Large-firm financial advisors working with divorced clients in Baltimore, MD

Cecil Denton is the sole advisor at Decisions, LLC in Baltimore, MD, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses with 25 years of industry experience. He has been with Decisions since its founding in 1997. In addition to his advisory work, he is involved in life insurance activities with brokerage companies. Decisions, LLC provides financial planning and consulting services while referring clients to third-party asset managers and broker-dealers for portfolio management. The firm serves individuals, high-net-worth clients, business entities, and nonprofit organizations, and does not take custody of client assets.

Yuanyuan Yang is a financial advisor with Return on Life Wealth Partners in Baltimore, MD, holding a Series 66 designation and 13 years of industry experience. Yang has worked at LPL Financial since 2012 and is also involved with Planned Financial Services and 401(k) Prosperity. Return on Life Wealth Partners provides comprehensive financial planning and portfolio management primarily for individual and high-net-worth clients, as well as pension and profit-sharing plans. The firm employs a values-driven, holistic planning process that integrates investment, risk management, and legacy strategies with client goals and offers a range of fee arrangements and specialized services.

Melissa Mazard is a financial advisor at Seek the Plan with 13 years of industry experience. She holds the Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has been involved with several nonprofit and educational organizations, including Junior Achievement and Spark Business Academy, where she supports financial literacy and business education programs. Prior to founding her firm, she worked at Foresters Financial. Seek the Plan provides tailored financial planning and investment advice to individual clients, focusing on education, asset allocation, and comprehensive non-investment planning topics such as tax optimization and cash-flow management. The firm emphasizes a long-term investment perspective, offers financial education seminars, and uses non‑AUM fee structures without holding custody of client assets.

Thomas O'Neil Jr. is a CFA® charterholder with 36 years of industry experience. He has been with D.F. Dent and Company, Inc. in Baltimore, MD since 1985. D.F. Dent and Company provides discretionary investment management and financial planning to individual and institutional clients, including high-net-worth individuals, retirement plans, charitable institutions, and municipal entities. The firm employs a disciplined portfolio construction process across equity and fixed-income strategies and manages a family of mutual funds while serving other advisors and wrap/UMA programs.

Validmir Kats is a financial advisor at Fiduciary Financial Advisors in Baltimore, MD, holding a Series 65 designation with two years of industry experience. His prior roles include positions at Freedom Calls, LLC, Five Doors, Legacy, and ER4RE, LLC. Kats serves on the advisory board of Alchemy of Money and works as a business consultant in private practice. Fiduciary Financial Advisors serves a diverse client base including individuals, families, trusts, retirement plans, corporations, and charitable foundations. The firm offers discretionary investment management, financial planning, retirement plan consulting, and outsourced CFO services, with an investment process that integrates strategic asset allocation and multiple analytical approaches.

Kayla Santos is a financial advisor with Mass Mutual Investors Services in Warwick, RI, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and having 10 years of industry experience. She has worked at Mass Mutual Investors Services since 2017 and previously at MetLife Securities. In addition to her advisory role, Santos is an independent insurance agent, offering life, fixed annuities, disability, long-term care, and health insurance products. Mass Mutual Investors Services, LLC is a broker-dealer and SEC-registered investment adviser that serves individuals, business owners, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, and employers. The firm provides financial planning, asset management, wrap and money-manager programs, and educational seminars, structuring engagements as annual collaborative relationships focused on goal analysis and written recommendations.

John Brown is a financial advisor at Savant Wealth Management with 26 years of industry experience. He holds a Series 65 designation and previously worked at Exencial Wealth Advisors, LLC and Bush O'Donnell Investment Advisors, Inc. Outside of his advisory role, he serves as chairman of GJ Liquidation Company, a former supplier of railroad crossties. Savant Wealth Management provides comprehensive wealth management, portfolio management, financial planning, and family office services to individuals, families, institutions, and high-net-worth clients. The firm combines evidence-based, model-driven asset allocation with actively managed strategies and offers integrated legal, accounting, and trust services through affiliated entities.

James Oldham is a financial advisor at Edward Jones in Honolulu, HI, holding a Series 66 designation with six years of industry experience. He previously worked at New Hope Windward for seven years before joining Edward Jones in 2020. Edward Jones is a full-service wealth management firm serving over four million individual and institutional clients, including high-net-worth households and charitable organizations. The firm manages approximately $1.01 trillion in assets and offers a range of investment strategies, including discretionary and non-discretionary wrap fee programs, separately managed accounts, and affiliated mutual funds, operating under a fiduciary standard.

Angela Linder is a Senior Financial Advisor at Merrill Lynch Wealth Management and a member of the Palmer Linder Group, a financial advisory team based in Metro Detroit. She joined Merrill in 2007 and has over 16 years of experience in the financial services industry. Angela focuses on serving multi-generational, high net worth families and business owners, aiming to simplify and clarify clients' financial lives through a team approach and education. Her expertise includes college education planning, divorce transition planning, family wealth management strategies, legacy planning, LGBT wealth planning, managing new wealth, personal retirement planning, special needs planning strategies, women and wealth, and sports and entertainment. Angela employs a disciplined process beginning with understanding each client's specific needs and priorities and fosters open communication within families to facilitate financial decision-making. She holds the Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor (CRPC) and Personal Investment Advisor (PIA) designations and earned an Associates in Business from Henry Ford College. Angela is active in her community and volunteers with organizations such as the Dearborn Rotary Club and In Place of War, a global organization that uses creativity to support positive change in conflict-affected areas. She also participates with the Downriver Community Band and Tec-troit Electronic Music Festival.

Cynthia Menker is a CFP® with 24 years of industry experience, currently serving at Contour Financial since 2001. She holds a Series 65 license and is based in Orland Park, IL. Contour Financial serves individual households focusing on retirement planning and investment management for clients who are not high-net-worth. The firm emphasizes diversified portfolios using mutual funds and ETFs, combines investment oversight with comprehensive financial planning services, and operates as a fee-only fiduciary under the NAPFA code.

Jeffrey Park is a financial advisor at Merrill with eight years of industry experience. He holds a Series 66 designation and has worked at Merrill and affiliated firms since 2011, including roles at JPMorgan Chase Bank and J.P. Morgan Securities. Outside of his advisory work, he is a sole owner and co-owner of family rental properties in Lawrenceville, Georgia. Merrill, together with its affiliate Managed Account Advisors LLC, provides managed account services to Bank of America fiduciary clients through the Select Portfolio Solutions Program, offering model-based and discretionary strategies for individuals, high-net-worth clients, and institutional investors.

Scott Mahoney is a financial advisor with Morgan Stanley in New York, NY, holding Series 63 and Series 65 credentials and bringing 34 years of industry experience. He has been with Morgan Stanley since 2009, including roles at Morgan Stanley Private Bank, N.A. Outside of his advisory work, he is involved with Giants Foot Cubed LLC. Morgan Stanley Wealth Management is a large SEC-registered investment adviser and broker-dealer that serves both individual and institutional clients. The firm offers a wide range of advisory programs and financial planning services supported by structured planning tools and broad investment resources.

Elizabeth Brown is a Series 66 licensed financial advisor with J.P. Morgan Securities in New York, NY, where she has worked since 2012. She has 26 years of industry experience. J.P. Morgan Securities provides institutional consulting services to clients such as corporations, foundations, and defined contribution plan sponsors, offering asset allocation advice, investment manager and fund searches, and customized performance reporting through a select group of Wealth Advisors. The firm combines large institutional advisory operations with brokerage, distribution, and investment management capabilities.

Wesley Pool is a financial advisor at Wells Fargo Clearing with 15 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 66 licenses and previously worked at JPMorgan Securities LLC for seven years. Outside of finance, he has been involved with #TagMeBro LLC and Fry Street Public House. Wells Fargo Advisors is a national securities firm serving individual, corporate, and institutional clients with investment advisory services, financial planning, and retirement plan consulting. The firm manages approximately $671 billion in assets and offers both brokerage and advisory solutions.

Willie Myles is a financial advisor with Equitable Advisors in Cary, NC, holding Series 63 and Series 66 licenses and bringing 16 years of industry experience. He has worked at Equitable Advisors since 2016, previously serving at Axa Advisors and MSI Financial Services. Outside of advising, he is a co-chairman of a fundraising campaign for Alpha Light Fund Inc., a nonprofit focused on renovating the House of Alpha. Equitable Advisors serves a range of clients including individuals, pension plans, corporations, and charitable organizations, providing financial planning, retirement consulting, and asset management through a network of representatives and third-party managers. The firm offers various investment vehicles and ERISA fiduciary services, relying on third-party program sponsors and an affiliation with a publicly traded parent company.