Join us for our weekly “Rock Reflections,” a series celebrating Trinity alumni. From 48 states to countries worldwide, our graduates are making an impact, and we'll share their stories on Trinity's website and social media.
This week's profile is about Todd Turney '81
This week, we’re reflecting with Todd Turney ’81 in a Q & A interview. Todd and his wife, Wendy, are wealth managers in Hong Kong.
Where did you go to grade school?
I attended lots of grade schools starting in Memphis, Tennessee, to Pleasanton, California, before Louisville. St. Albert the Great is where I went for three years before entering Trinity.
What made you choose Trinity for high school?
My older brother, Chris, was at Trinity, and I don't recall being given any other choice. I was excited to attend. He had just won his first of two state championships in football in 1976, and I certainly wanted to be a part of that program.
What activities/athletics/clubs were you involved with at Trinity?
I was focused on sports. I played football all four years and baseball my first two years. Honestly, I don't recall any clubs, which I regret now. I am far more curious as a "life learner" now than I ever was as a teenager at Trinity. One of my missed opportunities. If I could do it over, I would diversify and expand my experiences. I encourage current students to stretch out of their comfort zones.
Do you have any family members who attended Trinity?
My older brother, Chris, Class of ’78 and my younger brother, Scott, Class of ’84. We all still follow Trinity closely and bleed Shamrock Green! We are quite grateful to be a part of four football state championships between us. Though given the success of Trinity over the decades, I am sure there are quite a few families that have more than four.
Do you have a favorite memory from your time at Trinity?
I have many great memories of Trinity and that period of my life. As I get on in the years, they all become favorite memories. The commonality of all the memories is wonderful people – friends, classmates, teammates, coaches and teachers. We all worked together to accomplish goals, learn and have fun – in the classroom, on the field, on campus, and socially. I am grateful every day for the Trinity experience, which was really about the people, the brothers, the family and the culture. Trinity has a unique and inclusive culture that gets into your blood and stays with you for life. A brotherhood I am proud to be a part of.
What do you remember about the day-to-day life at Trinity?
In a word: camaraderie. My recollection is one of days around friends, classmates, teammates, teachers and coaches. Trinity draws kids from across the city and across the socio-economic spectrum, which is one of its attractions. Getting to know, appreciating and respecting fellow students who come from different backgrounds was as much a part of the education as that taught in the classroom. The humanity lessons I learned from my classmates were life-changing and moulded me as a person. My time at Trinity holds a special place in my heart. As alluded to earlier, Trinity is about the people and the culture built on acceptance, faith, integrity, character, discipline and accomplishment. That’s what makes it so special. Yes, it has great academics, sports, clubs and spiritual experiences. Though, honestly, a lot of high schools around the world have that. What made Trinity special and unique day to day was the people and the culture fostered by my fellow students, teachers, coaches, priests and leadership.
Who were some of your favorite teachers, coaches and moderators?
Teachers I remember fondly are Sister Jane Hall (chemistry), Sharon Bohannon H’10 (biology), Bob Hublar H’02 (physics), Father Ron Domhoff H’98 (religion) and Father Dave Zettel ’58 (student advisory/retreats). Each, in their own way, connected and made learning fun. I was sad each day when the class was over. Father Domhoff and Father Zettel taught me many faith, humanity, and life philosophies through classes, masses, and retreats that are very much a part of my spirituality today. Trinity is filled with impactful teachers – more than four short years allows one to experience.
Instrumental coaches were Dennis Lampley H’92, Harold Joyce, Joey Bryant ’75 and Dennis Brohm to name just a few. I doubt I can make any original comments here, but each of them taught me the value of hard work, discipline, commitment, teamwork, excellence, and “Defense wins Championships (wink, wink).” While my parents taught me many of these lessons, no one listens to their parents at that age. These dedicated men and women were my “guidance parents” at Trinity.
There are many more teachers and coaches to thank. I am extremely grateful for the commitment and dedication of all the teachers and coaches and staff. THANK YOU!
What did you do after you graduated from Trinity?
I went to college at Tulane University in New Orleans, which was an equally wonderful experience as Trinity. After a very slow start academically, I re-assessed my priorities and committed to being a student first and an athlete second. I graduated with a bachelor’s degree in management and was voted by my fellow students as the recipient of the prestigious Freeman School of Business Burkenroad Award for my scholarship, personal integrity and contributions to the school’s professional, social and academic community.
Following Tulane, I joined a bank in Atlanta, Georgia, (now Bank of America) to build a career in corporate finance. Following a trip to the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, South Korea, to support a former teammate at Tulane on the USA rowing team, I spent a weekend in Hong Kong and fell in love with the dynamism, energy and “can-do” attitude of the city. I, strangely, felt I was supposed to be in Asia.
So, at 26, I quit my job with a plan to just figure it out and experience my next life adventure in Hong Kong. I knew only one person in all of Asia, but the move felt right. Fortunately, when I resigned, the bank counter-offered a role to run their Rep Office in Singapore, which economically made the move to Asia a lot easier.
My job was to travel around to 13 Asian countries and Australia/New Zealand to develop business opportunities for the bank. I could not believe I was getting paid to do this. I would have done it for free.
While it was not Hong Kong, the job turned out to be a dream come true and expanded my world exponentially through new countries, cultures, people, philosophies and business opportunities. It was one of the best professional times of my life.
The experience was like starting at Trinity by exposing me to so many different people that turn out to deeply enrich my life and become lifelong friends. Always say YES to new opportunities and invitations; you never know where it will take you.
I was never far from Louisville and Trinity. I lived on a historic street in Singapore that two other people from Louisville lived on and a classmate, Paul Fischer, came to town for business at least once a year. The world can be smaller than you think.
After three years, I was asked to move back to Charlotte, North Carolina, but I was only getting warmed up in Asia. Through a web of new friends and connections, I was offered an opportunity to switch paths in finance to trading and wealth management at Salomon Brothers in Hong Kong, which in the early ’90s was one of the top Wall Street investment banks. Again, a job I would have done for free. The added benefit was that I was first sent to New York for an intense six months of training and learning on Wall Street.
Unfortunately, three years into it, Salomon shut down their private investment department. Fortunately, I was quickly recruited to join Goldman Sachs in Hong Kong/Singapore – but first back to New York, London and Tokyo to get to know the people, the firm and the culture. I spent almost a decade at Goldman building a wealth management business with ultra-high net worth families throughout Asia, East Africa and Australia/New Zealand to over $1 billion in assets, which was a large wealth business in Asia at the time. It was a fantastic experience to work with some of the smartest people in the industry and an opportunity to develop some now long-standing relationships with highly successful entrepreneurs and families from across the spectrum of race, culture, religion and nationality.
My little successes were built on the foundation started at Trinity – connecting with people on a personal level, respecting everyone for who they are, letting them know they are very important to me, believing God has a plan, and having the patience to let my spirit guide me.
What became very apparent to me was elite institutions – Trinity, Goldman Sachs, etc. – are built on similar value systems, camaraderie and a culture defined by the excellence of people with a commitment and discipline to do what it takes to be the best version of themselves. If that sounds familiar, you heard it many times at Trinity from teachers and coaches. As Trinity alumni, we are all so fortunate to have experienced such an elite educational institution as teenagers to set us all on the right path early.
I left Goldman Sachs to become the chief investment officer for one of my largest client’s family office in Hong Kong. At the same time, my wife founded a boutique wealth management business to continue managing money for our Goldman Sachs clients. I joined her full time six years later until 2022, when, for health reasons, we formally retired from managing third-party money. We are both still actively engaged investing and serving as directors on various company and charitable boards and committees. Mentors were very important to me in my career, so I now give back by mentoring several guys who are building their careers.
What effect did Trinity have on your life?
It started the dominoes of opportunities in my life and gave me a framework to approach life. Trinity opened my mind to see the opportunities. What was ingrained into me was that success, however you define it, starts with the four words on the Trinity helmet: Loyalty (to values, teammates, goals, yourself); Discipline (hard work day in and day out, commitment, finish the job); Achievement (setting a goal, don’t stop till you achieve it, set another goal, repeat); Pride (Pride in your work, your character, your values, yourself).
I combined that with the power of real connection with good people and being open to God’s plan. Retreats and weekly masses, with leaders who knew how to connect with a bunch of rambunctious teenagers, taught me that God sends us clues all the time. He has a plan for each of us. We just must be calm and silent enough to hear it. Being invited back after graduating to be a senior retreat leader opened my eyes to the warm feeling of helping others on their journey. I now try to give back at every turn. Significantly, a faith-based educational environment supported, aided and encouraged a strong value system I try to be loyal to every day.
I am grateful every day for the life Trinity set me up for and the experiences, adventures and growth I have had. I have found life is about connecting with people on a personal level, being kind and accepting of everyone you meet, being patient, being happy and positive, trusting God has a plan, and sitting back and letting God lay out his plan and opportunities for you. Trinity built that belief system for me.
Why do you support Trinity years after graduating?
As I mentioned above, Trinity provided a launching pad in so many ways for my life through curriculum, sports, camaraderie and the people that make Trinity unique and special. I am so grateful to Trinity and all it stands for. I support Trinity to provide those opportunities to other young men, who may otherwise not be able to afford it.
Since we do not have kids, I felt a call to financially support a student from a father-less home for four years to benefit from the Trinity culture. My father had done the same when we were at Trinity. Father Zettel and the school identified a candidate who was in need, and they got him into the Trinity world. I have unfortunately lost touch with the student but am certain his life is better from the Trinity experience.
I still contribute to various Trinity fundraising endeavours because it is important to spread this wonderful opportunity we had to as many young men as possible. It only further enriches the student experience for everyone.
Is there a significant other in your life? How is life in Hong Kong?
I’m married to a wonderful and very smart woman, Wendy, who grew up in Nigeria. She is ethnic Chinese and has accomplished some incredible feats in her life – she is a true citizen of the world. We met while waterskiing on the Straits of Johor in the mid-’90s and got married at the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa several years later. After 28 years of marriage, we still have a great relationship, and I am very grateful for her being in my life.
We are both involved in charitable works around Hong Kong and do whatever we can to support others’ goals and dreams. We have been very fortunate and are always looking to give back. Our year always ends with a Christmas party we host, through a charity Wendy serves, for 150 underprivileged kids from the lowest economic level of Hong Kong. It’s the best Christmas present we can give to ourselves.
I do not come from a Catholic background but rather a Baptist upbringing. St Albert and Trinity allowed me to experience a similar but different flavor of faith. Over the years, I have fortunately been exposed to many religions and life philosophies, which all basically come back to the same values and themes I have shared in this article. Different practices and rituals but very similar values, desires, goals and family. We are quite spiritual and spend time every day in some form of spirituality.
When we are not working, we spend our time playing golf, hiking in the Hong Kong mountains, playing in the ocean, and traveling. There are still a few parts of the world to explore. I encourage anyone from Trinity to reach out if they are ever in Hong Kong (Todd.Turney@arrowcap.com). I hope to see more Trinity brothers on my future trips to Louisville.
Share an alumni story!
Do you know a Trinity alumnus with a compelling story? Please reach out to Travis Wagoner '90, Alumni Relations & Communications Director, at 502-736-2122 or wagoner@trinityrocks.com.
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