Kid Investors?

Holland’s story is the backdrop of “Braving Our Savings,” a new children’s book that illustrates the power of investing and long-term planning versus short-term impulse buying.

It’s written by Sarah Samuels ’04, who, in her 20-year career in finance, has led the portfolio management of $45 billion public markets and hedge-fund portfolios and has been responsible for the endowment of Wellesley College, among other roles. She’s also served on boards and investment committees of varied organizations, including the UNH Foundation, Girls Who Invest and the CFA Society Boston. She founded the Boston chapter of Private Equity Women Investor Network (PEWIN).

She is currently a partner at Boston-based NEPC and oversees the firm’s investment managers research teams across public equities and credit, hedge funds and private markets.

The book is part of an initiative Samuels dubbed “30 Seconds of Bravery,” which aims to teach children and their families that being brave and taking risks — even for just 30 seconds at a time — can have big rewards. It’s based on lessons she’s teaching her own daughters, ages 7 and 10.

Through endorsements and networking, more than 2,000 books have been sold and donated. Samuels is aiming to share the book and its accompanying curriculum with children everywhere, especially those in underrepresented communities. She points to the fact that only 2% of capital is managed by women and people of color. That’s partly why the book aims to reach diverse groups by using a variety of voices and characters. “I wanted to show that things that feel very inaccessible can be accessible. If you have a homogenous group of people investing all the capital, then the world will not change. We need to be lifting up certain groups to bring about the change we need.”

Books have been given away to local nonprofits and schools, and Samuels is looking to do more. A UNH connection is helping too: Matt Witkos ’89, head of North American sales at Morgan Stanley and fellow UNH Foundation board member, purchased books on behalf of UNH to distribute to 50 libraries in the Granite State. Samuels is thankful for the endorsements and partnerships she’s received already, including big names in pro sports like the NFL’s Jonathan Jones, Brandon Copeland and Kyle Arrington and baseball star Alex Rodriguez, to name a few. She’s also partnered with the Boys and Girls Clubs of Boston.

Samuels, who started as an administrative assistant, says she never expected to be so successful in the financial world. She credits role models and education — and has a firm belief in paying it forward. As she said in a recent media interview, “I don’t get to keep what was given to me so freely.”