James Schmidt

John Piershale is a CFP® professional with 32 years of industry experience. He is the sole advisor at Piershale Wealth Management, LLC in Crystal Lake, Illinois, and has held prior roles at Origin Financial, Ausdal Financial Partners, Inc., Piershale Financial Group, Inc., and Triad Advisors, Inc. Piershale Wealth Management provides discretionary investment management and a variety of financial planning services to individual clients. The firm emphasizes strategic asset allocation based on Modern Portfolio Theory and fundamental analysis, offering specialized tax and estate planning within a modest, single-advisor model.

William Utes is the sole advisor at UTES Wealth Strategies in Antioch, IL, holding Series 63 and Series 65 credentials with 56 years of industry experience. He has been managing his own advisory business since 2019 and has worked with Securities America Advisors, Inc. since 2007. In addition to investment advising, he occasionally offers insurance reviews to clients through approved vendors. UTES Wealth Strategies provides discretionary portfolio management and financial planning to individuals, families, retirement plans, trusts, charitable organizations, and other entities. The firm uses a combination of strategic and tactical asset allocation with selected outside money managers and offers educational newsletters and seminars to clients.

Timothy McDonald is the sole advisor at Timothy J McDonald CPA CFP, an independent firm based in Lake Barrington, IL. He holds CFP® and Series 63 designations and has 27 years of industry experience. He is also a partner in the CPA firm McDonald Doherty & Co., where he has been active since 1988. The firm provides personalized financial planning and investment management to individuals and families, integrating tax planning with investment strategies. It employs a combination of fundamental and technical analysis and asset allocation tailored to clients’ risk tolerance and goals, managing approximately $65 million across about 60 client relationships.

Roy Brown is a CFP® with 28 years of industry experience and has been with Trueman Brown since 2007. He holds a Series 63 license and is based in Lake Zurich, IL. Outside of his advisory role, he is co-owner and vice president of RVTV Properties. Trueman Brown provides financial planning, consulting, and investment management services to individuals, pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, and business entities. The firm employs a combination of fundamental and technical analysis to create growth-oriented portfolios while focusing on capital preservation.

Gregory Smith is a CFP® with 14 years of industry experience and has served as an independent consultant since 2009. He is the sole advisor at Long Run Investment Management, LLC, an independent firm based in Long Grove, IL. Long Run Investment Management provides discretionary portfolio management, financial planning, and consulting services to individual investors, pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts, estates, corporations, and unaffiliated advisers. The firm emphasizes pension consulting and retirement-plan fiduciary services, implementing portfolios using a combination of fundamental, charting, and cyclical analysis within a Modern Portfolio Theory framework.

Anton Prokopenko is a CFP® and holds a Series 65 license, currently serving as an advisor at HighPoint Planning Partners with one year of industry experience. He is also the president of Sansone & Associates, P.C., an accounting and tax services firm for businesses and individuals. His prior work includes positions at Northern Illinois University, UnitedHealth Group, Concordia University Chicago, and the College of DuPage. HighPoint Advisor Group provides discretionary asset management, financial planning, and consulting services to individuals, pension plans, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, and corporations. The firm manages approximately $4.0 billion in client assets and employs a fundamental analysis approach to construct individualized investment policies across a range of securities and custodial platforms.