Plan, Protect and Preserve 

Fresh out of high school, Josiah Grauso, 2005 Northampton Community College (NCC) graduate, set out to find his path in life. From the ministry to the workplace, each step led him to his calling. 

Born and raised in Blairstown, NJ, Grauso moved to the Poconos with his family when he was 16 years old because of the affordability of the area. He attended Faith Christian School in Rosetto, PA. After graduating, Grauso joined a ministry named Eagles’ Wings in Clarence, NY, for a 9-month internship working with their bookstore. Faith has always played a large part of Grauso’s life: “I wanted to see where God was leading me, and I loved it there,” he said. Eventually, he was offered a position as head of the bookstore, but he had a tough decision to make.  

Growing up, Grauso enjoyed math and science. Math came so easily to him that he skipped fourth-grade math and jumped to the fifth-grade level class. Wanting to follow in his father’s footsteps (his father was a vice president of an insurance company), Grauso decided to leave Eagles’ Wings to enroll at NCC and major in business management.  

“I enjoyed the ability to build a flexible class schedule. For two days a week, I’d go all day, and I’d have an evening class after work one additional day each week. I learned a lot from the professors who had experience in the workforce,” Grauso said of his time at NCC. 

 After he graduated from NCC in 2005, Grauso started working at PNC Bank to begin building his resume. He was a teller and customer service representative.  

“Because I was only 20 years old, and kind of green, I didn’t know if people would listen to me about investment advice, but I lead my branch month after month in referrals. A lot of my clients were retirees, and so, I helped them with their accounts. I fostered positive relationships with my clients.” 

Grauso’s father, Ralph, co-owned ASC Financial Group, a company that banked with his branch. Ralph took note of his son’s personal touch when working with retirees, the demographic that also happened to be ASC’s primary client base. Ralph and his partner, Richard March, asked Grauso to come work for them.  

^{Team picture from when Grauso first started with ASC}

Grauso was the company’s first official hire after it opened in 2005. He’s been with ASC for 18 years and watched it grow into what it is today. “We went from working out of the house to opening our own office. We’ve hired new advisors and support staff, and it’s absolutely amazing to see what it’s turned into today.” It’s a true family affair for Grauso, who’s now the vice president and senior investment advisor at the company. His wife, Sarah, works as the office manager and oversees daily operations.   

^{Current team picture with family members}

Grauso uses his knack for numbers to help his clients get the most out of their finances. He educates people about retirement planning, income planning, long-term care planning, market risk protection, and more.  

The NCC alum’s motto is, “plan, protect and preserve what we spent a lifetime creating.” 

When Grauso and his father saw the opportunity to reach more people, they took it. In October 2024, ASC Financial Group launched “Wealth After Work,” a show that airs on Sundays on Fox 56 Wolf and ABC 16 WNEP. It also broadcasts on WFMZ, Service Electric, and more. With target audiences in northwestern New Jersey, the Lehigh Valley, and northeastern PA, Grauso and his father chat with a financial educator to provide expert retirement planning insights for viewers.  

^{Josiah and father on Wealth After Work}

“It gives me great joy to be able to tell clients how we can provide defensive strategies and give them relief during difficult times in their lives, for example, during the loss of a loved one. I am able to provide reassurance that everything's going to be okay, and we're there to help take care of things.” 

Grauso’s desire to provide relief and respite to those who need it most extends beyond his professional life. He helps with feeding, clothing, and spending time with guests at the cold weather shelter run by his church, Stroudsburg Wesleyan. "I am on the leadership team of the shelter where I volunteer two nights a week overnight. It is important to talk with the people there about their life and give them time to share their struggles. I feel like this gives them the greatest piece of respect and dignity that, far too often, they don't receive from other people in this world,” says Grauso. 

^{Josiah with shelter volunteer team} 

In both his profession and personal life, Grauso’s passions are centered on service to others, and he strives to always give back in every way that he can.