Jane Okulski is a financial advisor with Oppenheimer in Chapel Hill, NC, holding a Series 66 designation and 17 years of industry experience. She has worked at Oppenheimer since 2017 and previously held roles at Cambridge Investment Research Advisors, Inc. and Transamerica Financial Advisors. Outside of her advisory work, she serves on the Reynolda House Advisory Council, assisting with event coordination and planning for the museum. Oppenheimer is a registered investment adviser and broker-dealer serving individuals, corporations, pension plans, charitable organizations, and IRAs. The firm offers a variety of programs including asset management, consulting, and retirement services, with a mix of discretionary and non-discretionary advisory approaches.

Thomas Mountain is a financial advisor with VALIC Financial Advisors in Durham, NC, holding Series 63 and Series 65 designations and bringing 26 years of industry experience. He has been with VALIC Financial Advisors since 2000 and is also currently an agent with Agia. Outside of his financial career, he co-manages a social media account focused on tabletop RPG gaming terrain and miniatures with his son. VALIC Financial Advisors serves primarily U.S. individuals, including high net worth clients and employer-sponsored retirement participants, offering wrap programs, portfolio management, and financial planning through a large network of advisors. The firm uses discretionary unified managed accounts with Envestnet’s platform and emphasizes centralized technology and model solutions to manage roughly $29.2 billion across nearly 300,000 clients.

Donna King is a financial advisor with TIAA-CREF in Durham, NC, holding a Series 66 credential and seven years of industry experience. She has worked at several firms, including Allstate Financial Advisors and Edward Jones, before joining TIAA-CREF in 2020. Outside of her advisory work, she manages a rental property business involving coordination of repairs and tax filings. TIAA-CREF Individual & Institutional Services provides financial planning and managed account programs to individuals, trusts, estates, partnerships, and small retirement plans, often serving clients with existing TIAA retirement plan relationships. The firm’s advisory offerings include point-in-time planning and ongoing discretionary portfolio management with a fiduciary standard applied to its registered investment adviser services.

Jennifer Jamerson is a CFP® and ChFC® with 26 years of industry experience. She has been with Valic Financial Advisors since 2010 and also holds an agent position at Agia, where she is involved with non-securities insurance products. Valic Financial Advisors primarily serves U.S.-domiciled 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, consulting, and brokerage services through its broker-dealer operations.

Charles Carrick is a CFP® with 13 years of industry experience, currently advising at Beacon Pointe Advisors, LLC since 2021. His prior roles include positions at DMJ Wealth Advisors, LLC and ProEquities Inc. Carrick also has experience with Beacon Pointe Insurance Services, LLC. Beacon Pointe Advisors provides wealth advisory, consulting, financial planning, and outsourced CIO services to a diverse client base that includes individuals, corporations, and institutional clients, employing both active and passive strategies across multiple asset classes.

Miles Richardson is a financial advisor at Allworth Financial, L.P. in Durham, NC. He holds a Series 65 designation and has one year of industry experience. Prior to joining Allworth Financial, he worked at Fleet Feet and First Citizens Bank, among other roles. Allworth Financial serves a diverse client base including individual and high-net-worth investors, pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts, corporations, and charitable organizations, offering comprehensive financial planning and portfolio management services. The firm employs a combination of quantitative and qualitative analysis to create customized investment strategies and provides education through newsletters, podcasts, and seminars.

Derek Mccord is a financial advisor with Equity Services, Inc. (ESI Financial Advisors) based in Cary, NC. He holds a Series 66 designation and has two years of industry experience. Prior to joining Equity Services, Derek worked at National Life Group and MassMutual in various capacities. Outside of his advisory role, he is a product advocate for health and wellness products through Melaleuca, Inc. Equity Services, Inc. provides financial planning, consulting, and asset management to individuals, corporations, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, and employer retirement plans. The firm employs multiple advisory platforms and uses third-party asset managers and model portfolios to offer a blend of long-term strategies and specialized investment options.

Alexander Gracia is a CFP® and ChFC® with 23 years of industry experience. He has been with VALIC Financial Advisors since 2005 and also holds an agent position at Agia. He serves as a notary public for loan and disbursement documentation related to the WakeMed plan. VALIC Financial Advisors primarily serves U.S.-domiciled 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-developed UMA models and serving approximately 294,000 clients through a network of over 1,200 advisors.

Vincenzo Catullo is a financial advisor at Truist Advisory Services with 29 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 designations and has worked in various roles within Truist and its predecessor entities since 2001. Truist Advisory Services provides investment consulting and advisory services to individuals, corporate and business clients, retirement plan sponsors, and charitable organizations, implementing advice through a combination of discretionary manager relationships and non-discretionary consulting supported by third-party platforms and extensive inter-affiliate integration.

Philip Shelton is a financial advisor at Empower Advisory Group with one year of industry experience. He holds the Series 66 designation and previously worked at Edward Jones. Empower Advisory Group provides financial planning and investment management primarily to employer-sponsored retirement plan sponsors and their participants, as well as to certain IRA and retail brokerage account holders. The firm integrates its services with Empower’s recordkeeping and administrative platforms, offering point-in-time financial plans and optional managed account solutions.

Tabitha Concepcion is a CFP® credentialed financial advisor with 12 years of industry experience, currently serving at Truist Advisory Services. Her career includes roles at Truist Investment Services, BB&T, and SunTrust Advisory Services. Outside of her advisory work, she co-owns Red Barn Naturals, a farm producing natural and organic personal care products from goat milk, and owns The Homestead, an agricultural production business. Truist Advisory Services provides investment consulting and advisory services to individuals, corporations, retirement plan sponsors, and charitable organizations. The firm combines discretionary manager relationships with non-discretionary consulting and utilizes third-party platforms and AI-enabled research tools to support its investment strategies.

George Fotiou is a financial advisor at AE Wealth Management, LLC with a Series 65 designation and one year of industry experience. He has prior experience as owner and CEO of Limani Insurance, LLC and People First Retirements, LLC, where he was involved in insurance sales and services. AE Wealth Management provides fee-based portfolio management, financial planning, and retirement-plan consulting to a diverse client base including individuals, corporations, trusts, and ERISA plan sponsors. The firm relies on discretionary model portfolios and supports third-party RIAs with sub-advisory and model-licensing arrangements.

Charles Brantley is a financial advisor with Bankers Life Advisory Services, Inc. He holds a Series 66 designation and has eight years of industry experience. Prior to joining Bankers Life Advisory Services, he worked at Morgan Stanley for eight years and has held positions at several other firms. Bankers Life Advisory Services, Inc. provides discretionary portfolio management and investment consulting primarily to mass-affluent and high-net-worth individuals. The firm’s investment process focuses on customized asset allocation, tax efficiency, and a combination of fundamental, technical, and cyclical analysis to guide portfolio management.

Iantha Wortman is a Series 66-registered financial advisor with Truist Advisory Services, based in Durham, NC. She has two years of industry experience and has previously worked at Equitable Advisors LLC and Lighthouse Lending. Truist Advisory Services provides investment consulting and advisory services to individuals, corporate clients, retirement plan sponsors, and charitable organizations. The firm offers asset allocation and investment policy analysis, fiduciary support, and a manager-selection program that combines discretionary and non-discretionary approaches, supported by AI-enabled research and inter-affiliate integration.

Karen Brock is a Certified Financial Planner® (CFP®) with three years of industry experience. She is currently affiliated with Commonwealth Financial Network in Cary, NC, having previously worked with Pathfinder Wealth Consulting. Brock has been associated with Commonwealth Financial Network in two separate periods totaling 12 years of service. Commonwealth Financial Network is a dual-registered broker/dealer and SEC-registered investment adviser that supports a national network of approximately 2,900 advisors and manages roughly $212.7 billion in client assets. The firm offers a broad range of advisory support services, including managed-account programs, access to third-party managers, retirement and plan consulting, and custody/clearing services.

Matthew Bracciante is a financial advisor with Stratos Wealth Partners, Ltd., holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and bringing 28 years of industry experience. His prior experience includes roles at Merrill, LPL Financial, Banc of America Investment Services, and MetLife Investment Fund Services. Outside of advising, he coaches high school lacrosse at Green Level High School. Stratos Wealth Partners, Ltd. is an SEC-registered enterprise firm with roughly 379 advisors and $18.6 billion in assets under management, serving individuals, retirement plans, corporations, nonprofits, and institutional clients. The firm employs an independent advisor model with an open-architecture investment approach that integrates multiple third-party platforms and managers, offering customized portfolio management and specialized planning services.

James Trull is a financial advisor with Commonwealth Financial Network in Cary, NC, holding the CFP® and ChFC® designations and possessing 38 years of industry experience. He previously worked at Keystone Financial Partners for 24 years and Commonwealth Equity Services, Inc. for 27 years. Outside of advisory work, he is the founder and managing member of The Senior Resource Alliance of the Triangle, a professional networking group, and serves as a course instructor at the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at North Carolina State University. Commonwealth Financial Network serves a national network of approximately 2,950 advisors and their clients, providing a range of advisory programs and back-office support including operations, trading, technology, investment management, and compliance. The firm offers discretionary model portfolios and multiple program structures designed to accommodate diverse investment strategies.

Thomas Burchhardt is a financial advisor with Equity Services, Inc., holding a Series 66 designation and three years of industry experience. His prior work history includes roles at National Life Group, Mass Mutual Investors Services, MassMutual Life Insurance Co, Equitable Advisors, Joe Van Gogh, and Starrlight Meadery. Outside of his advisory role, he is involved in business operations as the owner of TLB Strategies LLC, which focuses on assessing business strategic direction and growth of intangible capital. Equity Services, Inc., operating as ESI Financial Advisors, provides financial planning, consulting, and asset management services to individuals, corporations, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, and employer retirement plans. The firm offers multiple advisory platforms, combining long-term strategies with options for shorter-term trading, and utilizes both discretionary and non-discretionary management across a broad client base.

Jeffrey Thompson is a financial advisor with TIAA-CREF in Durham, NC, holding Series 63 and Series 65 designations and bringing 20 years of industry experience. Prior to joining TIAA-CREF in 2014, he worked at CapFinancial Securities, LLC and Wells Fargo Clearing. TIAA-CREF Individual & Institutional Services, LLC provides financial planning and discretionary managed account programs to individuals, trusts, estates, partnerships, corporate entities, and small retirement plans, often serving clients with existing employer retirement relationships. The firm offers both point-in-time planning and ongoing discretionary management, and acts as adviser to a donor-advised fund while operating within a vertically integrated group.

H. Hughes is a CFP® with 14 years of industry experience, currently affiliated with Commonwealth Financial Network. Prior to joining Commonwealth, Hughes worked at Ameriprise Financial Services, Inc. for five years. Hughes also conducts fixed insurance sales under the name Cross Bridge. Commonwealth Financial Network is a dual-registered broker/dealer and SEC-registered investment adviser supporting a national network of approximately 2,900 advisors and managing over $210 billion in client assets. The firm offers a broad adviser-support platform including managed-account programs, access to third-party asset managers, and comprehensive custody and clearing services.