John Timothy Mickel

I was 13 years old when I started investing. My grandfather taught me. Instead of fishing or watching baseball during summers together, he walked me through options trading (not the safest way to invest lol). Buying and selling puts, running iron condors and writing covered calls. Most kids my age were at camps or on the swim team. I was learning about risk, free cash flow, and what it means to actually own a piece of a business. I was obsessed. I kept investing through college, eventually realizing there was a whole world beyond picking stocks. Tax planning. Estate planning. Cash flow. The full picture of what it takes to build wealth and protect a family. I joined a firm out of school. Then another. I learned a lot, but kept running into the same wall: I didn't have the freedom to invest the way I believed clients deserved. In 2021, I started Baskets Capital, my own independent RIA. I wanted full control over how we serve clients. Not 10 mutual funds and calling it a day. Not telling an 85 year old "let's just see what the market does." I wanted custom portfolios of individual stocks, actively managed, tailored to each client. Then in early 2024, life hit me hard. I was diagnosed with a fatal brain tumor. Three months of scans and specialists led to brain surgery in May 2024. A week in the hospital, time in the Neural ICU, and a long recovery that stretched through the year. I could not have made it through without God protecting me the whole way, without Courtney by my side, and without having built my own firm years prior. Full control over my schedule is what let me focus on healing. In 2025, the best thing that has ever happened. We welcomed our daughter, Parker, into the world. She reshaped how I think about my work and why it matters. At Baskets Capital, we help families and business owners navigate tax planning, estate planning, charitable giving, and investments so they can focus on what matters most - family time. We coordinate every piece: proactive tax planning, smart giving strategies like donating appreciated stock and using donor-advised funds, and custom portfolios of individual stocks. Every dollar gets put to work with intention. If you think you're safe because nothing has gone wrong yet, and you haven't built a plan for what happens when life throws something unexpected at you, we should probably talk. Life has a thousand things it can throw. One of the best things you can do is prepare, build a plan, and walk through it with experts beside you.

I’m Zach Thomas, founder and steward of Growth Horizons Wealth Management, based in Georgetown, TX. As a fee‑only, fiduciary advisor, our team empowers small business owners, high-net-worth individuals, and retirees to build purposeful lives through thoughtful, technology-forward wealth planning—because financial success should fuel what matters, not distract from it. My journey began after witnessing my grandfather’s financial struggles following his business exit. That experience—combined with the values of my parents (a teacher and postal worker)—shaped my mission to prevent others from suffering the same. I launched my career at Wells Fargo, built a wealth-management department at Cadence Bank, and refined my approach at Heritage Family Offices before launching my practice in July 2023. Outside of work, I’m a devoted husband, proud father to Roman, CrossFit enthusiast, triathlon finisher, aspiring author, lifelong student of the humanities, and active Christian. I believe wealth is about time, freedom, and legacy—not just dollars.

Christopher Hehman is a Series 66-licensed financial advisor at FMP Wealth Advisers with one year of industry experience. Prior to joining FMP Wealth Advisers, he worked at Dimensional Fund Advisors and has academic experience at Texas Tech University and Vandegrift High School. FMP Wealth Advisers provides fee-only financial planning and investment management services to individuals, pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, and small businesses. The firm manages approximately $1.34 billion in client assets using model portfolio management, separately managed accounts, and retirement-plan fiduciary services, distinguishing itself by acting as an investment manager and sponsor to private pooled investment vehicles.

Kai Lamb is a financial advisor at Solaris Private Wealth Management in Austin, TX, with 22 years of industry experience. He holds the Series 66 designation and has led Solaris since 2006. Outside of advising, he is a member and manager of Genesis Web Solutions, a web hosting business. Solaris Private Wealth Management serves individuals, small business owners, and nonprofit foundations, providing investment advisory, financial planning, and educational workshops. The firm uses Modern Portfolio Theory and a mix of no-load mutual funds, low-cost ETFs, individual equities, and fixed income to tailor portfolios according to each client’s risk profile.

Romy Pickron is a CFP® with 12 years of industry experience, currently serving as the sole advisor at Asset Achievers in Austin, TX. Prior to founding Asset Achievers in 2022, Romy worked at Wells Fargo Advisors and Wells Fargo Clearing from 2014 to 2021. Romy is also co-owner and co-founder of Reducify LLC, an organization focused on personal finance education and helping borrowers accelerate student loan repayment. Asset Achievers provides comprehensive financial planning combined with discretionary investment management services, tailored to individual client circumstances. The firm serves individuals, small businesses, and educational institutions, employing a long-term, buy-and-hold investment approach based on Modern Portfolio Theory and incorporating educational courses and coaching.

Brandon Perry is a CFP® and ChFC® with 22 years of industry experience. He is the principal of Perry Investment Management, LLC, an independent firm he has led since 2009 in Round Rock, TX. Perry Investment Management is a fee-only registered investment adviser managing approximately $27 million in discretionary assets. The firm serves individuals, nonprofits, corporate pension and profit-sharing plans, charitable institutions, foundations, and endowments, using an IPS-driven approach focused on risk control and loss limitation through diversified portfolios comprising stocks, mutual funds, ETFs, and bonds.