Benjamin Lane

Thomas Clayton is a financial advisor with Credit Union Investment Services and holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses. He has 12 years of experience in the industry, working concurrently at Members Trust Company, Secu Life Insurance Company, Secu Brokerage Services, and State Employees' Credit Union. Outside of his advisory roles, he volunteers with Wreaths Across America. Credit Union Investment Services serves primarily individual investors in North Carolina, offering non-discretionary portfolio management, retirement and financial planning, and a wrap-fee program. The firm emphasizes low-cost, index-based mutual funds and ETFs, fixed-income products, and a goals-based, long-term planning approach, with advisory representatives employed on a salaried basis rather than commission.

Elizabeth Waters is a CFP® professional with 17 years of industry experience. She is currently with Farther and has previously worked at Commonwealth Financial Network and operated Stable Waters Financial. Waters is also an independent insurance agent. Farther serves individual investors, trusts, and estates through a technology-driven advisory platform, offering discretionary investment management, retirement plan consulting, and non-discretionary recommendations for private investment funds. The firm employs a Modern Portfolio Theory-based approach using bespoke and algorithmic model portfolios with automatic rebalancing.

Wendolyn Forbes is a CFP® professional with 17 years of experience in the financial services industry. She is currently with Advisory Services Network and has previously worked at Bank of America, Merrill, and Wells Fargo. Outside of her advisory role, she is an author of fiction, non-fiction, and poetry, and serves on multiple nonprofit boards including Working Wheels, Haywood Chamber of Commerce, Haywood Vocational Opportunities, Haywood Community College Foundation, and Lake Logan Retreat Center. She also leads indoor cycling classes. Advisory Services Network serves individuals, families, corporations, charitable organizations, and employer retirement plans through a network of independent Investment Adviser Representatives. The firm offers portfolio management, financial planning, and investment consulting using a variety of strategies across asset classes, managing approximately $8.6 billion in client assets.

Sebastien Gruaz is a financial advisor with Valic Financial Advisors, holding a Series 66 designation and two years of industry experience. Prior to his current role, he worked in various healthcare-related positions including at United Surgical Partners International and MD Anderson Cancer Center. He is also appointed as an agent to sell non-securities insurance products for AGIA. Valic Financial Advisors primarily serves U.S.-based individual investors, including high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth clients, as well as corporate and retirement-plan participants. The firm offers discretionary managed-account programs, financial planning, and brokerage services, utilizing Envestnet UMA models for portfolio construction and management.

Michael Wiercinski is a financial advisor with Kestra Advisory, holding a Series 66 designation and bringing 18 years of industry experience. Prior to joining Kestra Advisory in 2019, he worked at Wells Fargo Advisors and Wells Fargo Clearing from 2010 to 2019. He serves as president of Mountain Rock Wealth Management and is a member of the Parish Finance Council at St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church. Kestra Advisory Services provides investment advisory and retirement-plan consulting to plan sponsors, institutional, and individual clients, offering a range of services including fiduciary consulting, plan design, and investment advice with access to multiple management platforms and third-party solutions.

Cameron Bennett is a financial advisor with Eagle Strategies (NY Life) in Hendersonville, NC, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and five years of industry experience. His prior work includes roles at NYLIFE Securities LLC and New York Life Insurance Company, as well as experience outside finance with Bob McGrath Construction and community involvement through local churches. Bennett serves as a board member for AYSO, a youth soccer organization in Waynesville and Haywood County, and is pursuing a Master of Arts in Theological Studies through Westminster Theological Seminary. Eagle Strategies LLC provides financial planning, investment advisory, and retirement plan consulting services to individuals, employer-sponsored plans, trusts, charitable organizations, and corporate clients. The firm emphasizes client-directed solutions and the use of third-party managers and model portfolios, operating as an indirect subsidiary of New York Life with a combined advisory and insurance structure.