Our Story

A Mom First. A Financial Coach Always.

Because helping families starts with being one.

A Mom First. A Financial Coach Always.

I'm Ellen Abad — a single mom to three beautiful kids, a mortgage specialist with 8twelve Mortgage, and a team leader with Primerica. But before I tell you what I do, I need to tell you why.

My husband, Donnick Abad, was the love of my life. He was also a passionate mortgage broker and financial coach — a man who believed with everything in him that every family deserved a fair shot at financial security. We didn't just share a marriage. We shared a mission.


When I lost Donnick, I lost my partner in every sense of the word. But what I didn't lose was the purpose we built together. If anything, it became clearer. Louder. More urgent.

This career isn't just my profession. My life is a living testimony.


Why This Is Personal

I know what it means to suddenly become the only parent in the room. To be the one signing the papers, making the decisions, and lying awake at night wondering if you're doing enough for your kids. I know what it feels like when the financial safety net you thought you had is tested in the most painful way imaginable.

And I know — because I lived it — how much it matters to have the right mortgage, the right insurance, and the right plan in place before life decides to test you.


That's why I do this work with my whole heart. Not because it's a smart career. Because it's the most important conversation a family can have, and most families aren't having it until it's too late.


What I Do

As a mortgage specialist with 8twelve Mortgage, I help families across Nova Scotia find the right home financing — whether you're a first-time buyer figuring out where to start, a homeowner coming up for renewal, or someone who needs to restructure and finally breathe. No jargon. No pressure. Just honest guidance from someone who genuinely cares how this turns out for you.


As a team leader with Primerica, I lead a team of nearly 50 people who share the same belief Donnick and I built our life around: every family deserves to be financially protected. We help families build independence through life insurance and smart financial strategies — the kind of protection that holds when everything else shakes.


Why Families Trust Me

Because I'm not speaking from a script. I'm speaking from a life.

I've sat at the kitchen table after the kids were asleep, working through numbers alone. I've felt the weight of being the only one responsible for everything. And I've experienced firsthand why financial protection isn't optional — it's everything.


Every family who sits across from me gets my full attention, my real experience, and a plan that fits their actual life. Whether you need a mortgage, insurance, or just someone to help you figure out the next step — I'm here. No judgment. No rush. Just a mom who's been through it, carrying forward a mission that started with the man she loved.


Donnick and I always believed the best time to protect your family is before you need to. Let's have that conversation. Book a call with me — I'd love to hear your story.