Growing up, I never thought I’d find a career helping people with their money, let alone define it as a calling or higher-purpose in my life. I always leaned towards medicine as a kid and I told anyone who would listen that I wanted to be a doctor when I grew up. But, life had other plans for me.

I almost ended up here by accident, believe it or not. After I graduated from the University of Washington in Seattle, I was lost. I had no idea what I wanted to do or which direction to head in. I just knew two things: 1. I needed to make money and, 2. I wanted to help people. 

At that point in my life, my mom had already been a financial advisor with the same company for almost twenty years. She had encouraged me many times in the years leading up to that to consider the financial services industry as a profession. She always told me that I’d make a great financial advisor because I had the right heart and personality for it, but I never paid much attention to it because I wanted to be a doctor!

But after college, I already had more than $50,000 in student loan debt and medical school felt too far out of reach for me. So, when the opportunity came around to apprentice under my mom, I said “why not?” 

That was more than six years ago now. After three years working with my mom, I caught the entrepreneurial bug and decided to venture out on my own. Since 2017, I successfully launched two independently-owned financial planning firms in both Seattle, WA and Anchorage, AK.

In April 2019, I was given a wonderful opportunity to partner with Eric Negron and Amy Colton here at Forefront Wealth Partners and to build what we have established today: a firm focused on positively impacting people’s lives and providing them the confidence and clarity they need to navigate life’s major decisions.

Today, I have an immense amount of gratitude in my heart to be in a profession of which I am head-over-heels in love with. I am also tremendously grateful to be constantly surrounded by so many wonderful, inspiring, and uplifting people.

My burning desire in life is to positively impact peoples’ lives and leave this world a better place than I found it.

Learn More About Me

If you had a million dollars to spend, what would be the first three things you would buy?
My wife is Mexican, I am fluent in Spanish, and we both love to travel so I would definitely spend a good chunk on visiting all the places in the world we’ve never been. I’d also buy a Tesla (because I love sports cars), and I’d buy an RV so we can road trip and camp comfortably anywhere. 

What’s the most likely place people could find you on a Saturday night?
I’m a total sucker for the NBA 2k video game franchise because I’m a huge basketball fan and can often be found playing hours of that on a Saturday night.

Which would you pick: Living on the beach or living near the mountains?
I was born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska and still live here today, so definitely mountains! I love the snow and downhill skiing in the wintertime.

Imagine being approached by a genie who offers you three wishes. What might those wishes be?
This probably sounds too cliché, but I’d wish for perfect health, an unlimited travel budget, and more peace and love in the world.

If you had the ability to travel back in time, what’s something you would tell your 18-year-old self?
Stay away from student loans!