Who Am I: Lou Oberman

Posted by K2 on Nov 19, 2017
 
Lou was born in Manhattan . . . New York City. His parents were from Poland and his father was a retail jeweler. Growing up, Lou was nuts about baseball and wanted to be a Major League Baseball player. He played every position except for pitcher, spending most of his time behind the plate as catcher. During his senior year, his high school baseball team won the 1949 NYC Baseball Championship. He even tried out with the NY Giants and received an invitation to go to Florida, however a serious leg infection at the time prevented him from going.
 
Lou joined a real estate firm while also taking business courses at City College of New York. His weekends were still filled by playing 4-5 games of baseball against a variety of college and service teams, and he even played at Sing Sing Prison.
 
In 1950 the Korean Conflict started with Lou entering the USMC in February of 1952. He did boot camp at Parris Island, SC then was ordered to MCAS in El Toro, CA where he served as an Instrument Flight Instructor to Reserved WWII Pilots.
 
Following the Korean Conflict Lou was release to the Reserves for 6 years and returned to real estate. He got married in 1954, the same year he was recruited by a life insurance company. In 1961 he moved to Engelwood, NJ and joined the Englewood Jaycees, serving as President in 1962, chairing the 1963 North Jersey Soap Box Derby and earning Man Of The Year for his local achievements.
 
His career took a turn in 1963 when he was recruited by a financial planning firm, becoming Director of Financial Planning two years later. What made it interesting is that their office was in the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. In 1967, Lou started his own firm in New York City. During a trip to California he saw an opportunity to do financial planning in Las Angeles so he moved in 1969 and joined a Beverly Hills financial planning firm.
 
Two years later he decided to go on his own and opened a firm in Torrance, CA. In 1988, he joined LPL Financial Broker/Dealer and moved to Vista Valley Country Club in Vista, CA with his office in Rancho Bernardo. LPL Financial is where Lou met his future partner, Steve Van Houten. They moved to Encinitas and changed the name to Lifetime Financial Advisers. Lou sold his practice to Steve in 2003 while staying on as a consultant a few days a week.
 
Over the years Lou has also been involved with different projects as an entrepreneur investor:
 
  • 1979 – Orthotic shoe inserts primarily for athletes and runners with back or foot issues. Lou worked with a Podiatrist who fulfilled the final product to the end user, however the Podiatrist eventually backed out with pressure from others.
  • 1991 – Lou purchased a franchised Mexican fast food restaurant with a client for his two sons to operate. Both sons stayed for 6 months and were not impressed. So Lou sold the business to his partner who eventually sold out to a very large California fast food chain.
  • 2008 – Invented golf clubs (wedges and a putter) with shafts which would separate into two equal sections, by a connector, which Lou patented. The assembled clubs were used for practice only, indoors or outdoors, with special plastic golf balls which wouldn't harm cars, walls or windows. The package included a putting cup, hitting mat and a case to hold all the pieces. Lou abandoned the project when he became a caregiver for his loving partner, Gloria.
Lou has been married twice, with 3 children by his first wife, plus 3 grandchildren. He’s also been in 2 serious relationships and recently met Nancy who many of us have met. He divides his time between golf, volunteering at the Flying Leatherneck Aviation Museum, and as a Convention of States volunteer (District Captain 4 years). Lou has also been very dedicated to Rotary, He first joined in 1981 and is a 5 time Paul Harris Fellow. He join the DMSB Rotary Club, his 4th club, in 1996 and is honored to be a member. And we are honored to have him as one.
 
Answers to the three questions:
     - Favorite movie: Amadeus
     - First 60 minutes of the day: Get up, get on computer, read Wall Street Journal, check emails (still involved in many things)
     - Saying on Billboard: Yesterday was History, Tomorrow is a Mystery, Today - the Present - is a Present.