Our Story
Money is personal. It's wrapped up in your family, your worries, your plans for the years ahead, and the quiet question of whether you've gotten the big calls right. The people you turn to for help with it should feel less like a faceless institution and more like a neighbor who knows their way around money. That's the kind of place we set out to build right here in Western New York.
Where the Name Comes From
Connor Hammer carries the names of the families behind it, a nod to where we each come from. The Hammer name does a little extra work, too. A hammer is a simple, honest tool, built for strength and precision, and those turn out to be fitting words for the kind of guidance we believe people deserve. Nothing flashy, nothing overcomplicated, just steady and well-made.
How We Got Here
Connor Hammer came together when two local practices decided they could do more for their clients side by side than they could apart. Eric Connor brought one, Paul and Adam Hammer the other, and each of them spent more than two decades walking families through every kind of market before joining forces. What that gives you is a younger name with a long memory, a group that has already lived through the downturns, the recoveries, the tax law changes, and the once-in-a-lifetime surprises that somehow show up every few years.
Eric Connor
President
I'm the person on our team who reads the footnotes, the one who wants to understand how every piece fits before signing off on anything. That habit took root with an accounting minor at Niagara University, where I graduated magna cum laude, and it has carried through a career that began in 1995, the same year I passed my Series 7. I earned the right to use the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ marks in 2001, built Connor Wealth Management along the way, and eventually teamed up with the Hammers to form Connor Hammer.
Home is Lockport, where I live with my wife, Tracy, our three kids, Jackson, Avery, and Marin, and where our family is part of First Presbyterian Church. This community means a great deal to me, which is why I've spent years on the Kenan Center Board of Governors and have served as a director of the Grigg Lewis Foundation since 2015. When I finally step away from a spreadsheet, you'll usually find me elbow-deep in a yard project or a kitchen remodel, happiest when there's something to build or fix.
- CFP® (CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™)
- Bachelor of Science in Commerce-Management, Niagara University
- FINRA Series 7 and Series 63 registrations
- New York life, accident, and health insurance license; life insurance licenses in Virginia and Texas
Paul Hammer
President
I've long held that making money is one thing and keeping it is another, and the difference between the two usually comes down to knowledge. That idea has shaped a whole career spent staying curious and never assuming I've learned all there is to know. I got my start in economics in 1978, came up through an MBA in finance, and went on to build Hammer Financial Group here in Western New York before joining forces to become Connor Hammer.
Anyone who knows me will tell you I'm old school, and I wear that as a compliment. I'm at my best with the genuinely complicated cases, the kind that stretch across a whole family and more than one generation. I grew up on Long Island but found my way back to the Buffalo area in 1991, partly because I missed the snow, which not everyone understands. These days I spend part of the year as a snowbird in Myrtle Beach with my wife, Joann, where the ocean is close and the grass still needs mowing. We have two children, Genna and Adam, and yes, that Adam is the one running our investment side now. When the Mets are on, I'm watching.
- MBA in Finance, New York Institute of Technology
- Bachelor's degree in Economics, State University of New York at Buffalo
- Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU®)
- Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC®)
- Accredited Investment Fiduciary (AIF®)
Adam Hammer
Chief Investment Officer
I spend most of my week buried in research, sorting through mutual funds, ETFs, stocks, and bonds to figure out what earns a place in a client's portfolio and what's just noise dressed up as opportunity. Building and refining the investment models behind our clients' plans is where I do my best thinking. I joined my father, Paul, back in 2014, and we've worked side by side ever since to put real strategy behind the money families have spent their lives building. Political science was my first love in college before the numbers won me over, and I've been chasing the why behind the markets ever since.
Away from the spreadsheets, I co-wrote a book called The Smart Investor's Manifesto, and I do a fair bit of speaking through Toastmasters International, where I've picked up a few awards along the way. On my own time, you'll usually find me with a horror or spy novel, training for the next half marathon (I've crossed a couple of finish lines and will happily tell you about them), or riding the highs and lows of another Buffalo sports season. Go Bills!
- Master of Science in Finance, University at Buffalo
- Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, Mercyhurst University
- Accredited Asset Management Specialist (AAMS®)
- Chartered Retirement Plans Specialist (CRPS®)
Linda Amyotte
Client Service Assistant
I've lived in Lockport my whole life, which means the friendly voice on the other end of the phone might already know your name, or at least recognize it. Before I came into the investment world, I spent the better part of two decades at Greatbatch Technologies, first on the assembly floor and later as an administrative assistant in purchasing, work that taught me to stay organized and to handle the small details so other people don't have to.
Outside the office, my family is my favorite thing in the world, especially my kids and grandkids. And when the weather cooperates, you'll probably find me out on the golf course, doing my best to keep it on the fairway.
Sueanne McCann
Client Service Assistant
If you call our office, there's a good chance mine is the first voice you'll hear, and I like it that way. Making people feel welcome from the very first hello is the part of my day I look forward to most. I've spent decades around money and the people who care about it, starting out in banking as a regional commercial loan lender before finding my way into the investment world, so I know how much a calm, friendly voice can matter when someone's working through a big decision.
I live in Lockport with my husband, James, and a good piece of my free time is spent in the bleachers cheering on my grandson at his baseball games. When I'm not there, you can usually find me off traveling somewhere new or tracking down the next piece for my antique collection.