Erin Schneider

Scot Stark is the sole advisor at Stark Strategic Capital Management, Inc. in Hampstead, NC. He holds the CFP® designation and Series 65 license and has 28 years of experience with his current firm. Stark Strategic Capital Management provides financial planning, counseling, investment supervision, portfolio management, risk management, and tax-planning advice primarily to individual clients. The firm manages approximately $18.4 million for about 19 clients and follows a structured six-step planning process, constructing tailored portfolios mainly using mutual funds and ETFs on a non-discretionary basis.

Joy Liu is a financial advisor with Connective Wealth Partners, LLC, holding a Series 65 designation and two years of industry experience. Her prior roles include positions at FG Advisory Services, LLC, The Financial Gym, and Burns Group. She has also worked as a freelancer. Connective Wealth Partners provides discretionary wealth management and financial planning to individuals, high-net-worth clients, trusts, and estates. The firm uses a fundamentally based investment approach with a long-term orientation, constructing portfolios with ETFs, equities, bonds, and alternative investments while offering both full-service and stand-alone planning options.

Joshua Mudse is a CFP® professional with 22 years of industry experience, currently serving as an advisor at Atlas. His prior roles include positions at OneAscent Financial Services, FF Advisors, Running Point Capital Advisors, Carnegie Investment Counsel, and Munn Wealth Management. He is also Associate Vice President of Client Services at Synergy Private, where he manages family office services such as accounting, tax preparation, and coordination of professional advisors. Atlas (ATFS Advisers LLC) provides wealth management and financial planning to individuals, high-net-worth clients, families, trusts, estates, businesses, and retirement plans. The firm employs a longer-term, index-based investment approach supplemented by concentrated strategies, ETFs, and direct equities, and manages both discretionary and non-discretionary portfolios alongside a private credit fund.

Patrick Horwitz is a financial advisor with Silver Oak Securities, Incorporated, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and 14 years of industry experience. He has worked at several firms including Securities America Advisors, Inc., SSN Advisory, and SII Investments, Inc. Outside of his advisory role, he serves as a board member for Stomp & Brew, a nonprofit charity that organizes a beer and wine festival benefiting children in need. Silver Oak Securities, Inc. provides advisory services to individuals, families, corporations, retirement plans, and charitable organizations, managing approximately $2.03 billion in discretionary assets through a network of over 100 financial professionals. The firm offers individualized portfolio management, unified managed account programs, and comprehensive wealth management solutions tailored to clients’ objectives and risk tolerances.

Jonathan Dell is a financial advisor at TIAA-CREF with 17 years of industry experience. He holds the Series 63 and Series 66 designations and has been with TIAA-CREF since 2014. TIAA‑CREF Individual & Institutional Services, LLC’s Advice & Planning Services division offers financial planning and discretionary managed account programs to individuals, trusts, estates, partnerships, corporate entities, and small retirement plans, often serving clients connected to TIAA-administered employer retirement plans. The firm operates within a vertically integrated group, providing both model portfolio and customized portfolio management under a fiduciary standard.

Keven Johnson is a financial advisor with Empower Advisory Group and Empower Financial Services, holding Series 63 and Series 66 licenses and having 27 years of industry experience. His prior work includes roles at Bank of America, Merrill, Robinhood Markets, USAA Investment Services, The Vanguard Group, and Advantage Securities. Empower Advisory Group provides financial planning and investment management primarily to employer-sponsored retirement plan sponsors and participants, as well as to Premier IRA and certain retail brokerage clients. The firm’s approach integrates proprietary and third-party methodologies focused on long-term portfolio returns and annual rebalancing, delivered through platforms closely tied to Empower’s recordkeeping and administrative services.