Our Team

My journey to become a Financial Planner began after my father died and my mother moved to Florida. My mom was appalled at the treatment her widowed friends received from their financial professionals and encouraged me to investigate the field. As I learned about the profession, it became clear to me that this was where my talents would be most useful. While my youngest son was in his last year of pre-school, I started interning with Warren Ward to get some real-life experience before starting the CFP® credentialing process. I obtained the CFP® credential and became a fee-only NAPFA Registered Financial Advisor. My primary goal is to help you become good stewards of your time, talent and treasure in your journey to reach your full potential as a human being.

Many people seek guidance in times of crisis and sometimes the real solution is not monetary but perspective. When faced with stressful situations what's often most important is having a trusted "Thinking Partner" that can help keep you safe and help you clarify your choices. My clients are very diverse, but they are all life-long learners, involved in their communities, authentic and coachable. Most often they come in while transitioning to a single state either through death or divorce. Through those transitions it helps to have an objective perspective on your financial situation and the impacts on your lifestyle choices. I also enjoy working with pre-retirees as we vision what form retirement will take and how best to utilize resources to live a life that matters and leaves a meaningful legacy.

My primary geographic base is Columbus, Bloomington, Indianapolis, and Central Indiana. With improved technology I am more comfortable working remotely with clients. I still enjoy meeting clients face to face, when possible, while building the relationship. I do continue to work with established clients that move away from Indiana.

My husband (Mike) and I are in the process of transitioning to empty nesters. Our oldest son graduated from Purdue in 2018 and is gainfully employed locally at Cummins. Our youngest son is a recent Emerson College in Boston graduate. 

As a member of the St. Bartholomew Choir, I have been privileged to perform at Carnegie Hall and The Vatican. I enjoy being a part of the Columbus community. Over the years I have been involved with the Columbus East High School Speech Team as a judge and fundraising coordinator, helped with various Boy Scout initiatives, The Young Mothers Educational Development (Y-MED) program, Bartholomew County Step Ahead, a variety of childcare related initiatives, the Book Buddy Program, a FIRST Lego League Coach, and Zonta International. I have served as Chair of the Bartholomew County Financial Literacy Coalition as well as a member of the Guiding Circle for the Bartholomew County Women’s Giving Circle at the Heritage Fund. In my spare time I like to read, try new recipes, and travel.
 

Investing was an interest of mine well before I got my first brokerage license in 1990. I had learned a lot about selecting stocks and decided to go to work for a regional brokerage firm which specialized in individual stocks and municipal (tax-free) bonds. While there are numerous stock-picking services available, my partner and I did our own stock research with good success. Although we always tried to sell our customers the “right” investment, I soon realized that the best results were achieved when the client and the advisor jointly determined an overall strategy before investment selection began. 

That realization marked the beginning of my shift from product sales to professional financial planning. I left that firm, moved to Columbus and began to practice as a Registered Investment Advisor in 2000, earning my Certified Financial Planner designation in 2001. Jalene and I transitioned to a fee-only practice, moving to the same side of the table as our clients. That leaves us free to make recommendations without any corporate influences that might or might not be in the client’s best interest. In 2016, I started easing toward retirement and transferred ownership to Jalene.

My specialties include:

• Investment Management
• Retirement Income Planning
• Maximizing Social Security Benefits
• Navigating Medicare choices
• Complex financial planning situations

I’ve written a regular newsletter for clients and friends since 2002 to try and demystify investing and other financial issues and have been quoted extensively in local and national publications. Through that newsletter I met the head of the Dept of Business at IUPU Columbus and served as an adjunct faculty member teaching Collegiate Financial Planning. In 2020 I resigned as part of my continuing transition to retirement. 

Giving back is important to me. Over the years, I’ve been involved with the First Presbyterian Church, Columbus Rotary Club, Columbus Area Arts Council, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, Su Casa Columbus, Volunteers in Medicine, Book Buddies and the Columbus Indiana Philharmonic. I love music and managed the local rock band 40 Years of College for several years. Along with my wife, Janet, I enjoy spending time with family and friends. In my spare time, I like to read and cruise around in my VW Beetle convertible listening to classic rock. 
 

After 26 years with Cummins, I retired and joined the WWA team in January 2020. My primary responsibilities are investment research, portfolio rebalancing, trading, and business development.  

Although I began my career as a mechanical engineer, I have always had an interest in investing. This interest grew after graduating from Purdue University in 1986 and started working at GE’s Aircraft Engine Division in Cincinnati OH. While there, I met up with a group of engineers who formed an investment club. We pooled our money, began investing in the market, and learned from each other how to analyze individual stocks and develop and manage a portfolio. That experience helped to shape my personal investment approach which stayed with me after I left GE in 1993 and joined Cummins. 

My career at Cummins allowed for a variety of experiences ranging from engineering, human resources to global account management. This unique career path helped me develop a broad range of skills and view of the world that I have been able to bring to my approach in investing. While there we were encouraged to give back to our communities. One way I did this was to become a big brother as well as a member of the board of the Big Brothers Big Sisters organization. It was during this time on the board that I met Warren and became a client of WWA. During those 20 years our relationship was not your typical client advisor. I was more involved in the practice as I would often challenge or debate investment approaches with Warren, while Jalene would often have me evaluate new client software she was considering for the practice. It was at one of our regular client meetings that the idea of me working for them was discussed. That became a reality after my early retirement from Cummins at the end of 2019. 

As I reflect on my career, I have always been happiest in roles where I’m helping others succeed, continuing to learn, and taking on new challenges. It was with these interests in mind that I was excited to take on my new role with WWA as an Investment Analyst. In my spare time I stay active in the community by serving on several volunteer boards and also enjoy golfing, bicycling, reading, and traveling with Denise, my wife of 35 years. We have two sons, both graduates of Indiana University. 

Peggy is the glue that holds the office together. She is responsible for office management, client communication, and client services.   Peggy is a Columbus native. She and her husband Mark have lived in Greenwood, Valparaiso, Cedar Rapids Iowa, Albany Georgia, Columbus Indiana and Columbus Ohio. When previously living in Columbus, Peggy was an Administrative Assistant for Bartholomew Consolidated School System (BCSC) for 12 years. 

She enjoys spending time with family and is glad to be living close to two of her sons and grandchildren. She heads to Texas whenever possible to visit her other son and his family. Fun fact: Jalene worked with Peggy’s mother, Lois when she first came to Columbus and started working at Irwin Management Company.

Patrick is native to the area, spending much of his formative years right here in Columbus. He is a 2008 graduate of Columbus North High School and made the trip over to Bloomington, Indiana to complete his degree in Arts Management through the School of Public and Environmental Affairs at Indiana University. Following his education, Patrick and his wife Sharon moved back to Columbus to work for Cummins. There he worked in multiple marketing and sales roles across different business segments, most recently focusing on the mining and mineral extraction industry.

In each of his roles, he focused on the opportunity to help people. He gravitated toward roles where he could pursue external relationships that allowed him to help people navigate systems, processes, and products to identify the best possible solution for the customer. While he enjoyed his work at Cummins, he found some of the work became difficult to meet that service-oriented goal. He has been managing his family investments for several years and when he was approached with the opportunity to pivot to financial planning and investment advice, he found a career that would allow him to have a direct impact on an individual’s life. He is excited to bring his solution minded attitude to WWA. He looks forward to assisting clients as they seek solutions to tough problems and working with them in a way that positions them for future success.

Outside of work, Patrick has focused much of his time on advancing the already vibrant arts community in Columbus. He was the first board President of Mill Race Theatre Company (MRTC), following a major restructuring, where he led the organization to begin the incorporation process into a 501c3 nonprofit. Beyond his board work with MRTC, you may also catch him behind the scenes or on stage during a summer musical or fall play. He currently sits on the board of directors for the Columbus Indiana Philharmonic as the chair of the marketing committee. Beyond the arts, Patrick is also the Vice President for the Visitors Promotions Commission and is a newly appointed board member to the Columbus City Utilities Board.

Patrick and Sharon live in town and enjoy consuming the arts as much as they work on them. Additionally, Patrick enjoys a round of golf on a Saturday afternoon, albeit poorly played, and keeping active with their rambunctious boxer/lab mix, Kevin.