Pictured (from left) are Jim Isola, Paige McCreary and Bud Fulton of Fulton Financial Advisors. Mirror photo by Patrick Waksmunski

John Forney isn’t surprised by the growth of the company he and his wife, Sherry, founded in Altoona in 2001.

Started as Forney Financial Solutions, the business now known as Fulton Financial Advisors is marking its 25th anniversary in 2026.

Forney, who now lives in Ormond Beach, Fla., worked at the Hancock Group before starting his business.

“My wife Sherry and I wanted to control our business decisions and the best way was to be in our own business. Raymond James gave us a top quality product mix, excellent training and complete flexibility to do what we felt was best for our clients,” Forney said.

The company has had Raymond James as broker/dealer since its beginning.

The business started in the now Station Medical Center before moving to its 3018 Pleasant Valley Blvd. location in 2002. Sherry retired in the spring of 2019 while John retired in September 2021.

While preparing for retirement, the Forneys sold their business to Lancaster County-based Fulton Bank.

“Fulton Bank had a large Raymond James practice and wanted to access the Altoona market. Our clients would not experience any change in their accounts other than having Fulton’s name on their statements along with Raymond James. In addition, they agreed to keep our staff and pay scale,” Forney said.

“Fulton Bank seemed like the best offer,” said Bud Fulton, who had joined Forney’s company in 2016 after selling his business, IS2 Technology.

Today, Fulton Financial Advisors features three financial advisors/vice presidents: Fulton, Jim Isola and Paige McCreary and sales assistant Alicia Smith. The business also has an office in State College.

The bulk of the business focuses on financial and retirement planning, Fulton said.

Fulton Financial Advisors has about 30 retirement plans and about 1,800 clients, which includes 1,200 families, Fulton said. The firm has clients in about 20 states but about 90% of clients are in Blair and Centre counties.

Jim Carrieri of Altoona has been a client for more than 20 years. He said he met Forney when he was retiring from McLanahan Corporation and decided to entrust his entire retirement plan with the firm.

“I went with a couple of firms but John got me better returns and the communication was good,” Carrieri said. “They were willing to listen to you and know what your goals are. They don’t try to pressure you into anything.”

He said the transition to Fulton was seamless, as Bud Fulton has a similar personality as Forney. The staff has worked with him consistently to clarify his goals and help evolve his portfolio.

Fulton Financial Advisors has grown to more than $300 million in assets.

“We expected significant growth as we had experienced after stepping out on our own,” Forney said. “Fulton agreed with our forecasts, the office has exceeded our expectations.”

The use of modern technology has helped.

“Technology has become a critical part of it with AI adding even more. It is amazing and it continues to evolve. It boils down to the client experience, they expect to make money. How they are treated is even more important,” Fulton said. “You treat customers the way you would want to be treated.”

“The key to success is not being revenue-driven, keeping our clients’ interests first and functioning as a fiduciary advisor. Our clients knew they came first,” Forney said.

Fulton said a succession plan is in place as he is 62 and Isola is in his late 50s. The future looks bright.

“There is such a huge transition with baby boomers, 10,000 a day are retiring. The transition of wealth over the next 10 to 20 years will be substantial. We are trying to stay current with technology and using the tools that are available,” Fulton said.

Mirror Staff Writer Walt Frank is at 814-946-7467.