Investing in the Next Generation: Gar Wood Securities at STAC Young Professionals
Patryk Wydrch, Hanna Droessler, Craig Gantar
Gar Wood Securities' own Craig Gantar, Senior Vice President and Institutional Sales Manager, served as a Mentor at STAC Young Professionals' Summer Social on August 6, 2026 at Diversey Driving Range in Chicago, alongside Bill Miller of Penserra Securities. Gar Wood Associate Patryk Wydrch also attended, representing the firm at the networking, golf, food, and drinks event.
What Is STAC Young Professionals?
STAC Young Professionals (YP) is a forum within the Security Traders Association of Chicago (STAC) built to accelerate the careers of early- and mid-career securities professionals, while giving undergraduate and graduate students a head start on their path into the business. The program pairs its members with seasoned industry veterans for mentorship, networking, and hands-on learning – connecting the people building their careers today with the people who've spent decades shaping Chicago's trading community. Membership is open to industry professionals under 30 and to undergraduate and graduate students studying business, finance, or economics.
We strongly believe mentorship at this level of the industry is crucial – the kind of insight that comes from decades on a trading desk isn't something you can get from a textbook or a course. It's built through relationships like the ones STAC YP is designed to create, pairing experienced professionals like Craig with the next wave of talent coming up in Chicago's securities industry
Why This Matters to Gar Wood
Gar Wood Securities has built its reputation over decades as an agency-only brokerage rooted in the Chicago trading community. That kind of longevity doesn't happen by accident – it depends on a steady pipeline of new talent choosing to build their careers in this industry, in this city.
Programs like STAC Young Professionals are how that pipeline gets built. They give students and early-career professionals a real, structured way to learn the business from people who are actually doing it – not just observing it from the outside.
We're grateful to Hanna Droessler and the entire STAC Young Professionals team for organizing an event that does real work toward that goal, and we're glad Gar Wood could be part of it.
Craig Gantar, Patryk Wydrch, Hanna Droessler, Bill Miller
Looking Ahead
Supporting the next generation of securities professionals isn't a one-off effort for Gar Wood — it's part of how we think about the long-term health of the industry we operate in. We look forward to continuing to support STAC YP and similar programs that are investing in the people who will shape Chicago's trading community for years to come.