The Emergency Fund Blueprint

Hannah Brooks is a certified financial planner and personal finance educator with more than fifteen years of experience helping individuals and families build financial security from the ground up. She holds the Certified Financial Planner (CFP®) designation and a Master of Science in Personal Financial Planning from Texas Tech University.

Hannah began her career as a financial counselor at a nonprofit credit counseling agency, where she worked directly with clients navigating debt, job loss, medical emergencies, and the aftermath of natural disasters. It was there that she saw firsthand how a well-funded emergency account could mean the difference between a temporary setback and a spiral into long-term financial hardship. That experience shaped her philosophy that financial planning should be practical, accessible, and grounded in real human behavior rather than abstract theory.

She has since built a thriving private coaching practice and has developed financial literacy curricula for community colleges, employer-sponsored wellness programs, and online learning platforms. Her writing has appeared in *Kiplinger's Personal Finance*, *U.S. News & World Report*, and *Forbes*, where she covers topics ranging from emergency preparedness and debt management to retirement planning and behavioral finance.

Hannah lives in Portland, Oregon, with her partner and two rescue dogs. When she is not working with clients or writing, she volunteers with a local organization that provides free financial coaching to families experiencing housing insecurity. She believes that every person deserves the dignity of a financial safety net, and she wrote *The Emergency Fund Blueprint* to make that goal achievable for anyone willing to take the first step.