Colin Schwerin is a financial advisor at North Star Investment Management Corporation with two years of industry experience. He holds a Series 65 designation and has prior work experience at Burns and McDonnell, Sargent and Lundy, and Kentucky Utilities. Schwerin is also associated with CAPS Financial Group, where he provides financial planning services. North Star Investment Management Corporation serves a range of clients including individuals, pension and profit-sharing plans, and charitable organizations, offering discretionary portfolio management, financial planning, and family office services. The firm manages approximately $2.5 billion in client assets and employs strategies such as equity positions, fixed income, option strategies, and direct indexing, often allocating client assets into its own mutual funds.

Casey Moss is a financial advisor at Total Clarity Wealth Management, Inc. with six years of industry experience. He holds a Series 66 designation and has worked at several firms, including Capital Pointe and HighPoint Advisor Group. In addition to his advisory role, he owns and operates Casey Moss Tax & Accounting, LLC, providing tax preparation and accounting services. Total Clarity Wealth Management is a multi-advisor firm serving individuals, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, corporations, and 401(k) plan sponsors. The firm offers comprehensive financial planning and discretionary portfolio management through various programs, utilizing mutual funds, ETFs, equities, and third-party models with custody primarily through Schwab and LPL.

Robert Tutela is a financial advisor at Essex, LLC with nine years of industry experience. He holds a Series 65 designation and has been with Essex since 2016. Tutela serves as a SmartAsset Ambassador, consulting as an independent contractor to generate sales leads for his firm. Essex, LLC is a registered investment adviser managing approximately $649.3 million across about 576 client accounts. The firm offers discretionary and non-discretionary portfolio management, financial planning, and consulting services to a diverse client base, including high-net-worth individuals, trusts, retirement plans, and charitable organizations. Investment decisions are made by a multi-member committee using a blend of fundamental, technical, and sector analysis.

John Kosik is a CFP® with 14 years of industry experience, currently serving at Capstone Financial Advisors Inc since 2009. He holds the Series 63 designation and is based in Downers Grove, Illinois. Capstone Financial Advisors serves a diverse client base including individuals, pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts, charitable organizations, and corporate clients. The firm emphasizes asset-class allocation, cost control, and tax positioning in its investment process, managing approximately $2.44 billion in client assets through a multi-advisor team.

Igor Yukhvidin is a financial advisor at Vertex Partners with a Series 65 designation and experience beginning in 2025. Prior to joining Vertex Partners, he worked at JP Morgan Chase Bank for seven years and Ernst & Young for four years. Vertex Partners provides advisory services to a range of clients including individuals, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, corporations, and retirement plans. The firm emphasizes tailored portfolios based on risk tolerance, time horizon, and liquidity needs, utilizing a variety of investment vehicles and ongoing portfolio monitoring.

Bradley Schaffnit is a financial advisor at Apollon Financial, LLC with 24 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 66 licenses and has previously worked at Highpoint Advisor Group, LLC and LPL Financial, LLC. His outside business activities include involvement with Leaders Partners, Inc., a non-variable insurance firm. Apollon Financial, LLC is an SEC-registered advisory firm serving individuals, high-net-worth clients, families, trusts, estates, businesses, and retirement plans. The firm manages approximately $1.45 billion through a team of 16 advisors, offering financial planning, portfolio management, retirement-plan advisory, and access to private and alternative investments.

Dory Rodriguez is a financial advisor with Apollon Financial, LLC, holding CFP® and Series 66 credentials and bringing 25 years of industry experience. Prior to joining Apollon Financial in 2024, he worked at LPL Financial and HighPoint Advisor Group LLC. He has additional business activities that include sales of non-variable insurance products. Apollon Financial, LLC is an SEC-registered advisory firm serving individuals, families, family offices, trusts, estates, businesses, and retirement plans. The firm manages approximately $1.45 billion through a team of 16 advisors and offers financial planning, portfolio management, retirement-plan advisory, and access to private and alternative investments using a combination of centrally managed models, advisor-led portfolios, and sub-advisers.

Michael Speziale is a financial advisor with James T. Borello & Co. in East Dundee, IL, holding Series 63 and Series 65 credentials and bringing 32 years of industry experience. He has been with James T. Borello & Co. since 2011. James T. Borello & Co. manages approximately $514 million across about 700 client relationships, serving individuals, high-net-worth clients, family offices, small businesses, trusts, and other legal entities. The firm provides discretionary portfolio management and comprehensive financial planning services, using asset-allocation models tailored to client goals and employing quantitative analysis alongside third-party software.

Kara Vance is a CFP® and Series 65 professional with 15 years of experience in financial advisory services. She has been with Timothy Financial Counsel, Inc. since 2016. Timothy Financial Counsel, Inc. is a fee-only, hourly financial planning firm that serves individuals, families, businesses, trusts, charities, and retirement plans. The firm provides project-based advice on various financial topics and emphasizes diversified exposure through no-load mutual funds and ETFs, asset allocation, and periodic rebalancing, without offering ongoing portfolio management or discretionary authority.

John Koenig is a CFP® and holds a Series 65 license with eight years at Capstone Financial Advisors Inc and a total of four years in the industry. Prior to joining Capstone, he worked at Heritage Wealth Architects, LLC for two years and was a part-time student for one year. Capstone Financial Advisors serves individuals, including high-net-worth clients, pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts, charitable organizations, and corporate clients. The firm offers portfolio management and financial planning with an investment process that emphasizes asset-class allocation, cost control, and tax positioning, managing approximately $2.44 billion in client assets across a multi-advisor team.

Gregory Davis is a CFP® with 11 years of industry experience, currently serving as an advisor at Clearwater Capital Partners. He has been with Clearwater since 2015. Outside of his advisory role, he is a passive investor in a thoroughbred horse racing LLC and acts as a life insurance agent, evaluating and placing policies when needed for clients. Clearwater Capital Partners provides family office services, private wealth management, institutional advisory, and retirement plan advising. The firm serves individual, high-net-worth, and institutional clients using a variety of investment approaches, including fundamental, quantitative, and options strategies.

John Chapman is a financial advisor at Clearwater Capital Partners with 41 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has been with Clearwater Capital Partners since 2006. Chapman is a partial owner of Clearwater Capital Insurance Services, LLC, which provides non-variable life, long-term care, and disability insurance sales, and he is also a business owner of Clearwater Capital Consulting, LLC, offering select tax services. Clearwater Capital Partners serves high-net-worth individuals, family offices, and institutional clients, providing family office and private wealth management, institutional advisory, retirement plan advisory, and wrap-fee investment programs. The firm manages most advisory accounts on a discretionary basis and incorporates fundamental, technical, quantitative, and thematic analysis in portfolio management.

Michael Heatwole is a CFP® with 13 years of industry experience, currently serving as an advisor at The Dala Group, LLC since 2018. He previously worked at Waddell & Reed, Inc for six years. Outside of his advisory role, he serves on the advisory board of The Salvation Army in Elgin, IL, and is vice-president of a local networking organization, BNI. The Dala Group serves individual and high-net-worth clients with portfolio management and financial consulting, including retirement, estate, tax, and charitable planning. The firm employs a mix of fundamental, quantitative, and qualitative analysis to develop diversified asset-allocation strategies using a variety of investment vehicles tailored to client objectives and risk tolerance.

Anna Thornburg is a Series 65-licensed financial advisor at Model Wealth, Inc. in Wheaton, IL, with four years of industry experience. Prior to joining Model Wealth in 2021, she worked at Covenant Classical School and Church of the Resurrection. Model Wealth, Inc. is a virtual, fee-only financial planning and wealth management firm serving individuals, families, estates, trusts, and small businesses. The firm uses a broadly passive investment approach with cost-effective, tax-aware implementation, combining robo-managed strategies, direct indexing, and discretionary portfolio management.

Scott Graziano is a financial advisor with Chicago Investment Advisory Council, Inc. He holds a Series 65 designation and has less than one year of industry experience. Prior to joining Chicago Investment Advisory Council, he held positions at J.W. Cole Advisors, Inc. and J.W. Cole Financial, Inc., among others. Chicago Investment Advisory Council serves both individual and high-net-worth retail investors, providing portfolio management through its Active Asset Management Program, financial planning, and educational workshops. The firm uses proprietary model portfolios and maintains a high client-to-advisor ratio to deliver standardized and scalable advisory services.

Shawn Cook is a financial advisor with USAdvisors Wealth Management, LLC, holding a Series 66 license and bringing 12 years of industry experience. He has worked at multiple firms including Securities America, Inc. and Questar Asset Management. Outside of advisory work, he has served as past president and board member of the Park Ridge Chamber of Commerce and owns businesses in insurance and consulting. USAdvisors Wealth Management, LLC offers discretionary portfolio management and financial planning to individuals, trusts, charitable organizations, and businesses. The firm utilizes a combination of fundamental analysis, asset allocation, and model portfolios developed with third-party providers, managing accounts on a discretionary basis with regular suitability reviews.

Brent Fields is a CFP® with 27 years of experience in the financial industry. He is currently with Total Clarity Wealth Management, Inc., where he has worked since 2007, and previously held positions at LPL Financial LLC and Cetera Advisor Networks LLC. Total Clarity Wealth Management is a multi-advisor firm serving individual and high-net-worth clients, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, and employer retirement plans. The firm offers a range of services including discretionary portfolio management, financial and retirement planning, and 401(k) plan advisory, utilizing various investment strategies from conservative wrap programs to more actively managed approaches.

Lydia Newby is a CFP® with eight years of industry experience currently serving at Timothy Financial Counsel, Inc. She has been with the firm since 2017 and previously worked at Marsh USA Inc. from 2012 to 2017. Timothy Financial Counsel, Inc. is a fee-only, hourly financial planning firm that serves individuals, families, businesses, trusts, charities, and retirement plans. The firm emphasizes advisory and implementation coaching through a structured planning menu and prefers diversified investments such as no-load mutual funds and ETFs, operating without discretionary authority over client assets.

Robert Lyman is a financial advisor at Sequoia Wealth Management, LLC, with 42 years of industry experience. He holds the ChFC® designation and Series 63 and 65 licenses. Prior to joining Sequoia Wealth Management in 2014, he worked at LPL Financial LLC starting in 2009. He serves on the board of directors for Friends of Shalom for Uganda, a community and charitable organization. Sequoia Wealth Management provides asset management, financial planning, and retirement-plan consulting to individuals, trusts, estates, corporations, and employer retirement plans. The firm utilizes a combination of quantitative optimization, third-party research, and manager selection to tailor portfolios and offers both discretionary management and implementation of third-party strategist models.

John La Spisa is a CFP® professional at Vermillion Financial Advisors, Inc. with three years of industry experience. His background includes multiple roles at Vermillion Financial Advisors and academic positions at the University of Illinois Urbana/Champaign and the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. Vermillion Financial Advisors provides financial planning, investment advisory, and employer-sponsored retirement plan services to individuals, trusts, business entities, and pension/profit-sharing plans. The firm offers both stand-alone financial planning and ongoing advisory programs, utilizing model and customized portfolios with a non-discretionary approach to trade approvals and portfolio management.