More than 70 AIM Alumni gathered at Kirby Ice House for our ninth annual Houston reunion. We were thrilled that Mike Cemo joined the crowd of returning and new faces. It was a great evening to catch up with friends and colleagues. 

Sharing memories, laughs and updates included discussions about the $5.7 billion in stock Invesco is paying for Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co.'s Oppenheimer Funds unit. The deal is expected to close at the end of the second quarter 2019. It will make Invesco the 13th largest global investment manager and the sixth largest retail investment manager in the U.S. with $1.2 trillion in combined AUM. Individuals still at the firm were sharing how they will be impacted.

At the gathering, various memorabilia were displayed, including buttons with toasters on them. Frank Sererbin, Marketing Director with Sondhelm Partners, shared the story of the toaster button. Frank explained that the buttons were a marketing promotion comparing how people could invest in a CD at a bank and get a free toaster, or they could invest in AIM Charter Fund and grow their assets.

Jim Salners and his wholesalers created the toaster campaign for the AIM Charter Fund. They liked to say that if you invested in a CD and not an AIM Charter Fund, you got toasted.

Frank Sererbin

Other reminiscing included remembering when an employee threw a phone when Mr. Bauer was walking by the group. "He suggested if someone was going to throw something, phones cost $280 so a $22 keyboard would be preferable," remembered one colleague.

AIM hired many of its employees straight out of University, and AIM employees were a family at work, and outside of work, many had children about the same time. "Our babies are now 17 and 18 years old," laughed Shannon Truman.

It was a great crowd and a good time was had by all.

Dawn Hawley