National Volunteer Week: Spotlight on Gerald Goldberg

Can you tell us a little about yourself and what you do at Focus?

I’m part of the advisory leadership team at Focus, and in my role as Division President, I see my primary responsibility as being an advocate for our advisors. My job is to make sure they have everything they need to help their clients have a truly spectacular experience.

The other thing I’m very proud of is serving as the executive sponsor for community impact at the firm. Service and volunteering are priorities I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about, particularly how we can create more opportunities for people to get involved and give back in a meaningful way.

How did you first get involved in volunteering, and what drew you to it?

Like many things, it starts at home. My father grew up in the Lower East Side projects in New York, and my maternal grandfather came through Ellis Island with just the clothing on his back. So, we’re talking about very modest beginnings. And through hard work, effort, and a little bit of luck, they were able to build a life here and provide for their family.

When you think about how many things had to go right for that to happen, and how many things could have gone wrong, it instilled in me a real sense of appreciation and gratitude. That, in part, shaped my perspective then and continues to do so today. I’ve always believed that if you’ve been fortunate, you should find ways to pay it forward. The way I try to actualize that is by doing my best to give back and to make it easier for others to do so as well.

When I was younger, my parents were active in a variety of organizations, including the Lions Club, which was raising money for people who were visually impaired. I remember being in grade school and thinking how lonely that must be, not having your eyesight. That really stuck with me. It was one of those early lessons that it’s not just about us. We have an obligation to provide for those who cannot provide for themselves.

As our own family was growing up, my wife and I made it a priority to be involved in our community as well. Early on, that meant supporting local education and being active in our kids’ schools. Over time, that expanded into tackling food insecurity, which is something we’ve spent a lot of time focused on.

What types of volunteer work or causes do you feel most passionate about?

I’m most drawn to helping people who can’t help themselves, especially those who are most vulnerable.

At the same time, I like thinking about how to scale solutions. In most communities, you’ve got a handful of what I’d call “super volunteers.” It’s five or ten people who just get it done. They show up again and again, until one day they just can’t anymore because they’re burned out. So, the question becomes, how do you avoid that? How do you expand the base of volunteers, so the work doesn’t always fall on the same people?

One of the areas I’m working on right now is helping to create a volunteer service network in Connecticut called NeighborhoodCT. The idea is to scale those groups of super volunteers and expand them into larger groups. If you can go from 10 volunteers in a town to 20, and then do that across multiple communities, it creates a cascading effect. To paraphrase John Heywood, “Many hands make the workload lighter.”

More Perfect is another organization with which we are involved. It’s a cross-partisan group focused on reinvesting in American democracy, and one of their pillars is public service. My family helped support the development of a strategic plan to expand the number of community service opportunities for young people from about 125,000 to a million over time. We’re not there yet, but we’re making forward progress.

As an outgrowth of that effort, I’ve also been collaborating with folks at the Carnegie Corporation on ways to expand public service opportunities nationally, including helping to co-chair a private sector working group. The work is multifaceted and still evolving, but the goal is the same, which is figuring out how to scale this in a meaningful way. It is my belief that through efforts like this we can move the needle and inspire a new generation to serve.

Can you share a meaningful or memorable volunteering experience that has stayed with you?

A few weeks ago, I was down in Baltimore visiting one of our teams, and they arranged for us to pack backpacks for kids at risk of experiencing food insecurity over the weekend.

With the help of Weekend Backpacks Baltimore, we packed more than 360 backpacks, and it felt great knowing those kids were going to be taken care of for that weekend. But what really hit me was realizing that this organization is doing that for thousands of kids every week.

Reflecting on how pervasive the needs are within that community was a little overwhelming, to be honest. But at the same time, it felt meaningful to know we helped those 360 kids. That combination of making a tangible difference while seeing how vast the need is stays with you.

What role do you think companies or industries can play in supporting their communities and making a positive impact?

I believe companies can play an invaluable role in supporting communities. We live in a polarized world where a lot of people have become disconnected. They’re not part of communities the way they used to be, and that can lead to isolation and a whole range of challenges.

Corporations can play an invaluable role if we create our own opportunities for people to connect. Through connection, you have the opportunity to build trust. And with trust, anything is possible.

It’s also what people want. Yes, people care about compensation and career growth, but they also want to be part of something that stands for more than just making money. I believe that if you can lead with heart and show that your organization has values, people will naturally gravitate towards you.

What message or hope would you share with others this National Volunteer Week?

There’s a quote from Mahatma Gandhi that resonates with me: “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.”

I’ve found that to be true. It’s not just about you or even just about your immediate circle. It’s about thinking more broadly and finding ways, in whatever way is authentic to you, to make a difference in the broader world.

What would you say to someone who wants to get involved but isn’t sure where to start?

Don’t overthink it. There’s always going to be a reason not to do something: it’s not the right time, you’re too busy, you’re not sure where to start. Don’t let perfection be the enemy of progress. Just get out there and do it.