As NY1 continues to mark Women's History Month with a focus on the gender wage gap, Staten Island reporter Amanda Farinacci reports on a financial advisor who empowers women through education. 

Joan Wilton didn't always want to be a financial advisor. The mother of three was working part-time and going to school for management when her husband passed away suddenly.

"He did have a life insurance policy," she said. "Now all of a sudden, I'm getting this large amount of money. What do I do with it? I've never really had any involvement with that before."

It's that ignorance, Wilton said, that led her to her current career as a money manager. For almost 20 years, she's trained her focus on attracting clients just like her: women who are widowed, divorced, just starting their careers or simply in need of help.

Her work is meant to pay back the sense of empowerment she felt after becoming financially educated.  It's the same reason why she brings her money management skills to the not-for-profit Soroptimist International, which aims to better the lives of women and girls.

"Different people work differently with different people. So you need a mix," Wilton said. "So to have a woman in the finance field, I think is an amazing tool." 

Some of the largest pay gaps between men and women exist in the financial sector, and according to an analysis done by Comptroller Scott Stringer's office, the average woman working full-time in New York City still earns only 82 percent of the average man.

Wilton said she's seen the impacts of those numbers in many clients. Some women continue working longer than their husbands to reach retirement goals, and some even stay in violent relationships if they can't afford their expenses on their own.

"It really affects a woman's quality of life, her choices, and then definitely retirement," she said.

The Staten Island chapter of Soroptimist International is celebrating its 60th anniversary this year. Leaders say as the organization looks towards its future, its focus will be on empowering women financially.

"There's a lot of things women have to do to help themselves," said Janet Warren Dugo of Soroptimist International of Staten Island.

Part of that means reaching out to other women for support.