Advisor Spotlight

The Community Foundation is here to help professional advisors better serve their clients with charitable goals. The Foundation can develop plans that fit clients’ financial needs and philanthropic passions. In this section, we like to shine a spotlight on advisors who have partnered with their clients and the Community Foundation to strengthen our region through philanthropy.

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Lauren Whiting

ESL Trust Services, LLC

Involved with the Community Foundation since 2016

How Lauren’s work fuels the power of community:

For attorney and trust officer Lauren Whiting, philanthropy starts at home. Her parents instilled in her the value of working hard at everything: being part of a family, supporting colleagues, and serving the larger community by donating time and resources to local nonprofits. Now that she and her husband have two children of their own, Lauren is finding new ways to honor her parents’ legacy and build her own.

Lauren’s children are two and four years old, but she is already talking to them about “the why” behind giving to support regional charities. Leaving for a board meeting becomes an opportunity to explain why she chooses to volunteer. Weeding out closets and toy chests becomes less about saying goodbye to cherished items and more about the joy of sharing with those in need. When possible, Lauren and her husband bring their children with them to volunteer.  Lauren hopes that as her children grow, the kindness, generosity, and empathy instilled in them will shine through in how they choose to serve their communities.

The intentional approach Lauren brings to philanthropy extends beyond her home and into her work at ESL Trust Services. After five years working in private practice as a trust and estate attorney, Lauren became a fiduciary officer in 2020. She finds that her legal background is a tremendous resource when educating her clients. In private practice, Lauren drafted wills and trusts daily; now she administers them for her clients. She enjoys helping clients through major life events, such as marriage, having children, losing a loved one, buying a new home, retiring, and planning for future generations.

Lauren first started attending Community Foundation events in 2016. Living in LeRoy, NY, one of the things she appreciates most is the Foundation’s focus on the entire eight-county region. She credits the Community Foundation for keeping her connected to the local community. The seminars, presentations, and networking events keep her engaged with her peers and aware of new philanthropic planning strategies. She is currently the vice chair of the Foundation’s Professional Advisor Liaison Committee.

Lauren’s advice for client conversations:
“I always mention philanthropy in client meetings. If you never ask, they will never know you are able to help them with that goal.”

Charitable involvement in Rochester:

Lauren is a member of the Monroe County Bar Association, the Estate Planning Council of Rochester, and the Greater Rochester Association for Women Attorneys. She also serves on the Volunteers of America Advancement Committee, Jazz for Justice Committee of the Monroe County Bar Foundation, and the board of the United Memorial Medical Center (UMMC) Foundation. Lauren also serves as vice chair of the Professional Advisors Liaison Committee at the Community Foundation.


Published March 2024