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I hope I’m not overstepping here, but since I read the news yesterday, I’ve been thinking that it would be nice to have a thread in which we thank Jonathan for the various ways he touched our lives, whether it be as a writer or just a manager of our finances. I’m hoping it’s something his family might enjoy reading when they’re ready.
So here’s mine:
Unlike many of you who go back to Jonathan’s WSJ days, I only discovered him and HumbleDollar in 2020, early in the pandemic. I don’t recall exactly how I came across it, but I definitely remember reading Dick Quinn’s articles about being stuck on the cruise ship after COVID hit. I think those were the first ones, and then I started poking around through the other articles, and subscribed to the twice-weekly newsletter.
Over the next couple of years, I began to think about proposing an article myself to Jonathan and even started keeping a list of ideas. Finally, in early 2023, I got up my nerve and wrote to him. He couldn’t have been more welcoming, encouraging, and helpful. Between 2023 and when HD stopped publishing articles, I published 9 pieces edited by Jonathan. I was so impressed that he shared the platform he’d created with such a wide variety of people. I’m no financial expert—honestly, I barely understand investing—but like so many other HD authors, I had life experience and stories to share.
So thank you, Jonathan, for giving me a seat at this table and helping me find my voice.
What about you? Please share here if you feel moved to do so.
Thank you, Jonathan.—Dana Ferris
Dana, I am late in responding to your touching tribute to Jonathan, mainly because my relationship with Jonathan was one that was deeply bonded, and yes even intimate. In Jonathan’s own words it was, strange to say, a “cancer bond”. Of course, Jonathan was both complimentary and encouraging of my writing, as he was to so many writers.
And he was compassionate and caring. He told me that if I should pass, he would publish an obituary for me on Humble Dollar, if my husband would inform him. I was deeply touched. We exchanged emails in which he would tell me of his treatments and even apologize for his “whining” as he termed it. I felt only honored that he shared such intimate details with me. It is difficult for me to write this. I don’t want to dwell on my illness but instead, as another sufferer put it “fight like hell for every day.”
I am thankful to have had Jonathan and his kind, sweet nature in my life.
Thank you for this, Marjorie, and I’m so sorry for all you’re going through. It’s kind of you to contribute to the thread when you’re fighting your own battle. 🙏
Marjorie,
One of my final private emails to Jonathan was to ask if he knew where the heck Marjorie had been. It seems you are among the most beloved of HumbleDollar contributors. The place isn’t the same without you.
Dan
Dan, I’m overwhelmed by your kind words. I look forward to the humor you you include in your posts and as an animal lover, I enjoy hearing about Sophie. Thank you Dan.
Majorie, thanks for reminding and giving us an update on your health. You have befriended everyone on HD with your kindness and wonderfully written articles.
Hope you recover soon. We all miss your input.
Thank you Olin. I always read your posts with great interest.
Marjorie, I don’t know you personally but I feel like you are a dear friend. I’m very sorry you are going through this and you will be in my thoughts. I wish you strength and perseverance to fight this.
So nice of you to wish me well. I do think there is a place in the universe where all good wishes go and collectively help us in our struggles. Thank you, Nick.
Marjorie, I’m so sorry you are still dealing with cancer, but glad you and Jonathan were able to support each other.
Kathy, I don’t know which qualities of yours I admire most. You are smart and you “tell it like it is”, taking no guff from anyone. There is no sugar coating. You’re a brave woman.
thank you for your sympathetic words.
Well, thanks, Marjorie, but I’m reminded of what I used to say to people who said I was brave to travel alone: It’s only bravery if you’re afraid. Dealing with a dire diagnosis is a whole other level of bravery.
Marjorie,
Thank you for sharing the touching bond Jonathan and you had.
I’m sorry to hear of your current struggle and hope you come out on top. You always bring an inspired and positive note to HD, and I hope to hear from you again in the coming days.
Andrew
Thank you Andrew. You always seem to find the most appropriate words. That’s because you are an all round nice person which comes through in your writing.
Marjorie, thanks for sharing this. I’m happy that two brave and special people were able to connect through HumbleDollar and find friendship and some comfort. I also wish you peace.
How kind of you, Rick. Thank you.i look forward to your knowledgeable posts on taxes. Jonathan was indeed lucky to have you as a writer. You contribute so much.
Marjorie, I think of you often, and figured your silence meant you were suffering. I admire your attitude of thankfulness in the midst of illness. Thank you for writing of your correspondence with Jonathan. I wish you peace every day.
Ed, Thank you for your thoughts of me. On better days I glance at humble dollar and always pleased to read your posts and admire them. You have a wonderful sense of human nature.
I first came across the Humble Dollar website and signed up for newsletters in March 2023. I looked forward to Jonathan’s newsletters and read them religiously with my first cup of coffee.
Why did I arrive at Humble Dollar? My wife and I first started having discussions about when to retire in the fall of 2022, I was 59 at the time, during our first post-COVID international trip to the UK. Our retirement planning to that point had been no more than to make contributions to our 401ks to build retirement savings. We also lived within our means and worked towards paying off our mortgage before we retired. Not because we had received good financial advice, I think mostly because of our modest upbringings and we both seem to be hard-wired that way.
Upon our return from the UK, we arranged a discussion with a Financial Adviser. The initial and subsequent meetings with the adviser were OK, but I had a sense that the meetings were a little rushed, my questions were not always answered very well and the adviser did not seem organized/well prepared. I guess that can happen when advisers have multiple clients and maybe our net worth didn’t garner the same level of attention as wealthier clients? Either way, I didn’t have comfort that our life’s savings were his first priority. Add the cost of management fees and I thought there had to be a better way?
My internet research over time distilled to Humble Dollar and The Paul Merriman Foundation. Paul Merriman refers to Jonathan Clements as one of his “Truth Tellers” which is so true. I have found both of these websites to be educational, they contain tremendous resources and I recommend them without reservation. Who knew retirement can be so complicated? Humble Dollar has helped me to make sense of it all, provided a ‘vocabulary’ if you will and has helped broaden my overall understanding.
I am from England originally and have lived in the USA the past 31 years. The initial conversation in the fall of 2022 was motivated by the fact that and I wanted to see if we could spend more time with my mother who had just turned 85. Unfortunately, our “best laid plans” were curtailed when my mother passed a few months later, after a brief illness in January 2023. This certainly brought my own mortality into sharp focus, as did Jonathan’s article “The C Word” in June 2024 describing his cancer diagnosis. His article started quite simply “On Sunday Morning, May 19”. I did not know Jonathan personally, but as others have stated he felt like a friend to me. I also felt a connection because we were both Brits, educated in England and very close in age, just a few months apart. My birthday is May 19, the same as that fateful day for Jonathan. Over the past two and half years since I found Humble Dollar Jonathan also helped me understand the emotions and human side of finances and retirement planning.
My wife is now retired and engaged volunteering for several community organizations. I work on a part time basis for the same company I have worked for nearly 30 years and feel I still have something to offer. This past year we have had the opportunity to make extended trips to the UK and Europe and taken advantage of the opportunity to connect with family I have not seen very much of the past three decades. Our trips to visit family and friends in the USA are also now longer and more meaningful. We hope to continue to do more of the same.
Jonathan and his Humble Dollar community have given us:
Jonathan’s work, and the many contributions made by the Humble Dollar community he built, have been foundational and helped us to be intentional charting our course. Thank you Jonathan and Godspeed.
Thank you for the opportunity to share our thoughts.
I have been following Jonathan Clements for many years. In my professional life, he guided me with his articles in The Wall Street Journal.
When I retired, it seemed he had also semi-retired and started this website.
On a whim in 2019, I wrote an article about an eye-opening experience I had and sent it to him for possible inclusion in Humble Dollar.
He published it. That started a professional relationship that would include a chapter in his book about how my fellow writers and I navigate our professional lives. He wanted to hear about our reality; our mistakes, how we fixed them, and what money meant to us.
The first and only time I met him was when he graciously invited the writers who lived near him to lunch. I remember feeling intimidated at meeting my hero (not his intention, that’s all on me), so I don’t recall much of the conversation.
My heart goes out to Elaine and the rest of his family. As eloquent as he was in living with his illness, I wish I could be as eloquent in his remembrance. Unfortunately, that eludes me, so all I can say is I will always be grateful to have known him through our correspondence. RIP, Jonathan.
I first came across Jonathan’s writings in the early 1990s in Money magazine. If I recall, he was not an indexer back then, but I believe he published a list of low cost actively managed funds along with their recent returns and his recommended funds. I would infrequently read his columns if I came across them in the WSJ as I was not a subscriber. I always had a sense that he was looking out for the little guy in the investing world, and I was an early reader of humble dollar when he started the website. I feel Jonathan emphasized the “personal” in personal finance which not many writers do.
RIP Jonathan. You certainly made a mark on the world made it a much better place for people in the personal investment world.
I have Jonathan to thank for being able to retire comfortably and, even better, for understanding a lot about investing. His WSJ columns were carried in my local paper and, every Sunday, I’d read them and share with my partner. At the time I was invested in a bunch of non-index funds, chasing the latest “best” performer. But, sometime in the late 90’s, I purchased VTSAX and had the good sense to hold on to it through the tech bust, the 2008 financial crisis, and the 2022 dip. I’ve followed Jonathan on Humble Dollar since it started, reading it every Saturday morning. Thank you, Jonathan, for everything you did for me and so many others. Rest easy.
It was probably the late 1990s when I became aware of Jonathan. I was very naive when it came to finance and investing but I began reading his Getting Going column, which, as he mentioned, was also carried in many local newspapers, including mine.
I was quickly impressed with Jonathan’s straightforward explanations and advice, which were such a breath of fresh air compared to most of the financial press, which tended to be over my head. I became a believer and a fan, and a few years later began buying index funds. Best investment decision I ever made, and I owe it to Jonathan.
Fast forward many years and I stumbled on Humble Dollar. I likewise became a loyal reader, and a year or two later got up the nerve to submit an article. As many other contributors have mentioned, Jonathan was nothing but kind and welcoming. I continued to send in a few proposed articles and I can tell you that having Jonathan Clements edit my amateur offerings was a privileged experience. I’ll always be in his debt for that.
Then in May of 2024, we learned of his cancer diagnosis. There was great initial shock and sadness, but what followed was yet another, and perhaps the greatest, of Jonathan’s lessons: an example of how to die. I appreciate how he continued his life’s work till the very end; how he made sure his affairs were in order so as to help his family and not burden them; and how he shared with us his final journey.
Thank you, Jonathan, for all of it.
Andrew
Thank you Jonathan for giving me the opportunity to share my stories. I appreciated your kindness and sense of humor. My thoughts are with your family. You are missed.
Thank you, Dana, for this wonderful idea of an HD Readers Tribute. I came across Humble Dollar in the immediate aftermath of my husband’s death in May, 2020, when I was closing his email account. I became an immediate reader and commenter. Despite my very limited knowledge of investing, I have found so much valuable advice and guidance here that I can truly say it has been life-changing. Jonathan’s occasional gentle prodding when the temperature on some topics was getting high were much appreciated, as was his insistence on civility. He set a fine example. Although he will be sorely missed by all who knew and loved him, I’m certain that his detailed plans for the continuation of HD will be successful.
I started reading Jonathan in the Sunday edition of the Sacramento Bee which had an insert provided by the WSJ of Personal Finance articles. We were of similar ages and life phases so his writing was extremely relatable, and it led to some great conversations with my husband. Over the years I continued to read his writing in the WSJ. About 18 months ago, I stumbled upon the Humble Dollar and quickly found it to be a great source for information and camaraderie, and again the similarity of our phase of life made the information extremely pertinent. It was soon thereafter that Jonathan revealed his health diagnosis and I was filled with sadness. I am not someone who mourns celebrities as if I had a personal relationship with them but this seemed very different. Here was someone who’s knowledge and musings had touched me at different times in my life and I felt a deep sadness for all the things he was going to miss in this life, now that he had attained his goal of retirement. It seemed very unfair but Jonathan’s grace and equanimity in the face of the tragic news was a testament to his character. My deepest condolences to his family as they mourn his passing and yet he leaves so much behind that they can remember and celebrate his life.
I think I first heard of Humble Dollar and Jonathon from Clark Howard many years ago. I subscribed to the newsletter and looked forward to reading the articles every week. After reading all the great articles for awhile, I wanted to write one myself. I emailed Jonathon and he very graciously replied with a nice note saying that the site was transitioning to the forums and that he was not looking for any new writers at the time. He encouraged me to post in the forums instead. I felt honored with the personal reply.
I always appreciated Jonathan’s personal–and very timely–responses to every email I ever sent him. Even if he was on vacation he would take the time to shoot me a quick note saying a more detailed response would be forthcoming. He seemed to truly love his work.
I’ve been reading the WSJ since being in business school in 1969. When Jonathan started his column, I immediately became a follower and adopted many of his investment ideas. In one column back in the 1990s, he asked readers to submit their words of wisdom, which I did. To my surprise he printed my response along with several others. First and only time my name was in the WSJ. Then 2 of my former classmates managed to ferret out my email address and sent me emails — this was in the days when it was much harder to find such information. On another occasion I sent a personal email to Jonathan, asking that since his prose was so good, was he perhaps related to Samuel Clements (Mark Twain). He responded humorously that he wished he was, but he was English — first that I knew of his heritage, since the accent didn’t come through in his columns.
I corresponded with Jonathan when he wrote about real estate at the WSJ so many years ago. Followed him since then. His vision for older investors was so helpful.
Sending best wishes to his immediate family and the larger community of readers here. Will buy a couple of his books to pass his knowledge on to our son and daughter-in-law.
with love and gratitude,
kathy
I’m one of the women readers who saw Jonathan’s request a few years ago for more female perspectives from his contributors, and eventually sent him a list of ideas. He picked the last idea on my list—about the lessons I learned from managing my dad’s fraught last weeks in home hospice—which was the one I really wanted to write and didn’t think he would pick. In all three of the articles I ended up contributing to HD, I saw that Jonathan was a writer who had a true editor’s eye for a glimmer of a good idea and better ways to express it. So amazing how he created such a high-quality publication day in and day out. A real labor of love.
In spring 2023, Jonathan announced a date for a meet ‘n’ greet Humble Dollar pizza party in Philly and so I planned a research trip to check out 50+ and continuing care communities in the Philadelphia area to coordinate with that date. (I wrote about my plans to Jonathan and of course he helpfully shared his short local “good” CCRCs list with me, saying he and Elaine were planning to check them out someday, too.)
My husband and I got to the party on time, and already nearly every seat was taken in the restaurant. I sensed there were SO many of my favorite HD writers sitting at various tables, although nobody was wearing name tags. Jonathan bopped around the tables with a big, friendly smile, obviously having a great time chatting with all of us. No surprise—he was a great host.
Shortly after that party Jonathan got his shocking cancer diagnosis. Reading his brave and helpful missives since then, including his postmortem notes to his band of writers and readers, I’m in awe of his amazing teaching spirit, talent, helpfulness, and inclusiveness. One of the few HD articles I wrote touched on leaving a legacy through something that you alone could create and leave behind (besides children)—Jonathan’s HumbleDollar.com is THE ultimate example of that.
Dana, thank you for this, I am enjoying reading the tributes to Jonathan. I hope they will bring comfort to his family when they are able to read them.
I never knew Jonathan was so famous. I just knew him from Humble Dollar and he was so kind to me and everyone else. I found HD shortly after it came out. We were in the last 8-10 years before retirement and I found so much good content, written in a way that I could understand, not being a business type. I was so grateful for the Guide and looked up so many things that I needed advice for or didn’t understand. I am glad the Guide is still there for people like me who need help. Part of the reason Spouse and I were able to retire with dignity last year was because of all I learned from Jonathan and our HD family. I will always be grateful. Thank you, Jonathan. Chris
FYI for those who may be interested. September 25th issue of the New York Times has a story about Jonathan. Front page of the business section – “A Legend of Financial Writing Left Us With Pearls of Wisdom”
Actually the 23rd issue of NYTs
I get the print edition delivered to my home.Story was in the 9.25.25 edition.
The online NYTIMES has a habit of changing the date of some artcles the first days after they have been published. It is now dated the 23rd but it was dated the 24th when I first saw it.
Dana, thanks for starting this thread. I’ve been struggling a bit to try to organize my thoughts and feelings about Jonathan’s passing. It’s been great to read others in the HD community relate their experiences and express their feelings. He had a profound effect on so many of us. My experience is similar to many – I stumbled upon HD in 2019. I hesitated for a while before contacting Jonathan to suggest an article. He was very receptive and encouraging, and that started a stretch of 150 articles. His editing skills always made my articles more readable and interesting. He also checked my math – a number of times he found errors in my more mathmatical articles. The only mild disagreement we ever had was over my use of 2 spaces after a period, and my continued use of the Oxford comma.
When Jonathan was moving to Philadelphia he reached out for information about the city and its neighborhoods. Once he arrived he suggested we meet. This was during Covid and it got delayed until Jonathan hosted a lunch for local contributors at the Parc Restaurant in Philadelphia. Over the years we were able to meet a number of times for dinner and breakfast. Vicky and I were able to meet Jonathan and Elaine several times for dinner. They are both genuinely nice, smart, fun, lovely people. We tried to schedule something over the last year or so, but were never able to find a time. I deeply regret that I didn’t make that happen. We have several good friends who are currently fighting aggressive cancers, and I’m trying to make sure I don’t miss opportunities to spend time with them.
My heart aches for Elaine, for Jonathan’s family, and the HD community.
He also caught a math error of mine that I tried so hard to get right. And I also like two spaces after the period 😉
Thank you, Rick—great personal insights! Oh, and I’m #TeamOxfordComma.
I don’t remember how I first found HD, but as soon as I did I was hooked immediately. After probably 3-4 years of visiting the site daily I got the bold idea that I should contact Jonathan about submitting an article.
Funny enough he rejected my first idea–a review about financial podcasts (it wasn’t very good). But I also told him I had another idea about paying off my mortgage. He enthusiastically jumped on that idea and my first article was born.
As crazy as it sounds, I’m so grateful for him publishing me. It made me feel probably more accomplished than I really am. I was always blown away by how great of an editor he was. It was such a pleasure to write for him. He was a true guide and very helpful and encouraging to his authors.
When he announced his diagnosis it hit me hard even though we never met. This feels like losing a friend.
He really was an excellent editor. I’ve been a journal editor myself and have a long history (over 30 years) as a published author, so I was always surprised and pleased at his suggestions to make my pieces better. He rewrote nearly all of my titles, and without exception, they were better than the ones I’d come up with myself. (Titles are one thing I’ve never been especially clever about.)
I was very late to the party. It was late 2022 or early 2023 when I found HumbleDollar from a link from either Ben Carlson’s blog or the Bogleheads forums. (I wasn’t reading any other financial sites.) Shortly after I started hanging out here, Jonathan mentioned a desire for more diversity among the writers. I suggested an article on CCRCs and was pleased and a little surprised when he accepted the result (with some edits). He then asked me to write an article on end of life decisions, after reading a comment I had made on another post. I wound up writing ten articles before he had to stop accepting them. Checking in on HumbleDollar has become an important part of my routine and I would miss all of you if it went away, just as I will miss my occasional email exchanges with Jonathan. The last time I heard from him he had a question about travel insurance, which led me to hope that he was doing better. Sadly, no.
I’m surprised to read, Kathy, that you only joined HD in 2022: I would have sworn you were already here when I began reading and commenting in 2020. More important is how much I appreciated your CCRC article. It’s one of the few that I have printed, saved and copied so that I always have access to it in case of some computer or phone issue. I really didn’t understand the concept and the different types until you spelled it out. So glad you found the right one for you. Above all of this is my gratitude for your common sense approach to so many things and your personal encouragement as I begin to travel solo. None of this would have been possible without Jonathan Clements, so Thank You, Jonathan!
Thanks, Linda! I sometimes feel I write too much about CCRCs, but I do think the move to mine was one of my best ideas. Not for everyone, and not cheap, but it solves a lot of problems.
I don’t remember whether I’ve posted this link before, but there’s a whole bunch of solo trip reports there.
I remember Jonathan’s comment about wishing for more women authors, and that, along with you publishing your first pieces, gave me the push/courage to contact him myself.
Thanks, Dana. That’s good to know!
At my fingertips (via my phone’s email app) reside six years of email exchanges with Jonathan (alas, we never met in person). These began in the fall of 2019, eight months after my spouse died unexpectedly, leaving me with three children and physical malady following a freak accident. During those eight months I struggled mightily to organize my family’s finances before retiring years earlier than anticipated, of necessity more than desire.
I’d found HD in those eight months, delighted that Jonathan had started the site, as I’d been a longtime reader of his Getting Going column in my WSJ subscription era.
I wrote Jonathan to offer a submission about finances in the days, weeks, and months immediately following the death of one’s spouse, which at that time I considered my sole financial expertise (era of mistakes, that is, lessons learned). In our opening exchanges, we traded perspectives on different financial planning strategies based on median life span, one’s remaining years per IRS life expectancy tables, or the financial services industry standard of a 30-year retirement (go ahead, plan to live to 95). Also the inevitability of darn bad luck, at least for some.
We became pen pals of a sort, and I went on to contribute 26 HD pieces according to his count. I feel further humbled to be among my respected peers here who wrote chapters for his edited book, My Money Journey.
Jonathan lived and wrote openly about life and money here on HD. His successes. His challenges. His early house that he didn’t like but lived in anyway for way too long because it was cheap (at least that’s how I remember the story.) How he got over that housing frugality in his beautiful Philadelphia row house (great photos he shared of the kitchen remodel.) His love for Elaine (and I for one was excited to see him get past the 9-month-married marker he so wanted to reach, and indeed he went on quite a ways beyond that), his love and care for his kids and how he prepared holistically for this week’s end, to ease this time for his family as best he could.
Jonathan invited, cajoled, insisted on us being equally open and frank about our life and money stories, as crucial to the success of HD. Because of that, I feel a sense of camaraderie and community here. I thank Jonathan, and all of you, for creating and maintaining Jonathan’s Guide and the many good reminders found throughout the site that lead to a financially healthy and stable future for ourselves, our families, and our communities.
Lovely tribute—so well said!
I also saved all of Jonathan’s emails to me. My “Humble Dollar” email folder is filled with fond memories of our many exchanges.
Same!
Thank you, Catherine, for sharing your backstory. I always appreciate your contributions and learning of your children’s progress as well as your own.
Thanks for the thread, Dana. I found HumbleDollar in early 2018. Like you, I read for a while, then ventured a comment, an email, and eventually an article. Trepidation accompanied each step forward, though I needn’t have worried. Jonathan wrote the friendliest emails, and he was a gentle editor.
I wish I had saved a link to his “invitation to writers page”–it’s probably still here, behind the scenes–where he welcomed new writers to share a bit of their financial experience. No expertise necessary, just humble honesty. I remain thankful to him for sharing his readers with me for my small contribution, and told him so many times.
Dana, thank you for doing this. Jonathan’s impact has been far greater than I realized since his cancer diagnosis was announced. The reaction from his readers and beyond took me aback. For me, he was my brother and while, of course, I knew his career, he didn’t elaborate too much unless I asked him. Jonathan’s legacy will be lasting. Nick.
My deepest condolences for your loss, Nick. 🙏❤️
Thank you Dana 🙏
I met Jonathan summer of 2018 when I was helping his mom June decide to move into the continuing care retirement community I worked in at the time. I thought I was going to get grilled by him, since I was told he was a finance expert, but he was so lovely and we had a great conversation. His mom soon after gave me a copy of “How to Think About Money” which was very helpful to me being in my 40s and thinking about retirement looming in the future. I have become much more intentional about the way I spend and save the money I earn. I’m devastated for June who has to bury a son and will be getting in contact with her to express my sympathy. I no longer live in FL, but remember her very fondly as well as his brother Andrew. My condolences to the entire family, Jonathan left such a legacy!
That’s a great connection; thanks for sharing that!
Great idea, Dana, thanks for this!
I’m grateful to Jonathan for empowering me to do four things:
I will always admire Jonathan for the way he deeply cared about his readers and fellow human beings, for his honesty, humility and forthrightness, his openness to the ideas of others, and his deep sense of fairness. Like Bogle, he created HumbleDollar not to maximize profit but to most broadly benefit others.
I met Jonathan just once. I went to college with his older brother, Andrew, and became friends with Andrew’s brother, Nick. One of them, likely Andrew, invited me to dinner at June and Dick’s place in Carderock, Maryland. It was a wonderful, memorable evening; June is a most gracious host. As we walked out to my car, Jonathan drove up, returning from his cub reporter job at a local paper, which he enjoyed and where he learned so much before heading off to Cambridge. We had a short chat before parting ways.
When I first saw Getting Going in the WSJ, I recognized Jonathan from his dot picture and became an ardent fan of his column. I read his “Little Book” when it came out, and everything else he published over the years. In 2016, Nick asked what I thought about the short list of name options Jonathan was considering for his new web site (my vote: HumbleDollar). Three years later, I wrote my first piece for him. Until then, work was way too busy. His edits always vastly improved my small contributions here. I’ll miss them, and him.
Awesome—wow, you do go way back!
Your talk of going back led to a wander through old email exchanges. One reminded me of Jonathan’s sense of humor.
I had sent him a screenshot from my phone viewing John Lim’s piece “Why We Go Wrong”. Above the headline was a web ad for:
“The One Dollar Pot Stock
Could Make You a Millionaire
It’s Already Advanced 47% and it Could Go Higher
(Get all the details here)”.
Jonathan replied with “Hey, it’s a sure thing: That’s one stock that’s going to be high!” 😂
I wrote this in a comment last February – As I’m on the other side of 50, with my wife and I closing in on retirement, I have the perspective that a robust before and after tax portfolio brings. I have Jonathan and everyone here to partly thank for that. it wasn’t easy. Like some others, I grew up in a hardscrabble existence. We had no money for anything. What has stayed with me is the stress of a job loss that would spell doom in the form of being evicted and starting at yet another new school. After college, I had a Masters degree, but $36K in student loans and no financial savvy at that point. The good news was I was a tech guy entering the job market at the beginning of the 90s tech boom. I also had a subscription to the WSJ and the ‘Getting Going’ column filled with Jonathan’s practical writing. The loans would soon be retired. Budgeting , saving and investing came through trial and error, but we got there. The things that have stayed with me were the financial stress from my early teen years – experiencing not having any money and not knowing where the next job is coming for your family is incredibly stressful. The other guiding principal that stayed with me is around personal expenditure – I don’t mind spending money that has been budgeted to be spent, but I want something for my money – don’t waste it, get what you paid for. The rest of my principals came from Jonathan – understanding the value of index funds, the ‘tipping point’ that happens from regular investing and understanding that an ‘average working person’ can become wealthy/comfortable via regular budgeting, saving and investing. In other words, quit hoping to win the lottery – there’s no magic to it. Believe it or not, sometimes people need to actually be told this. Thank you for the impact you’ve had on my life and my kids’ lives Jonathan!
Dana, I think this is a lovely idea for a tribute article.
My first article, Beer to Taxes, appeared in HumbleDollar on September 14, 2023, after Jonathan asked for readers to write about their financial journey. Jonathan was both encouraging and helpful, and although he told me that very few edits were necessary, his changes sure made me look good.
I wrote a total of nine edited articles. Article eight, My Breakfast Club, published in August, 2024, describes exactly how I came to feel about Jonathan and HumbleDollar. Here is an excerpt from that article, including a comment I posted later.
And, of course, I also have HumbleDollar.
I’ve come to view this blog as a breakfast club, and you guys as a part of my social fabric. The late Toby Keith wrote a song called “I Love This Bar,” describing the myriad characters there. We have quite a variety of inhabitants here at HumbleDollar, too:
I love this blog.
I saw a meme that said we’re all unique—just like everybody else. We’re from different walks of life, but we’re all trying to help others, be happy and stay healthy—and not run out of money before we run out of time.
I don’t know how HumbleDollar started showing up in my email. Thinking it was spam from one of the many insurance companies I was appointed with, I just kept hitting the trash icon. I don’t remember exactly when I finally opened one. But I’m happy I did.
And my comment
While rewriting the lyrics to the song, I scoured through the writer’s bios in order to find words that rhymed. The hyperlinks to the various references I made to the other contributors make this article even more special to me. Including them is a testament to the genius of the editor. Thanks for making me look good Jonathan.
Thanks for this post, Dana. Despite your trepidation, it feels right — and most needed.
Jonathan’s syndicated column first came to me in a local Sunday paper, and then in the Saturday edition of the WSJ. Eventually, I googled his name after he left the Journal and learned he would be starting HD. Jonathan’s columns definitely helped me stay my financial course. Likewise, HD, with all its contributors, has been a very useful help in the transition to retirement.
Jason Zwieg included this in his tribute yesterday to Jonathan, a quote from a 2007 column: “So why do you keep reading? It’s no great mystery. You don’t read my columns because they open your eyes to the financial world. Instead, you read them because they confirm what you already believe.”
Guilty as charged and still a believer!
Thanks for starting this forum post.
I found HD soon after Jonathan started it. His “Money Guide” books were my favorite personal finance references. He wanted a way to keep them updated more frequently than once a year and so they became the basis for the HD website.
When I read he was looking for people to submit articles for the site, I couldn’t decide if I should send him something or not. I was actually nervous sending him my first article proposal. I was so afraid he would either ignore it or reject it.
In typical Jonathan fashion, I had a reply within a couple of hours. He encouraged me to submit my article and when I did, he responded very positively. He told me I wrote well and then encouraged me to send in more articles.
This was all in January of 2017. I’ve continued to write and comment on the site ever since. It’s hard to believe it’s been nearly nine years since all of this started!
I will truly miss Jonathan’s kindness. He was always so encouraging to me. As one of the few female contributors to the site, he constantly pushed me to write more and share my personal stories.
RIP Jonathan.
Your comments sound so familiar. As Catherine so beautifully put it, we are few but mighty. I also thought you were an excellent writer.
Thanks Sonja. Jonathan definitely helped me develop better writing and editing skills.
We are few but mighty, Kristine.
Your contributions to HD are relevant and inspiring. You illustrate the many ways a person with a typical income (that’s most people) can create a rewarding life and save enough for a comfortable retirement too. A path we all aspire to follow. Keep those posts coming.
Thanks Catherine. I like to believe I’m one of the HD writers who can share a more ‘typical’ experience when it comes to income, retirement, etc.
One of the reasons I love Jonathan’s “Money Guide” books was because they were written in a language I could understand. When I was initially trying to figure out personal finance, so much of the jargon got in the way. It was also disheartening to read about how much one HAD to save to be successful. So many books/articles talked about needing to have millions of dollars banked in order to retire. I feel like publishing those types of articles doesn’t serve anyone well. I think most ‘average’ people read those things, get discouraged and then decide it isn’t worth saving anything at all.
Lifestyle matters. Happiness matters. Having a purpose matters. Living a fulfilling life matters.
Reader from Singapore. I’m glad I got the chance to tell Jonathan in April 2025 that I will be passing his lessons to my 2 young daughters, now 10 and 12. He made the complicated, simple. The world is poorer without him. Shoba
I discovered Humble Dollar about 18 months ago through a link on a UK website, and I was immediately drawn to the site’s content and community. When I later learned of Jonathan’s devastating health diagnosis, I felt compelled to contribute articles to the forum. I hoped that by helping expand the content, I might support the site during what seemed like an uncertain time—wondering whether Humble Dollar could continue after Jonathan’s passing.
Looking back now, I realize I needn’t have worried. Jonathan, in his characteristic wisdom and foresight, had already ensured the site’s future was secure.
Much like Ben Franklin’s reported reply to the question of what kind of government have you created the reply of “A republic, if you can keep it” emphasized that the continuation of a republic depends on the active and informed participation of its citizens so too the continued active and informed participation of the Humble Dollar community that Jonathan formed will likely determine if we can keep it.
My story is similar to Dana’s. I read some of Jonathan’s WSJ articles back in the day, but lost track of him and his writings until I stumbled upon Humble Dollar. After reading HD articles for a while, I suggested a topic to Jonathan, and he was both welcoming and helpful. That was followed by six more before we switched to Forum pieces.
I appreciated how he would occasionally butt into a conversation to make sure everything stayed on a friendly/helpful level.
Other than online interviews and his writings, I regret I never had the opportunity to meet Jonathan. If he didn’t know it before Sunday, he knows it now. Rest in Peace.
My HD story began the same as your first sentence. After a few years of obtaining investment tidbits from HD I decided to place him on my personal Mount Rushmore of investing icons sitting beside John Bogle (who on another post recently said he is now forever sitting next to), and Christine Benz of Morningstar. If it is said that a legacy is obtained by someone they are remembered in the minds of others. His will remain in my keeping as long as I live.