Upstream Financial

A Catholic-Centered Approach to Wealth Planning Serving faithful Catholic families, business owners, priests, and religious orders Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, You work hard to provide for your family, support your parish, and live out the Gospel call to generosity. Yet money decisions can feel overwhelming—or even conflict with your faith. I’m Michael Stanford, a Catholic financial planner who combines professional expertise with the timeless moral teaching of the Church. I help Catholic individuals and families build, protect, and pass on wealth in a way that honors God first. I serve my Catholic clients by placing faith first in every financial decision. We begin with prayer and a conversation about your vocation, family, and the causes closest to your heart (your parish, Catholic schools, pro-life work, or the missions). From there I build a complete, morally aligned plan: investments screened according to the U.S. Bishops’ guidelines (no abortion, contraception, pornography, or embryonic stem-cell research), generous giving and tithing built into the budget before anything else, retirement strategies that let you care for your family while remaining radically generous, business-owner plans that honor Catholic social teaching, estate plans that protect your children and leave a lasting gift to the Church, and special guidance for priests and religious. Everything is fee-only, fiduciary, and designed so your wealth always serves God, family, and the Gospel (never the other way around). What Makes My Practice Different Every plan begins with a Catholic Financial Discernment Conversation — we pray together and discuss your vocation and charitable priorities before we ever looking at numbers. All investments are screened according to the U.S. Bishops’ Socially Responsible Investment Guidelines — no companies involved in abortion, contraception, embryonic stem-cell research, or pornography. I myself am a daily Mass-going Catholic, Knight of Columbus, and donor to Catholic causes — I practice what I preach. I never earn commissions on insurance or investment products — I am fee-only (fiduciary 100 % of the time). Peace of Mind in an Often-Confusing World Imagine knowing that: Your money is growing prudently and morally Your family is protected if something happens to you You are on track to retire without ever reducing your giving Your estate plan funds Masses, seminarians, or your parish school for generations Let’s Start the Conversation Complimentary “Catholic Wealth Checkup” (60–90 minutes, no pressure) We will review where you are today, celebrate what you’re already doing well, and map out a plan that puts God first, family second, and wealth in service of both.