Classification Talk for Andy Heath

Andy Heath
Vice President of Investments at Stifel Nicolaus & Co.
Rotary member for 5 years

I am Vice President of Investments at Stifel Nicolaus & Co.. Think of me as a financial coordinator. I oversee and coordinate the financial affairs of a select group of families and small businesses, primarily in Kansas and Missouri. I have been in the industry since 1998.

I was raised on a livestock farm in northwest Missouri and graduated high school in a class of 27 from Mound City, Missouri. Having a desire to actually date girls, I soon realized that raising 1500-3000 hogs at one time was not helping the cause (That stuff is hard to wash off!)
A talent for singing and music helped change my direction. I was fortunate to be accepted as the only soloist in “America’s Youth in Concert” and enjoyed a summer touring and performing in the great concert halls of Europe. At age 18, I received a standing ovation in our Carnegie Hall debut, and was honored to sing before the Pope at St. Peter’s Basilica.

I married my wife Tammy while still in college, graduated in three years with a business degree from Central Missouri State University, and packed our bags to head for Nashville, Tennessee. We have since sung on the Grand Ole Opry, The Nashville Network, recorded dozens of commercial jingles and traveled to 122 countries as headline performers on luxury cruise ships and resorts around the world. Our love for the ocean and luxury cruising in particular led me to becoming the cruise director on Regent Seven Seas Cruises—voted multiple times as World’s Best Cruise Line by Conde Nast Traveler magazine. Clearly, I didn’t love the ocean enough—how else can you explain the move to Kansas!

Perhaps my most significant life experience was becoming a liver donor in 2000 for my friend Mike Gagen. Adult living liver transplants were a rare procedure at that time and continue to be uncommon. To be given the opportunity to try and save my friend’s life was a gift to me. I currently serve on the board of directors of Gift of Life and the Kansas City Chorale. I am also a past board president of Medical Missions Foundation.

I believe contributing to my community and my fellow man is not an act or donation, but a way of living. That is why I chose Rotary as a vehicle for making a difference. With Rotary I didn’t have to lose precious time reinventing the wheel. All that is required of me is to step forward and help turn it.