Austin Drake

James Byrne is a financial advisor at Grand Street Advisors, LLC in Kansas City, MO, holding Series 63 and Series 66 licenses with 26 years of industry experience. He has worked at Grand Street Advisors since 2004 and has been affiliated with Sanwa Universal Securities Co., LLC since 1991. Grand Street Advisors is a small, independent advisory firm serving individuals, retirement plans, trusts, banks, and other business entities. The firm manages approximately $9 million across about 16 clients, providing non-discretionary portfolio management, one-time advisory consulting, and pension consulting services with customized asset allocations based on fundamental, technical, and charting analysis.

Stephen Lyddon is a CFP® professional with 18 years of experience, serving clients through Opine Financial Advisors in Kansas City, MO. He has been the owner and general manager of a Jackson Hewitt Tax Service franchise since 1992. His roles include overseeing operations and client relations at the tax preparation business alongside his financial advisory work. Opine Financial Advisors provides fee-only, hourly financial planning and investment advice to individuals, families, and small tax-exempt organizations. The firm employs a strategic asset allocation approach using a core-and-satellite design and does not take custody of client assets, allowing clients to retain control of their investments.

Growing up I had always dreamed of owning my own business. I was first inspired by my grandparents who owned an insurance business in a small Kansas town. I grew up in Manhattan, Kansas and attended Kansas State University where I studied Business Administration and Leadership Studies. Upon graduation, I moved to Kansas City and married my college sweetheart. I decided to enter the banking industry because I wanted to help people achieve financial life milestones. The bank I worked at was located in a disadvantaged neighborhood with high rates of poverty. It was this job that reinforced lessons I had been taught early in life on empathy, compassion, and the importance of financial independence. After gaining new perspectives in banking, I joined a wealth management firm where I spent six years in the investment world. It was at this time that my wife and I went through Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University, a class that forever changed my perspective on personal finance and altered my life trajectory. I went on to earn a Master of Science in Finance and the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ (CFP®) certification. When completing my studies I remember thinking to myself, “Why isn’t anyone working with my generation?”. I was routinely told that it could not be done because young people lacked the amount of investable assets needed to be desirable clients. In other words, most financial advisors considered working with young people a waste of their time. This narrative continued to weigh on my mind until I discovered XY Planning Network (XYPN), a network for financial planners catering to younger clients in an objective, fee-only capacity. I have since become a member of XYPN to define my vision of helping younger generations develop a plan to succeed financially so that they may live a great life and do good in the world. Monthly Fee Starting @: $109/mo (Singles) & $159/mo (Couples) Quarterly Fee Starting @: $327/qt (Singles) & $477/qt (Couples) Flat Fee: $600+/One Time Engagement AUM: 0.50% ($300 min/annual) I continue to call Kansas City home with my wife, our two young sons, and our dog Charlie. When I am not drawing up financial plans for clients, I enjoy coaching my sons in sports (baseball), cheering on the K-State Wildcats, the Kansas City Royals, and the Kansas City Chiefs, and participating in my fantasy football leagues (This year is the year baby!).

Andrew Flattery is a CFP® professional with 15 years of experience in financial advising. He is the sole advisor at Flattery Wealth Management LLC in North Kansas City, MO. His prior experience includes roles at Simple Wealth Planning LLC and Cambridge Investment Research Advisors, Inc. Outside of financial advising, he serves on the board of a Catholic young adult ministry and has appeared on the "Catholic Money Mastermind" podcast. Flattery Wealth Management serves individual and high-net-worth households by providing comprehensive financial planning and discretionary investment management. The firm follows a fundamental value, buy-and-hold investment approach and customizes portfolios primarily with individual stocks, ETFs, and actively managed mutual funds.

Tyler Landes is the President and Chief Compliance Officer of Tandem Financial Guidance, LLC in Kansas City, MO. He holds a Series 65 designation and has 15 years of industry experience. In addition to his advisory role, he is President of Tandem Tax & Accounting, LLC, a tax preparation and bookkeeping service. Tandem Financial Guidance serves individuals, high-net-worth clients, charitable organizations, and businesses with financial planning, discretionary investment management, and educational seminars. The firm uses a primarily passive investment approach focused on diversified portfolios of index mutual funds and ETFs, offering both project-based and ongoing planning tailored to clients’ objectives and risk tolerances.

Tressa Wasson is a financial advisor at Retirement Planning Specialists - Midwest, LLC with 14 years of industry experience. She holds a Series 65 designation and has worked at firms including Safe Harbor Financial Planning Group and RPS Insurance Solutions, LLC, where she currently spends approximately half of her time providing insurance services. Retirement Planning Specialists - Midwest, LLC serves individual clients with financial planning and consulting, providing educational seminars and referring client assets to third-party money managers. The firm delivers financial plans and consultations on an hourly or per-engagement basis without directly managing client assets.