Allison Kollar is a CFP® with 17 years of industry experience, currently serving at Focus Partners Wealth, LLC since 2025. She previously worked at Bordeaux Wealth Advisors for four years and Brownson, Rehmus & Foxworth, Inc. for twelve years. Focus Partners Wealth serves a diverse client base including individuals, high-net-worth families, family offices, corporations, retirement plans, and institutions. The firm employs a long-term, tax- and fee-sensitive investment approach utilizing enhanced open architecture that blends fundamental and quantitative analysis with external managers and offers a wide range of investment strategies and integrated wealth services.

James Vanderbilt is a Certified Financial Planner® with 39 years of industry experience, currently serving as an advisor at Independent Advisor Alliance, LLC. His prior work includes over 25 years with Securities America Advisors, Inc. and two years at LPL Financial. Vanderbilt also holds Series 63 and Series 65 registrations. Independent Advisor Alliance serves a diverse client base including individuals, small businesses, charitable organizations, and retirement plans, offering asset management, financial planning, and retirement consulting. The firm employs a network model of advisory representatives and leverages technology platforms to provide portfolio management, estate planning, and third-party referrals.

Gregory Kojak is a financial advisor at Commonwealth Financial Network with 24 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 66 licenses and has been operating Kojak Capital since 2004 alongside his role at Commonwealth. Commonwealth Financial Network is a dual-registered broker/dealer and SEC-registered investment adviser that serves a national network of approximately 2,900 advisors and manages over $212 billion in client assets. The firm provides a broad adviser-support platform, including managed-account programs, third-party asset manager access, and custody services.

Donna Gordon is a financial advisor at Independent Financial Partners with 14 years of industry experience. She holds a Series 66 designation and has worked at Independent Financial Partners and affiliated firms since 2019, following seven years at Signature Financial Services, Ltd and Signature Advisors Group. Independent Financial Partners provides investment advisory, financial planning, trust, and retirement-plan services through a nationwide network of independent advisors. The firm supports a multi-advisor platform serving tens of thousands of individual, charitable, corporate, and high-net-worth clients, with a notable focus on retirement-plan advisory and pension consulting services.

Scot Peterson is a financial advisor with Benjamin F. Edwards & Company, Inc., holding Series 63 and Series 66 credentials and bringing 42 years of industry experience. He has been with Benjamin F. Edwards since 2013. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company is an SEC-registered investment adviser and broker-dealer serving a diverse client base, including individuals, pension plans, charitable organizations, and corporations. The firm offers a range of wrap programs and investment strategies managed internally and with third-party managers, supported by several hundred advisors and tens of billions in assets under management.

Jeremy Schletz is a financial advisor at Cerity Partners LLC with eight years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and previously worked at Edge Financial Advisors for eleven years. He is based in Wheaton, Illinois. Cerity Partners delivers customized wealth management and related services to a broad national client base, including individuals, families, trusts, business entities, charitable organizations, and institutional investors. The firm uses tailored asset allocation, manager selection, and proprietary quantitative screens alongside third-party managers and individual securities to build client programs.

Michael Von Drasek is a financial advisor at Empower Advisory Group with 14 years of industry experience. He holds the Series 66 designation and has worked at firms including Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Company and Empower Financial Services. Outside of his advisory role, he works part-time as an assistant golf professional managing leagues and teaching lessons at Village Links of Glen Ellyn. Empower Advisory Group provides financial planning and investment management primarily to employer-sponsored retirement plan sponsors and their participants, as well as to Empower Premier IRA and retail brokerage account holders, using an integrated model connected to Empower’s recordkeeping and administrative platforms.

Elias Andresen is a financial advisor at NewEdge Advisors with one year of industry experience. He holds a Series 65 designation and has a diverse work background that includes roles at Papa John's Pizza, Target, Midwest Insurance Partners, and Western Kentucky University. NewEdge Advisors is an enterprise-scale registered investment adviser serving individuals, pension and profit-sharing plans, corporations, trusts, estates, and charitable organizations through a network of independent investment adviser representatives. The firm provides a broad range of portfolio management and consulting services, utilizing multiple program structures and technology tools to support advisor and client needs.

Donald Baran is a financial advisor with TLG Advisors, Inc. holding a Series 66 license and five years of industry experience. His professional background includes roles at The Leaders Group Inc., FSG, Pizza Hut, Edward Jones, Weiman Products, and EMCO Chemical Distributors. He also works as an insurance wholesaler for fixed insurance products directly with financial advisors through FSG. TLG Advisors, Inc. serves a wide range of clients including individuals, high-net-worth clients, trusts, charitable organizations, corporations, pension and retirement plans, and other institutional investors. The firm focuses on manager selection and ongoing portfolio monitoring using fundamental analysis and Modern Portfolio Theory, offering services through independent representatives, sub-advisors, and a direct-to-consumer digital program called Starlight Portfolios.

Robert Fenby is a financial advisor with Hornor, Townsend & Kent, LLC, holding a Series 66 designation and 12 years of industry experience. He has been with Hornor, Townsend & Kent since 2012 and has a concurrent role at Penn Mutual Life Insurance Company dating back to 2011. Fenby is also involved in life insurance brokerage through multiple roles, including Regional Marketing Director at Penn Mutual, Senior Vice President at Insurance Wholesale Solutions, and proprietor of Fenby Life Insurance Planning. Hornor, Townsend & Kent serves a diverse client base including individuals, trusts, businesses, charitable organizations, and retirement plans. The firm offers advisory programs, financial planning, and retirement plan consulting, combining SEC-registered advisory services with broker-dealer capabilities and managing over $8 billion in discretionary assets.

Todd Bessey is a CFP® with 31 years of industry experience and is currently affiliated with Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC. He previously worked at Wayne Hummer Investments for 17 years before joining Integrated Wealth Concepts in 2021. Integrated Wealth Concepts serves individuals, families, trusts, estates, businesses, and retirement plans through a network of independent financial advisors. The firm offers discretionary investment management, financial planning, family office and retirement plan advisory services, and sponsors wrap-fee programs, focusing on customized portfolios that combine internal management and third-party asset manager oversight.

Sean Brooks is a financial advisor with Focus Advisor Solutions, LLC, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and bringing 16 years of industry experience. He has held roles at several firms, including Assetmark Brokerage, LLC and Centurion Capital Group, Inc., before joining Focus Advisor Solutions in 2018. Brooks also serves as a divisional manager maintaining financial advisor relationships in the Great Lakes region. Focus Advisor Solutions provides turnkey asset management and back-office services primarily to independent registered investment advisors and their clients. The firm offers diversified, systematically invested mutual fund and ETF model portfolios, discretionary fixed-income management, and retirement plan fiduciary services, managing approximately $41 billion in assets for over 33,000 clients.

Jennifer Merida is a financial advisor at Empower Advisory Group with 17 years of industry experience. She holds Series 63 and Series 66 licenses and has previously worked at firms including 818 Capital Group, Money Concepts Capital Corp., ADP, and BMO Harris Financial Advisors. Outside of her advisory role, she is a 2% owner and performs back-office work for Kaidence Chiropractic & Wellness, a business owned by her husband. Empower Advisory Group provides financial planning and investment management services primarily to employer-sponsored retirement plan sponsors and their participants, as well as to Empower Premier IRA and certain retail brokerage clients. The firm integrates its services with Empower’s recordkeeping and administrative platforms, focusing on long-term portfolio returns and participant savings rates.

Kari Beyer is a financial advisor with Benjamin F. Edwards & Company, Inc., holding Series 63 and Series 66 licenses and bringing 30 years of industry experience. She previously worked at Stifel Nicolaus & Co. from 2009 to 2017 before joining her current firm. Beyer serves as a board member for the Waterford Oaks Home Association in Aurora, Illinois, where she reviews landscaping needs and budget matters. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company is an SEC-registered investment adviser and broker-dealer that serves a diverse client base including individuals, pension plans, and charitable organizations. The firm offers fee-based wrap programs, financial planning, and retirement consulting, using a range of managed strategies and maintaining custody and execution capabilities uncommon among peers.

James Brandt is a financial advisor with Independent Financial Group, LLC, holding Series 63 and Series 66 licenses and bringing 40 years of industry experience. His career includes long-term roles at Fortis Investors, Inc. and Brandt Financial Concepts, a firm he has been involved with since 1983. Outside of his advisory work, Brandt serves as a FEMA-certified trainer for the Community Emergency Response Team and holds leadership positions in local organizations including a homeowners association and the Palatine Fire Pension Board. Independent Financial Group, LLC is a dual-registered broker-dealer and SEC-registered investment adviser serving individuals, charities, corporations, and plan sponsors. The firm offers a range of advisory and brokerage services, utilizing various investment platforms and third-party managers, with approximately $11.3 billion in regulatory assets under management.

Clayton Eaton is a financial advisor with T. Rowe Price Advisory Services, Inc. He holds a Series 66 designation and has 12 years of industry experience, all with T. Rowe Price since 2013. T. Rowe Price Advisory Services offers a retirement-focused advisory program that combines nondiscretionary financial planning, retirement income planning, and discretionary investment management. The firm serves individual investors and households, utilizing model portfolios invested exclusively in T. Rowe Price mutual funds and ETFs, with features such as tax-aware rebalancing and Monte Carlo-based retirement income projections.

Matthew Kling is a financial advisor with Principal Financial Services in Saint Charles, IL, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and three years of industry experience. Prior to his current role, he worked at Knights of Columbus Assets Advisors LLC and Knights of Columbus Insurance for a combined total of 14 years. He serves as a board member and trustee for the Edward J. Baker Foundation & Henry Rockwell Baker Memorial Community Center, a nonprofit community organization. Principal Securities offers brokerage and registered investment advisory services to a diverse client base including individual investors, retirement plans, trusts, charitable organizations, corporations, and active-duty military personnel. The firm’s advisory services emphasize direct advisory programs, financial planning, retirement plan consulting, and access to third-party money manager asset allocation and separately managed account solutions.

Lindsay Foster is a financial advisor at Kestra Advisory with 15 years of industry experience. She holds the Series 63 designation and previously worked at Calamos Financial Services LLC for 17 years before joining Kestra in 2026. Kestra Advisory Services provides investment advisory and retirement-plan consulting to institutional and individual clients, offering a range of services including fiduciary consulting, plan design, and advisor-managed accounts. The firm serves large institutional investors, including sovereign wealth funds, and offers multiple management platforms and third-party solutions within its supervisory framework.

Charis Ellis is a financial advisor with Commonwealth Financial Network in Wheaton, IL, holding CFP® and Series 66 designations. She has 11 years of industry experience, including roles at Edward Jones and Timothy Financial Counsel, Inc. Charis also serves as an event coordinator for College Church in Wheaton, organizing weddings and other church events on an as-needed basis. Commonwealth Financial Network is a national dual-registered broker/dealer and SEC-registered investment adviser supporting approximately 2,900 advisors and managing over $212 billion in client assets. The firm provides a comprehensive platform that includes managed-account programs, third-party asset manager access, and custody/clearing services.

Jeffrey Stensland is a financial advisor with Kestra Advisory who holds the PFS™ designation along with Series 63 and Series 65 licenses. He has 35 years of industry experience, including over 20 years with Kestra Investment Services and a decade at Kestra Advisory. Outside of his advisory role, he serves as president of AFS Group Ltd., which provides administrative support. Kestra Advisory Services offers investment advisory and retirement-plan consulting to a wide range of institutional and individual clients, including large plan sponsors. The firm provides services such as fiduciary consulting, plan design, and investment advisory, with a client base that includes sovereign wealth funds and other large investors.