Gavin Spitzner loved the wealth management industry and the industry loved him back.
Gavin was the founder of Wealth Consulting Partners and he was one of the most well known and beloved voices in the business. He passed away on Monday according to his family after struggling with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) which he was diagnosed with in September. He leaves behind his wife and three adult children as well as a heartbroken community of financial advisors whose careers and lives have been touched by him over the last few decades.
Gavin began to feel sick last summer but he was determined to make the trip out to our wealth management festival in Huntington Beach last September. He wrote up his experience at the event so beautifully that I remember sending it around to all of my colleagues. I didn’t know that it would be the last time I would ever see him. We did a quick hi / bye as the whirlwind of the event took us away with it in opposite directions. During the day I was running around too much to sit and talk with anyone and at the parties each night it was even harder for me to spend one on one time.
A week later, Gavin made his illness public via the Sunday email blast that every leader in our business reads religiously each week. He was optimistic and incredibly detailed in his descriptions about what he was going through, how the treatments were progressing and what was on his mind as he fought through the pain.
Gavin and I had struck up a bit of a pen pal relationship over email last fall. One of the things he told me he looked forward to each week was watching CNBC’s Halftime Report each day, usually from the hospital or from a bed somewhere as he was either prepping for or recovering from some test or procedure. Knowing he was watching, I gave him a shoutout at the end of one episode rather than participating in the show-closing “final trade” segment. He wasn’t in front of the TV to see it live but he told me his phone blew up and people he hadn’t spoken to in a long time reached out.
The last time we had corresponded he told me the following:
Between your appearances and posts you continue to educate and inspire me and make me laugh (in a good way not the Joe Pesci Goodfellas way). So even if you don’t know it, you’re helping me along my journey.
Speaking of appearances, your cnbc mate Guy Adami reached out today and we great chat. Seems like a class act.
Happy Hanukkah and all my best.
I wrote him back to tell him “Im here if you need anything at all. Rest up for the next battle. All your friends are cheering for you.”
A three sentence message, sent from my phone while boarding a train or driving one of my kids somewhere or whatever. Had I known it would be the last time we would talk, I would have probably said something more profound or meaningful, but life has a way of going by too quickly without forcing us to be as intentional as we should be. And then the next thing I heard, Gavin was gone.
I want to say that people like Gavin, who stand for kindness and positivity and wishing the best for others will never truly be gone because these ideas are eternal. They are future proof. Gavin is Future Proof. The things he represented will never go out of style. He was generous, open-minded, thoughtful, knowledgable and caring. Those who knew him or learned from him or were encouraged by him will never forget what kind of a man he was and the way he made them feel.
We need to appreciate the Gavins we meet along the way while they’re here, in the moment. Because, sometimes, that moment may be our last opportunity to show someone how appreciated they are. To Gavin Spitzner’s close friends and family, my heart goes out to you all. I am so sorry for your loss.
Gavin is a husband, a father, a son, a genuine friend, and an advocate for many in the industry.@gspitzner the teams at @AdvisorCircle & @RitholtzWealth are now and will always be in your corner.
You are Future Proof. 💪🏽 pic.twitter.com/AfN26fq4zF
— Future Proof Festival (@FutureProofAC) September 17, 2022
Read this message from his family here:
Hi, this is Gavin’s family and we sadly need to let you know that after a short illness that he battled bravely, he passed on January 30, 2023. Gavin wanted all his friends, family and colleagues to know he died at peace without any regrets.
— Gavin Spitzner (@gspitzner) January 31, 2023
