There’s nothing that can capture the feelings of exhilaration, heartbreak and tension quite like March Madness. Between 20-point comebacks, double-digit seeds advancing, or game-winning buzzer-beaters, this tournament is one of the peak moments for basketball fans every year.
As a way to celebrate the opening day of the tournament, Oak Partners hosted a watch party event with clients on Thursday, March 20. The event was hosted at Culinary Misfits in Crown Point.
Mike Barancyk, senior partner and wealth advisor with Oak Partners, is a big fan of having this day dedicated to relaxing and enjoying the games.
“This is an event where we take the day off away from work and enjoy the start of the NCAA tournament,” Barancyk said. “We celebrate this event with our clients and everybody always looks forward to it.”
More than 200 attendees showed up at Culinary Misfits to partake in the celebration. Oak Partners extended the invitation to not only its clients, but also its guests.
“It’s a great place for clients to bring friends or guests so they can meet our team and learn more about Oak Partners,” Barancyk said. “This is essentially that first appointment for us to get to know these guests a little bit better.”
This year marked the 13th rendition of the Oak Partners March Madness event. The growth of this basketball watch party event has made it a staple on the company’s annual calendar.
“We try to give back as much as we possibly can,” Barancyk said. “We do an ice skating event every winter. We have movie events for the clients where they can bring their kids or grandchildren. One of our biggest events that we do in the fall is Oaktoberfest where we have more than 600 clients come together to listen to music. All of the events that we put together are about having a good time with our clients and close friends.”
Indiana is considered to be the home of basketball by many, so it might come as a surprise that only one school in the state is being represented in this year’s NCAA Division I men’s basketball tournament.
Purdue University was the one seed in the Midwest Regional last year and third seed overall. Despite the team having smaller chances to win this year’s tournament, that didn’t stop lifelong fans like Barancyk from cheering them on as they battled High Point University in the opening round.
“As a Purdue graduate, I’m all in on our team,” Barancyk said. “It might be hard to match what our team did last year in going to the championship game, but I’m still going to be rooting for my team.”
Most of the attendees at the event are rooting for the Purdue Boilermakers. Cheers and roars flooded the restaurant as they won their first game 75-63.
Another Purdue fan who loves the atmosphere of this event is Steve Kavois, partner and wealth advisor. The best feeling for Kavois when it comes to this event is to see how some clients are willing to go the extra mile just to support Oak Partners.
“These traditions are something that our clients have come to expect,” Kavois said. “They look forward to a lot of the events that we do every year. Some of them even plan their schedules around our events so they can come into town and be a part of these celebrations.”
Oak Partners has plenty of clients who come from the Region. Celebrating the game of basketball, which has been a part of Indiana’s history for more than a century, is one of the many ways that Oak Partners likes to build relationships.
“A lot of our partners and advisors were born and raised in Northwest Indiana,” Kavois said. “Basketball has always been a big deal throughout the state. A lot of the clientele has primarily been a part of these Indiana communities, so it all ties in with who we are.”
For more information on Oak Partners, you can visit its website.
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