Ethan Drake Akins

Christopher Russell is a financial advisor at Avidian Wealth Solutions with 15 years of industry experience. He holds Series 65 and Series 66 licenses and has worked at firms including Linscomb and Williams, Cadence Bank, Wells Fargo Clearing, and Morgan Stanley. Russell serves on the boards of the Community Foundation of Greater Huntsville and the HudsonAlpha Foundation. Avidian Wealth Solutions provides investment management, financial planning, and advisory services to individuals, families, retirement plans, corporations, and institutional clients. The firm uses a combination of managed model solutions and customized portfolios and is notable for its active role with pooled and private funds, including sub-advisory and investment management responsibilities.

Brian Degaetano is a financial advisor with PNC Wealth Management, holding a Series 66 designation and 19 years of industry experience. His prior roles include positions at Compass Bank and BBVA Wealth Solutions, where he worked for eight years. Outside of finance, he is a percussionist with the Gadsden Symphony Orchestra and owns a photography business, Brian Degaetano Imaging. PNC Wealth Management provides retail brokerage and advisory services through model-based programs, including a digital, discretionary model account offered as an invitation-only pilot for employees. The firm employs algorithmic risk assessment and delegates portfolio implementation to third parties, focusing on mutual funds and ETFs with annual rebalancing.

James Houston is a ChFC® with 26 years of industry experience, currently serving as an investment advisor representative at TLG Advisors, Inc. He has previously worked at Concourse Financial Group Securities Inc and Southern Wealth Strategies LLC, where he is also the owner. Houston is licensed as an independent insurance agent and engages in addressing life insurance and fixed annuity needs. TLG Advisors, Inc. manages approximately $2.0 billion in discretionary client assets and serves individuals, retirement plans, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, businesses, and institutional investors. The firm offers investment supervisory and portfolio management, comprehensive financial and estate planning, ERISA fiduciary services, and a direct-to-consumer program called Starlight Portfolios, utilizing fundamental analysis and Modern Portfolio Theory in its investment approach.

John Akins is a CFP® professional with 12 years of industry experience, currently affiliated with Commonwealth Financial Network. His prior experience includes roles at LPL Financial, Cetera, and Regions Bank. He is co-owner and finance director of Resolute Care Services, Inc., a home healthcare business in Fort Payne, AL. Commonwealth Financial Network is a registered investment adviser supporting a national network of approximately 2,950 advisors with advisory programs, wealth management, and retirement plan consulting. The firm provides operational, trading, technology, investment management, compliance, and practice-management support, while offering a range of discretionary and customized portfolio solutions.

Douglas Crowe is a financial advisor with Commonwealth Financial Network, holding a Series 63 designation and 34 years of industry experience. His prior roles include positions at MetLife Securities, Prudential Insurance Company of America, and LPL Enterprise. Outside of his advisory work, he serves as an election official in Dekalb County, Alabama. Commonwealth Financial Network serves a national network of approximately 2,950 advisors and their clients, providing a variety of advisory programs, operational support, and investment management services. The firm offers a range of portfolio construction options and discretionary model portfolios managed through a structured due diligence process.

Thomas Guice is a financial advisor at Edward Jones with 18 years of industry experience. He holds the Series 66 designation and has been with Edward Jones since 2008. Edward Jones is a full-service wealth management firm serving over four million individual and institutional clients, offering a range of advisory programs including discretionary and non-discretionary wrap fee strategies, separately managed accounts, and affiliated mutual funds. The firm manages approximately $1.01 trillion in assets and operates a large national network of financial advisors and branch offices.