February 2015 - Parks & Recreation - 59

Staff Spotlight: Larry Allen

hey say you can't keep a good man down, and that's certainly true
of Larry Allen. Not even the sweet embrace of retirement could best
this numbers whiz, who, at the spry age of 61, decided to re-enter the
working world as NRPA's director of accounting. " [After a year of
retirement] in the words of the great John Riggins, I decided, 'I'm bored, I'm
broke, and I'm back!' " he says. Those who have enjoyed the pleasure of working with Allen during his five-plus years here at headquarters are certainly glad
for it. We convinced NRPA's resident numbers cruncher to shelve his abacus
for a moment and give us some insight into his personal and professional life.
Parks & Recreation magazine: Tell
us a bit about your background before you came to NRPA.
Larry Allen: I have a bachelor's degree in economics and business from
Emory & Henry College and a BCS
in accounting from Benjamin Franklin University. After graduating, I
worked at a CPA firm for several
years, then a few for-profit organizations. These organizations provided me valuable accounting and
business experience before entering
the nonprofit world. Since coming
to the association community, I have
worked with the building industry
for 10 years and the industrial design
industry for 14 years.
P&R: What drew you to your current
position?
Allen: After 24 years in the nonprofit
community, with the last six as chief
financial officer, I found myself
spending more time working on legal issues, personnel issues, politics
and other nonaccounting responsibilities. So at the age of 60, I decided to retire. [A year later] I talked
with some staff about NRPA, its
mission and specifically the role of
director of accounting. It felt like a
wonderful opportunity and matched
my qualifications and desires with
its needs. I applied, NRPA offered

and I hope we have both been happy
since.
P&R: What's your number-one financial tip for young people?
Allen: Most everyone who gives
young people financial advice tells
them starting to save money early is
the key. This is extremely important.
Even if you are only saving a small
amount to begin with, it forms good
financial habits that stick, and even
small amounts compound to larger
amounts over time. Beyond that,
but also important, is developing a
system of tracking your savings and
spending. Regularly prepare a net
worth statement (assets/liabilities/
net worth) to watch your savings as
they grow over time. At some point,
the bell rings and you find yourself
looking forward to the next time you
prepare your net worth statement
and seeing your investments grow.
Also, prepare an earnings and expense statement. Once you see how
large some of your discretionary
expense totals are, you may consider adjusting your spending patterns
and saving a little more.
P&R: Do your family and friends ask
you to do their taxes? And, if so, do
you do them?
Allen: Not after they see my rates!

I keep these as high as possible so
people won't ask.
P&R: What are your interests outside of work?
Allen: I enjoy time with my family.
[My wife of 41 years] Lynne and I
have a granddaughter who just turned
two who has a wonderful personality.
She is just beginning to string words
together into sentences, so it's still really fun to guess what her expressions
are trying to communicate.
I enjoy having a boxer around the
house. Gus is our fourth boxer (we
love the breed), and while there are
similarities between them all, each
one has had a distinctively different
personality. Gus is our timid one.
I also enjoy operating large construction equipment. While at home, I have
a small tractor that I use to attempt
to do as much yard work as possible.
But through friends in the equipment
industry I have had the opportunity to
operate backhoes, dozers, excavators
and even an articulating logger skidder. It's like being a kid again, but with
large expensive toys!
- Samantha Bartram, Associate Editor of Parks & Recreation magazine

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