Austen Hawkey is a CFP® with eight years of industry experience, currently serving as a financial advisor at Creative Planning. His prior roles include positions at First Oak Wealth Management, Armor Investment Advisors, and Bank of America. Creative Planning offers investment advisory and financial planning services to a diverse client base, including individuals, corporations, foundations, trusts, and retirement plans. The firm employs a financial planning–led investment process focused on low-cost indexing and buy-and-hold strategies, supported by a broad range of supplemental approaches and integrated retirement plan services.

Richard Murray is a financial advisor with Prime Capital Financial in Clayton, NC, holding Series 63 and Series 65 designations and over 31 years of industry experience. He has been with Prime Capital Investment Advisors, LLC since 2018 and previously worked at Corinthian Partners, LLC and National Securities Corporation. Murray is also involved with CHHSZ Holdings, LLC, which owns Prime Capital Investment Advisors. Prime Capital Financial is an SEC-registered enterprise advisory firm serving individuals, trusts, corporations, and retirement plans with services including asset management, financial planning, and family office offerings. The firm employs a variety of investment strategies and provides integrated tax and financial administration services through affiliated entities.

Lupton Haigler is a financial advisor with Janney Montgomery Scott in Raleigh, NC, holding Series 63 and Series 66 licenses and bringing 18 years of industry experience. His prior work includes roles at Truist Advisory Services, Truist Investment Services, BB&T Securities, and BB&T Capital Markets. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC is a large, dually registered broker-dealer and SEC-registered investment adviser that manages approximately $110 billion in client assets. The firm serves a diverse client base, including individuals, families, trusts, estates, corporate and retirement plan sponsors, charitable organizations, and municipal clients, offering a range of brokerage, financial planning, consulting, and advisory services.

Timothy Cowhey is a CFP® and Series 66-registered advisor with 12 years of industry experience. He is currently with Focus Partners Wealth, LLC, where he has worked since 2024. Prior to this, he spent eight years at Buckingham Strategic Wealth, LLC, and has additional experience with Morgan Stanley and Apex Motorsport LLC. Focus Partners Wealth serves individuals, high-net-worth families, family offices, and institutional clients with a broad range of wealth management and advisory services. The firm’s investment approach combines active and passive strategies within a tax- and fee-sensitive framework, integrating fundamental and quantitative analysis alongside various specialized portfolio tools.

Jessica Alpers is a financial advisor with Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services, LLC and holds a Series 65 designation. She has five years of industry experience, having worked previously at WealthShield Partners, LLC, The Atlantic Group, LLC, and Goldman Sachs Personal Financial Management. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services provides financial planning, asset management, and retirement-plan consulting for individuals, high-net-worth clients, corporations, and retirement plans. The firm manages over $122 billion in assets using diversified, risk-class based allocations that combine passive and active managers, supported by an internal Investment Committee.

Jonathan Shimer is a financial advisor with Kestra Advisory, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and bringing 28 years of industry experience. He has been with Kestra Advisory since 2016 and also serves as a financial advisor and partner at Vigilant Financial, operating under Kestra Investment Services since 2005. Kestra Advisory Services provides investment advisory and retirement-plan consulting to a diverse range of institutional and individual clients, offering fiduciary consulting, plan design, and investment advice supported by due diligence and a broad selection of management platforms and third-party solutions.

Hayden Lewis is a financial advisor with First Citizens Investor Services, Inc. based in Raleigh, NC, holding Series 63 and Series 66 licenses and three years of industry experience. He has worked at several entities within the First Citizens group, including First Citizens Asset Management and First Citizens Bank, as well as Fidelity Investments and State Employees' Credit Union. First Citizens Investor Services, Inc. serves individuals, including high-net-worth clients, pension and profit-sharing plans, charitable organizations, and corporate/business entities, offering advisory and brokerage services through IARs and third-party Portfolio Managers. The firm’s investment approach involves IAR-led assessments and a mix of fundamental, quantitative, and technical analysis to allocate assets across equities, fixed income, mutual funds, and ETFs.

Deborah Wright is a financial advisor with First Citizens Investor Services, Inc. in Raleigh, NC. She holds Series 63 and Series 65 designations and has seven years of industry experience. Her prior work includes positions at First Citizens Bank, HPW Towne Mortgage, and Caldwell Banker Howard Perry and Walston. First Citizens Investor Services, Inc. provides advisory and brokerage services to individuals, including high-net-worth clients, pension and profit-sharing plans, charitable organizations, and corporate entities. The firm employs a client process centered on financial needs assessment and uses a combination of fundamental, quantitative, and technical analysis to allocate assets across various investment types.

Stephanie Bowens is a financial advisor at Kestra Advisory with 28 years of industry experience. She previously worked at Triad Advisors and OSAIC before joining Kestra in 2025. Outside of her advisory role, she is CEO of Chrysalis Capital Management, a developer of financial education and literacy materials, and serves as a board member on the finance committee of The Hope Center at Pullen. Kestra Advisory Services provides investment advisory and retirement-plan consulting to plan sponsors and a diverse range of institutional and individual clients. The firm offers services including fiduciary consulting, plan design, employee education, and access to multiple management platforms, serving clients such as sovereign wealth funds and large institutional investors.

Michael Dipenta is a financial advisor at TIAA-CREF with 19 years of industry experience. He holds a Series 66 designation and has been with TIAA-CREF since 2015. TIAA-CREF Individual & Institutional Services, LLC’s Advice & Planning Services division offers financial planning and discretionary managed account programs primarily to individuals connected to TIAA-administered employer retirement plans, as well as to trusts, estates, partnerships, corporate entities, and small retirement plans. The firm separates one-time financial planning services from ongoing portfolio management and serves as adviser to a donor-advised fund while operating within a vertically integrated group utilizing affiliated funds.

Robert Williams IV is a financial advisor with Commonwealth Financial Network based in Cary, NC, holding Series 66 and Series 63 licenses and possessing 27 years of industry experience. He is the president and owner of AI Financial, Inc., operating as Williams Wealth Management, and has been with Commonwealth and leading his firm since 2019. Prior to this, he worked at NEXT Financial Group, Inc. for 14 years. Commonwealth Financial Network is a dual-registered broker/dealer and SEC-registered investment adviser serving a national network of approximately 2,900 affiliated advisors and hundreds of thousands of clients. The firm provides a broad adviser-support platform with managed account programs, access to third-party asset managers, and custody services, supporting a range of investment options including mutual funds, ETFs, and personalized indexing.

Andrew Orr is a CFP® certificant with 14 years of experience in the financial services industry. He is currently affiliated with Truist Advisory Services and has a career history that includes roles at Truist Investment Services, SunTrust Investment Services, and Wells Fargo. Truist Advisory Services provides investment consulting and advisory services to individuals, corporate clients, retirement plan sponsors, and charitable organizations, offering asset allocation, fiduciary support, and manager-selection programs that utilize a mix of discretionary and non-discretionary strategies supported by third-party platforms and research tools.

Wesley Shade is a CFP® professional with two years of industry experience, currently serving as an advisor at Truist Advisory Services. His prior experience includes roles at Truist Investment Services and First Citizens Investor Services. Truist Advisory Services provides investment consulting and advisory services to individuals, corporate clients, retirement plan sponsors, and charitable organizations. The firm combines discretionary manager relationships with non-discretionary consulting and employs AI-enabled tools to support its investment research and fiduciary oversight.

Stephen Kanoy is a financial advisor at First Citizens Investor Services, Inc. with 20 years of industry experience. He holds the Series 63 and Series 66 designations and has previously worked at Truist Advisory Services, BB&T, and related entities. First Citizens Investor Services, Inc. provides advisory and brokerage services to individuals, including high-net-worth clients, pension plans, charitable organizations, and businesses. The firm offers portfolio management, wrap programs, model portfolios, and financial planning, focusing on client assessments and diversified investment strategies.

Joseph Fish is a financial advisor at Sanctuary Advisors, LLC with 11 years of industry experience. He holds the Series 66 designation and has worked previously at Bank of America and Merrill. Outside of his advisory role, he serves as president of a condominium owners association and as a trustee for Calvary Raleigh Church, both positions involving advisory responsibilities related to governance and financial oversight. Sanctuary Advisors, LLC offers investment advisory and financial planning services to a diverse client base, including individuals, corporations, pension plans, and charitable organizations through a network of over 400 independent adviser representatives. The firm supports various investment strategies and platforms, acting as a fiduciary when a written advisory agreement is in place.

Kimberly Carstens is a financial advisor with First Citizens Investor Services, Inc., holding Series 63 and Series 65 credentials and bringing 20 years of industry experience. Her previous roles include positions at USAA Financial Advisors, USAA Investment Management Company, and USAA Financial Planning Services from 2008 to 2020. First Citizens Investor Services, Inc. provides advisory and brokerage services to individuals—including high-net-worth clients—pension and profit-sharing plans, charitable organizations, and corporate entities. The firm employs a client-focused process that combines fundamental, quantitative, and technical analysis to manage portfolios across various asset classes.

Allen Smith is a financial advisor with OSAIC Institutions, Inc., holding Series 63 and Series 66 designations and bringing 36 years of industry experience. He has worked at Infinex Investments, Inc. since 2012 and has been EVP of Wealth Management at First Bancorp since 2011. Additionally, he serves as a consultant to Midwood Financial Services, a third-party marketing firm. OSAIC Institutions, Inc. is an SEC-registered investment adviser serving individuals, ERISA plans, trusts, estates, and corporate clients through a network of investment adviser representatives. The firm offers customized advisory services, financial planning, ERISA plan services, wrap programs, third-party asset manager referrals, and access to alternative investments and lending solutions.

Brendan Burns is a CFP® with seven years of industry experience. He is currently with PNC Wealth Management and has previously worked at Fidelity Investments in various capacities. PNC Wealth Management offers retail brokerage and advisory services through model-based programs, including an online discretionary model account available by invitation only to PNC Bank employees. The program uses algorithmic questionnaires to recommend investment strategies implemented with mutual funds and ETFs, with portfolio management delegated to third parties.

Matthew Malone is a CFP® with 26 years of industry experience, currently serving as a financial advisor at Truist Advisory Services since 2021. His prior experience includes roles at BB&T Bank, BB&T Investments, and BB&T Securities. Truist Advisory Services provides investment consulting and advisory services to individuals, corporate and business clients, retirement plan sponsors, and charitable organizations. The firm employs a combination of discretionary manager relationships and non-discretionary consulting, supported by third-party platform and manager arrangements, and integrates services across its affiliated entities.

Douglas Foreman is a financial advisor at First Citizens Investor Services, Inc. with one year of industry experience. He holds a Series 66 designation and has worked previously at U.S. Bancorp, MUFG, and Bank of America. First Citizens Investor Services, Inc. provides advisory and brokerage services to individuals, pension plans, charitable organizations, and businesses. The firm employs a client-centered process that incorporates fundamental, quantitative, and technical analysis to manage portfolios using a variety of investment vehicles and offers services including financial planning and tax-aware investing.