Darren Straniero is a CFP® with 17 years of industry experience. He is the sole advisor at OnPlane Financial Advisors, an independent firm he has led since 2018. Prior to founding OnPlane, he worked for Park Ave Securities and Guardian Life Insurance for ten years each. OnPlane Financial Advisors serves individual clients and families, providing comprehensive financial planning and asset management primarily through virtual meetings. The firm employs a passive, index-oriented investment strategy and uses a fixed retainer fee model rather than percentage-of-assets billing.

Andrew Hamill is a CFA® charterholder with experience at Foxgrover Investment Partners since 2025, Atlantic Union Bank since 2021, and Wells Fargo from 2011 to 2021. He is based in Gaithersburg, MD. Foxgrover Investment Partners provides portfolio management and personalized financial planning to individuals and high-net-worth clients, using fundamental analysis, modern portfolio theory, and quantitative methods to inform investment decisions. The firm offers both non-wrap and wrap fee programs, managing portfolios with discretion based on clients’ investment policy statements.

Wesley Watkis is the sole advisor at The W & W Group LLC in Rockville, MD, with 30 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 designations and previously worked at Global Brokerage Services, Inc. and World Capital Brokerage, Inc. Outside of advisory services, he provides consulting for an information technology firm and operates as an independent insurance agent. The W & W Group delivers customized investment advisory and portfolio management services to individuals, trusts, estates, and retirement plans, typically without a firm-level account minimum. The firm employs a long-term investment approach informed by fundamental, technical, and cyclical analysis, offering both discretionary and non-discretionary management along with a wrap-fee program that consolidates transaction and custodial costs.

Mark Reges is a financial services associate at Merrill Lynch Wealth Management, where he joined the team in 2021. In his role, Mark focuses on managing team operations and is responsible for client servicing, ensuring timely responses to client requests. He also supports business development, relationship management, and contributes to wealth management planning. A native of Potomac, Maryland, Mark graduated from Miami University with a bachelor's degree in economics. Outside of his professional responsibilities, he pursues personal interests in sculpting and painting and enjoys hiking along the Potomac River.

Prospero Roda is the sole advisor at Roda Investment Management, LLC in Burtonsville, MD, holding Series 63 and Series 66 credentials with 21 years of industry experience. He has led Roda Investment Management since its founding in 2006. Roda Investment Management provides personalized, fee-only investment management services to individuals, pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, and business entities. The firm manages client assets on a discretionary basis using a strategic asset-allocation framework focused on individual equities, fixed income, and exchange-traded funds, incorporating fundamental analysis and global diversification to manage risk.

Yuan He is a financial advisor at HY Financial LLC with 15 years of industry experience. He holds a Series 65 designation and has worked at the General Services Administration since 2019 and the Food and Drug Administration from 2015 to 2019. Outside of his advisory role, he is a limited partner in two small businesses operating entertainment venues in Gaithersburg, Maryland. HY Financial is a small independent registered investment adviser serving individual clients with discretionary portfolio management and limited financial planning services. The firm combines fundamental and technical analysis with a focus on qualitative business evaluation and low turnover, and it monitors accounts regularly while providing written financial plans.

Dewayne Ellis is the principal advisor and founder of The Wealth Syndicate LLC, an independent firm based in Silver Spring, MD. He holds a Series 66 designation and has 19 years of industry experience. Prior to establishing his firm in 2015, Ellis developed expertise in financial planning and portfolio management. Outside of his advisory role, he is a licensed insurance producer affiliated with MassMutual and serves as a general agent for Ameritas, Ohio National, and Crump, offering various commissionable insurance products. The Wealth Syndicate LLC provides ongoing portfolio management and financial planning services primarily to individual and high-net-worth clients, managing approximately $5.35 million in assets for about 75 clients. The firm employs a long-term investment approach combining fundamental analysis and modern portfolio theory, prepares individualized Investment Policy Statements, delivers written financial plans, and offers a paid monthly newsletter along with periodic client webinars.

Philip Chauche is the principal advisor at Chauche & Associates LLC, an independent firm based in Germantown, MD. He holds the CFP® and CFA® designations and has 19 years of industry experience. He has operated Chauche & Associates since 2003. Chauche & Associates LLC manages portfolios for a limited number of individual clients, focusing on fee-for-service financial planning and portfolio management. The firm employs a top-down investment approach with diversified holdings and personalized asset allocation, generally favoring no-load and low-load mutual funds.

I founded Luminate Financial Planning because I am passionate about the power of planning and about helping you build a life based on what matters most to you. Financial planning is a mix of art and science. It’s not just about the numbers, but what the numbers mean for you. It's how you can use money as a tool to build your own great life. I will work with you to simplify and take control of your financial life. I will empower you to align your financial assets with your own values and goals. I believe that financial planning should be transparent, using a fee-only structure to minimize conflicts of interest. No commissions and no hidden fees. I personally understand the transformative power of sound financial planning and advice. Before leaving my prior career in corporate finance, and before I knew financial planning was even a profession, I built my own extensive plan for my family. We wanted to figure out if I could take time off of my career to start a family and become a stay-at-home mom while our kids were young. That basic plan (built with an Excel spreadsheet) served as a guidepost for the financial decisions my family and I have faced. My background  I have an MBA in Finance from Georgetown University and an undergraduate degree in Business Administration from Bloomsburg University. I hold the CFP® certification and passed the Series 65 Uniform Investment Adviser exam. I worked as an associate financial advisor and wealth planner for an independent broker-dealer before launching my own practice.

Andrew Meringoff is the sole advisor at Meringoff Wealth Management Group, LLC in Rockville, MD, with 26 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 designations and has led his independent firm since 2008. In addition to his advisory role, he is an independent insurance agent, though he is not actively selling insurance. Meringoff Wealth Management Group provides discretionary investment management and financial planning services to individuals, high-net-worth clients, trusts, estates, and pension and profit-sharing plans. The firm constructs customized portfolios using primarily low-cost mutual funds and ETFs, with a long-term, fundamental investment approach complemented by technical analysis for trade timing and rebalancing.

Eugene Fisher is the sole advisor at Fisher Financial, P.A. in Rockville, MD, with 22 years of industry experience. He has been with Fisher Financial since 1986. Fisher Financial, P.A. is a CPA-based, state-registered investment adviser that provides investment manager selection, financial planning, and income and estate tax planning primarily for high-net-worth individuals, businesses, and tax-exempt organizations. The firm coordinates with third-party managers rather than directly managing client assets and incorporates tax considerations into its planning and recommendations.

We believe wealth should provide greater freedom, not greater complexity. Rule72 Financial helps individuals and families thoughtfully coordinate their investments, financial planning, and the important decisions that come with significant wealth. **A Personal and Family Approach** We begin with what matters to you—your family, priorities, concerns, and the life your wealth is intended to support. From there, we build a financial strategy around those priorities and help carry it forward over time. Many of the families we work with have accumulated wealth gradually through successful careers, disciplined saving and investing, business ownership, or an inheritance. They may have accounts spread across different institutions, tax considerations to manage, retirement decisions approaching, or simply more financial complexity than they want to manage alone. Our role is to bring those pieces together. **Thoughtful Investing. Coordinated Planning.** Investment management and financial planning should not operate separately. We manage portfolios in the context of your retirement income, taxes, cash flow, estate plan, charitable giving, family priorities, and other financial decisions. That means going beyond making recommendations. We help determine what should be done, explain the choices clearly, and implement and manage the strategies you choose. You remain in control of the destination; our job is to help navigate the financial decisions required to get there. **A Deliberate Approach to Markets** Good wealth management rarely requires reacting to every market move. We believe portfolios should have a purpose within the larger financial plan. Our approach emphasizes diversification, tax awareness, appropriate risk, disciplined portfolio management, and staying focused on the decisions that matter most. Rather than adding complexity for its own sake, we look for thoughtful strategies that can be understood, implemented, and maintained. **Working With the People You Trust** Wealth decisions often extend beyond investments. When appropriate, we work alongside your CPA, estate attorney, and other professionals so tax, estate, investment, and planning decisions can be considered together rather than in isolation. **Stewarding Wealth Across Generations** Whether your wealth was built over decades, inherited from someone important to you, or created through a business or career transition, eventually the question becomes larger than investment performa

Most professionals, pre-retirees, and retirees have gaps in their financial plans that cost time, money, and peace of mind. These gaps often appear not because of poor planning, but because life itself keeps evolving. Careers change, families grow, tax laws shift, and priorities move. Over time, even the most well-intentioned plans can lose alignment with the lives they were built to support. With15+ years of working closely with individuals and families, I’ve seen firsthand how the right guidance and a truly collaborative relationship can make all the difference. At Addax Bridge Financial we believe every client’s story is unique, which is why every plan is too. Together, we look beyond numbers and portfolios to understand what matters most; your goals, values, and the life you’re building. From there we help close the gaps through a comprehensive approach that brings every part of your financial life into alignment by integrating: - Holistic or Goal-Based Financial Planning – aligning your finances with what matters most to you - Retirement Planning – creating a confident path to and through retirement - Investment Management – disciplined, research-driven portfolio construction and management - Tax Planning – strategies to help minimize taxes and maximize wealth - Estate Planning – preserving your legacy for the next generation - Insurance Planning – protecting what you’ve worked so hard to build - Education Planning - guiding families to fund futures with confidence As a Fiduciary and Fee-Only Wealth Management and Financial Planning firm, our mission is to simplify the complexities of finance, giving clients clarity, confidence, and a trusted partner at every stage of life. We focus on fewer relationships, that way we’re able to go deeper, understanding what matters most to you and staying involved every step of the way. It’s the kind of thoughtful, one-to-one partnership that larger firms simply can’t match.

Andrew Omidvar is a financial advisor at Avesta Venture Advisors with three years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has worked at Triad Advisors since 1999. Outside of his advisory role, he has been affiliated with the University of DC since 1988. Avesta Venture Advisors provides technology-focused research and advisory services to qualified investors and institutional clients, including pension plans and endowments. The firm specializes in evaluating future technologies in computer and electronics using public information and employs a project-based billing approach.

Nicholas Herman is a financial advisor at Elite Financial Group in Gaithersburg, MD, holding a Series 65 designation with 18 years of industry experience. He previously worked at Capital Financial Partners from 2005 to 2018. Outside of his advisory role, Herman is the CEO of a general contracting company and is also active as a real estate agent and insurance agent. Elite Financial Group provides portfolio management services primarily for individual and high-net-worth clients, using a combination of charting, fundamental, and technical analysis within a long-term trading framework. The firm’s approach includes managing portfolios with mutual funds, equities, fixed income, ETFs, annuities, and TIPS.

Rebecca Schreiber is a financial advisor with Flexible Finances in Silver Spring, MD, holding a Series 65 credential and three years of industry experience. She has worked at Flexible Finances since 2020 and is a partial owner of Holy Chow LLC, a restaurant in Silver Spring, where she contributes in a bookkeeping capacity. Flexible Finances serves individual and small business clients, providing financial planning, counseling, benefits analysis, budgeting, debt management, and investment recommendations. The firm emphasizes client education and independence, using a fee-for-service model with hourly or project-based billing and focuses on low-cost, liquid investments without discretionary asset management or commission-based fees.

Henry Stern is the sole advisor at HDS Capital Management, Inc., an independent firm based in Potomac, MD. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has 13 years of industry experience. Stern has led HDS Capital Management since 1999. HDS Capital Management provides tailored portfolio management and investment advice to individuals, pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts, estates, and charitable organizations. The firm employs fundamental analysis and manager review across a broad range of securities, combining long-term and short-term strategies while continuously monitoring client accounts.

Stephanie Bigwood is a CFP® and ChFC® with 30 years of experience in financial advisory and related fields. She is the principal of Goldsborough Capital Management, LLC, a firm she has led since 2012. In addition to her advisory work, she manages Goldsborough Tax and Accounting Services, LLC, where she prepares tax returns. Bigwood is also involved with the TowsonTowne Rotary Foundation as a board member. Goldsborough Capital Management provides investment advisory and portfolio management services to individuals, trusts, retirement accounts, employee benefit plans, corporations, foundations, and charitable organizations. The firm designs portfolios tailored to clients' objectives and risk tolerance, employing a range of strategies including asset allocation, option strategies, and the use of sub-advisers.

Justin Bacon is a CFA® charterholder with nine years of experience in the financial industry. He is the principal of Own Your Monday Wealth Management, LLC, and previously worked at VWG Wealth Management, Avendra, and Fidelity. Own Your Monday Wealth Management, LLC is a fee-only registered investment adviser serving individual and high-net-worth clients with wealth management services that combine discretionary portfolio management and financial planning. The firm utilizes an investment approach based on asset allocation and Modern Portfolio Theory, employing both passive and active vehicles tailored to clients’ objectives and risk tolerances.

I’m an advice-only financial planner based in North Bethesda, MD. I offer three services: The Hour, The Plan and The Clubhouse. My current clients are generally seeking help with: 1) Planning for retirement or financial independence (FIRE). 2) Major life decisions such as getting married, buying a home, starting a family, receiving an inheritance, starting to invest, etc. 3) A second opinion on their self-managed or advisor-managed investment portfolio. Check my guide, Where to Start With Money? https://nineinningfinance.com/writing/nine-inning-finance-guide-where-to-start-with-money To learn more, visit www.nineinningfinance.com. Read Nick’s newsletter here: https://moundvisits.substack.com/