Bellefontaine Raymond James financial advisor and longtime contributor to the Logan County community has announced her retirement.
After spending more than 30 years in the finance industry, Karen Medaris is leaving the business. Medaris has owned her financial advising business, Raymond James, at 1041 S. Main St., for 14 years.
She also spent time teaching finance classes for more than 20 years at the Ohio Hi-Point Career Center.
Listen to Medaris tell stories from her career and explain what teaching means to her
Medaris got her start at Edward Jones in Pontiac, IL in the early 1980s. At the time, she was recognized by Edward Jones as the fifth woman in the financial industry in the entire country. She moved to Bellefontaine in 1982 to pursue a job opening with Edward Jones.
Listen to how Medaris got her start
Medaris says she quickly fell in love with the city. She got the job with Edward Jones in Bellefontaine and became the first female financial advisor in all of Logan County.
Listen to Medaris discuss being a female leader in her industry
In 1986, Medaris started her own independent financial contracting business through Raymond James. She says her business in Bellefontaine was not about making a sale, it was about building relationships.
The first step in Medaris’s retirement was selling her business to Katterhenry Investment Group, of Wells Fargo Advisors Network in November last year.
Medaris served as an Edward Jones limited partner, 14 years on the Raymond James Executive Council, President of the Bellefontaine Rotary Club, Bellefontaine Exchange Club, Bellefontaine Soroptimist Club and Bellefontaine Tourist Club. She also was a Logan County Chamber of Commerce Director, Logan Co. Leadership Chair, President of RTC’s Board of Trustees and was Rotarian of the Year.
She currently serves on the Logan Co. United Way Board, Bellefontaine Rotary Board of Trustees, Logan Co. Hospice Board, Logan Co. Children Service’s Board, Logan Co. Representative for the Selective Services Board and as Vice President of the Exchange Club
Medaris talks about why it's important to her to stay involved in the community
