Meet The Team

As a young child I saw firsthand the stress that personal finances can cause within a family. I often witnessed my parents in disagreement over how money was being spent and whether or not enough was being saved. I resolved at a very early age to learn everything I could about personal finance so that I could help my parents and relieve some of their stress.

By age 12 I was investing in individual stocks, and still have the original stock certificates from my first purchase (Nike). By age 15 I was investing in mutual funds with my savings from working at a local deli. Every Saturday morning I sat down with my folks as they paid the bills. I knew what their salaries were, how much went to taxes, and how much all of the bills amounted to. This was a great early lesson because I knew how much, or little, was left.

I believe it was Confucius who said “Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.” I am quite proud to say I followed this advice. At Summit Wealth & Retirement we handle the investing and financial planning for about 250 families in the Bay Area and several Western states. Our clients value our honest and direct approach, and know that we have the skills and experience to help them make better decisions and feel more secure about their money. Regardless of net worth, the #1 fear that people have is that they will run out of money. I’ve spent the past 15 years addressing this fear head-on by designing, implementing, and monitoring financial plans that help ensure my client’s money will last longer than they do. Whether it’s protecting what they already have, growing their wealth, minimizing their taxes, or designing a plan to pass assets to their kids, we are here to help. In addition to having a Certified Financial Planner (CFP®) designation, I also hold my Series 7, 66, and 24 licenses, and hold certifications in asset management and retirement planning. I am also a registered tax preparer and an Adjunct instructor in Financial Planning at UCLA. Outside of work, I enjoy golfing and spending time with my wife Maryline and our three children, Dylan (14), Tyler (12) and Nyla (9).

Growing up in the south bay, I was lucky to have parents who modeled and lived lives of service to others. Both my Mom and Dad served in the military and had us all involved in local charities at a young age. As a result when I graduated from the University of Oregon I took a path that seemed obvious at the time, I was commissioned and served almost 8 years in the Air Force on active duty and the reserves.

Shortly after leaving the Air Force, I was hired and entered into a training program at CIGNA Financial Group to become a financial planner. One of the first things that attracted me to this company was their “serve the client’s needs first” philosophy.

After leaving CIGNA I spent over 15 years in the institutional asset management business, providing investment consulting and asset management services to pension plans, endowments , foundations and large 401K plans.

About 12 years ago I joined Summit Wealth & Retirement Partners, with the goal being to help individuals and families utilize the same money management techniques that large institutions were using. Pension plans, endowments, and foundations are all designed to make sure their money lasts as long as possible. This is the same goal individuals and families have, and yet very few financial planners are addressing this.

It still surprises me today when I learn that most people we meet with believe that financial planning is just investment management. One of the greatest things we do for our clients is to provide solutions to all of their family’s financial needs. We gain a thorough understanding of their situation and know how all of the various issues of their plan are related. Our work helps our clients to make better, more informed financial decisions. Our culture is focused on serving our client family needs and is something I believe in and try to live daily.

One of the things that many of our clients face is what has been termed the “sandwich generation.” My wife, Cathy, and I have faced the issues of getting kids into and through college, dealing with aging parents, their support needs and cognitive issues and planning for a successful retirement simultaneously. We know the importance of proper estate documents and long term care and the challenges these issues can place on family members and a successful financial plan.

I live in Granite Bay with my wife Cathy where we enjoy travel, riding our bikes, snow skiing and golf. We have been blessed with two wonderful kids. Our son, Matthew and his wife Stephanie, live in Santa Barbara where he is a commercial insurance broker and she is an attorney. Our daughter, Elizabeth and her husband Garrett, live in Rocklin. She is a feeding therapist in NICU at Sutter Hospital and Garrett works in finance.

I have always been interested in the financial markets and I have both an undergraduate and a graduate degree in business. This career has allowed me to combine my passion for serving others with my interest in personal finance. Thirty-years later I am still excited to come into work each day because I know that what we do has a positive impact on people’s lives.

On Thanksgiving Day, 1985, in the frigid oilfields of eastern Montana after graduating from the local community college and six months into my initial career as a roustabout, I sat in the cab of a Shell Oil truck with a frozen nose and iced-over cup of coffee in thirty-below-zero weather and had the epiphany that there were probably some alternative and better career choices to which I could devote my life. A very persistent aunt convinced me to move to California where I enrolled in the Business program at California State University – Chico. Two months later, I attended a lecture from a local financial planner and found my calling. Four years later with a BS degree in Finance, I was the first graduate from the Cal State – Chico College of Business to obtain the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ (CFP®) certification.

After many years devoted to public speaking and writing on the topics of financial planning (FOX, NPR, KRON, KQED, Financial Planning Journal, et al), I developed an interest and expertise in assisting clients with portfolio management and financial decision making during their retirement years.

In 2019, after thirty years with Lincoln Financial Advisors, I moved my practice to Summit Wealth and Retirement, following Rob Cucchiaro and Ryan McCloskey. The independence and professionalism at Summit allow for a commitment to act in the best interest of clients, and I greatly enjoy working with a group of advisors who are smarter than me.

Outside of the office, I enjoy painting watercolors, writing novels and short stories (San Francisco Chronicle, Huffington Post, et al), and run Stonybrook Canyon Farm, a small organic farm in Castro Valley with my partner, Curtis.

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Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc. (CFP Board) owns the certification marks CFP®, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™, and CFP® (with plaque design) in the United States, which it authorizes use of by individuals who successfully complete CFP Board’s initial and ongoing certification requirements.

Throughout my experience in the financial services industry, I’ve witnessed the impact that planning, or perhaps more importantly, the lack thereof, can have on families. At certain times we all have choices to make as we prepare for and respond to life events. I’m proud to be part of an organization whose core mission is to partner with clients to make better financial decisions, so that they can feel more secure and confident about their futures.

I joined Summit in the spring of 2018 after a 15 years with Lincoln Financial Advisors. My experience in leadership there taught me that the most important thing we do as Advisors is build trust by always putting our clients needs first. This “Serve First” philosophy has been engrained in me as a fundamental key to our business. I’m passionate about finding new and better ways that we can serve our clients, using proven processes, systems, and technology to deliver service and support in a way that distinguishes us as a premier provider of highly customized advice.

I graduated with Distinction from Purdue University, earning Bachelor of Science in Management and Management Information Systems. I am a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ (CFP®) Professional, and hold the Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC®) and Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU®) designations. I also maintain the following FINRA licenses:

Series 24: General Securities Principal

Series 7: General Securities Representative

Series 63: Uniform Securities Agent State Law

Outside of work, I enjoy photography and spending time outdoors with my wife Maureen and our three young children Cara, Owen and Maeve.

I came to work for the Summit Wealth team in June 2013. As an Associate Advisor, my primary responsibilities are data gathering, case design, plan development, review preparation, research, reporting, and presentation development. I also maintain all aspects of our financial planning software and reporting tools. My favorite part of the job, though, is working with clients to help them define and then achieve their financial goals.

In November 2015, I received a Certificate in Personal Financial Planning from Bryant University. Then in February, 2016, I became a Certified Financial Planner Professional. My education also includes a Bachelor’s degree from Drake University and a Master’s Degree from the University of Texas at Austin, both in music performance. After realizing that being a musician was not providing me with the financial stability that was so essential to me, I branched out into new areas. After spending time in both the higher education and insurance fields, I was excited to find a career path that would allow me to combine my natural interest in improving people’s financial lives with my research and analytical skills.

I’m a member of the Financial Planning Association of the East Bay. As part of that membership, I enjoy participating in pro bono financial planning events where we help those who aren’t traditionally served by financial advisors. My specialties include tax planning, Social Security and Medicare planning, military benefits, and divorce planning.

After living in many locales (from Texas to Japan), I settled in the East Bay in 2007 to be near my parents in Berkeley. In my free time, I enjoy hiking, wine tasting, watching movies, and playing the cello with local orchestras and chamber groups.

Summit Tax Planning is led by Debbie Pham, an Enrolled Agent with over 15 years of tax planning experience. Debbie obtained her B.S. degree from the U.C. of Riverside, after which she worked for Ernst & Young, eventually rising up to one of their Tax Managers.

Debbie is passionate about income taxes. She enjoys reading about changes in the tax code and helping her clients make the best tax decisions based on their personal situation. And while most tax preparers focus exclusively on tax compliance (i.e. making sure your taxes are filed on-time), Debbie actually helps her clients with tax strategy. This is one of the reasons Ernst & Young moved Debbie into their high net worth tax group, where she worked with many of the firm’s most successful families.

Debbie has a special affinity for business owners, having been one herself for when she owned & operated an auto repair shop in Alameda, while also working full-time in her profession.

Finally, Debbie has a passion for real estate and a deep understanding of real estate tax law, and she stays informed by being an active member of her local realtor association, where she has served as volunteer Treasurer for the past four years.

* Independent Contractor

Growing up in Akron, Ohio, I was raised with a priority to respect and care for others. My family has a long line of military service such as the Army and the Air Force (I humbly brag and appreciate my older brother’s status as an officer in the Air Force). That same foundation of serving others has been instilled in me since a young age.

I have seen firsthand the power of inserting the right financial planner into an individual’s or family’s financial life. I believe in acting as a teammate and empowering those same people to make financial decisions that bring them comfort and confidence.

As an ambitious student-athlete at the University of Akron, I decided to pursue my passion in finance and helping others through their top ranked financial planning program in the country, and I’ve never looked back. All while playing football and helping the University of Akron reach its second Division I conference championship.

As a tax professional and CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER®, I have helped hundreds of successful families build and implement tax efficient financial plans that fit their dreams. I understand the importance of having an objective teammate guiding a family through the inevitable paths personal finance can create. I hold my Series 65 license and am an Enrolled Agent, administered to practice before the IRS.

I live in Boise, ID with my wife Madison, who is a nurse. Outside of work, I like to spend time with my family and playing golf. I enjoy rooting for my cursed Cleveland, OH sports teams. A fun fact about the little town of Akron, OH, is that the nation’s top two basketball stars, Lebron James and Stephen Curry were born there.

Nick joined Summit Wealth as Securities Trader and Portfolio Administrator in June of 2023. Prior to joining Summit, Nick worked as a fixed income trader for Great Pacific Securities, an Investment Advisory firm in Costa Mesa, CA, where he traded up to a billion dollars a day across all types of fixed income investments.

Nick grew up in Southern California where he played lacrosse at the highest level, eventually playing in college for Chapman University while also obtaining his bachelor’s degree in business administration.

Outside of work, Nick loves to exercise and does so by lifting weights, playing tennis and surfing. He really enjoys sports as he is a big Lakers fan and loves a good sports podcast. Finally, Nick is pursuing his CFA designation and is currently a level 2 candidate.

Geoff joined our team as Relationship Manager in June of 2017. He is responsible for general client service issues as well as supporting advisors with new business processing, account servicing, and placing trades. In addition to his office work, Geoff is pursuing a Certified Financial Planning Designation.

Geoff graduated from San Diego State University with a Bachelor’s degree in Business Management. Prior to joining Summit, Geoff worked as a Client Service Associate for Cambier Investment Management, a small Investment Management firm in Danville. He had similar responsibilities focusing around client service.

Outside of work, Geoff enjoys the outdoors and is always searching for his next adventure. Geoff is also a private pilot and flies to various destinations to take advantage of the beautiful scenery and delicious food. His other great joy are his two young sons Gavin and Grayson.

Kevin joined our team as Client Service Associate in June of 2021. He is responsible for general client service issues as well as supporting Summit’s Advisors. Kevin graduated from Sonoma State University with a Bachelor’s degree in Economics. He was born and raised in Castro Valley, CA. Prior to joining Summit, Kevin worked as a Bookkeeper for Peachtree Community Association Services, a small property management firm in Pleasanton, CA. He had various responsibilities working as a bookkeeper, a role that taught him the importance of attention to detail, organization and efficiency.

Outside of work, Kevin and his wife Adriana enjoy the outdoors and always are trying to stay active. Kevin loves visiting Tahoe in the winter to go snowboarding and going boating in the summer with his family and friends. Kevin also is huge a sports fan (having played baseball in college) and loves going to A’s games whenever he can.

Maryline’s bio is coming soon. Have questions? Give her a call or shoot her an email.