,000 in debt. At the time, I wasn’t too concerned. After all, we were D.I.N.K.s (double income, no kids).

Fast forward a few years - I’m expecting our first child. We both felt God prompting us to become a one-income family. In other words, I would transition out of my lucrative career and care for our new baby full-time. The only problem was that I made twice as much as Dwayne. We would be taking over a 50% cut in pay! Now, we had to start thinking about money.

A NEW MOM

Throughout my pregnancy, I began devouring books on personal finance and financial stewardship. I was motivated to learn all I could about money management so that we could survive as a family of three on one income. We began applying several newfound principles to our finances. Around the time my son was born, my husband was blessed with a new job and a large pay increase. Thankfully, we were in a better position to manage the increase as we were now budgeting and aggressively trying to pay off our car loans and credit cards.

A NEW PASSION

Now that I was home with our baby, I listened to daily radio programming (pre-podcast days) focused on building strong families as well as managing money. One of my favorites was the “The Dave Ramsey Show.” I learned about his “7 Baby Steps” and immediately shared them with my husband. We were on a mission at that point! Listening to Dave Ramsey provide financial counsel daily ignited a spark in my heart to one day help others with their money.

Over the next decade, we were blessed with two more children and continued to try to manage our money well. Of course, we made some mistakes and bad decisions along the way. As I continued to learn, I began casually helping family members, co-workers, friends, and church members with their finances. In hopes of impacting even more people, I began teaching an 8-week financial stewardship class for women and also launched a financial stewardship ministry at my church. This marked the birth of a new passion.

A NEW TRANSITION

Around this time, my husband decided to go back to school full-time to pursue a two-year graduate degree. Going back to work was not an option for me since I was homeschooling the kids. What’s wrong with this picture? We were already a one-income family. How do you become a no-income family of five? Well, we did! Dwayne did pick up a part time job, but we still took another massive cut in pay - over 60% this time. Of course, that transition kept us laser focused on managing our money well. After graduation, he did not return to his six-figure corporate job, but instead entered the ministry full-time.

A NEW CALLING

Fast forward a few years - Dwayne shared with me that he felt called to relocate from Maryland to North Carolina to start a new church. My initial response was, “Aren’t there enough churches in NC?” After a year of prayer, discussion and preparation, we answered the call and moved to North Carolina. What I did not realize initially was that he felt called to build the church full-time and live off of donations from churches and organizations for the first two years. Yup, you guessed it - another cut in pay. I soon learned first hand that when God gives a vision, He makes provision.

I share all of these highlights to say that God has taken us on a journey that has kept us alert to wise money management and in a constant posture of learning. I have learned so many life, faith, and financial lessons along the way. It is my passion and privilege to help others with all that I have been entrusted.

A NEW SEASON

I recently retired from a wonderful and fruitful 22-year home education career. Dwayne and I are now empty-nesters with our youngest son in college. God has blessed us abundantly, despite all of the pay cuts, career changes, and the unexpected relocation. While we have not yet reached all of our financial wellness goals, we have certainly reaped the benefits of applying sound financial principles to our lives.

Over the past twenty years, I have walked alongside many people seeking to improve their financial situations. I’m excited to help countless more individuals, couples and families through Manage Well Financial. I can’t wait to work with you and for you!