Summit Financial Group

Ed Grogan, CFP^®, CLU, ChFC
President

Ed was born and raised in Montana. After moving to the Pacific Northwest to attend Pacific Lutheran University, he graduated Magna Cum Laude with his bachelor's degree in business administration. Ed entered the financial services industry at the age of 21, which allowed him to develop a diverse experience and extensive education in wealth management. His background enables him to assist high net-worth clients with a vast array of needs in both complex and straightforward situations.

Ed founded Summit Financial Group in 2001 with the vision of creating a client-centered independent wealth management firm. By creating a network of alliances with legal, tax, gift planning, investment, mortgage, real estate and insurance professionals, Ed is able to ensure that clients are directed to the appropriate area of expertise needed in their plans.

Headquartered in Gig Harbor, Washington, Summit also has affiliated offices in Tacoma.

The firm was built on the principle that wealth management needs to focus on the whole person, and, as such, recognizes that financial plans, investment plans, tax plans and estate plans do not exist in a vacuum. Rather, they need to be integrated with the dreams, needs, fears and emotions of each client.

Ed is registered to conduct fee-based financial planning in more than 15 states as an Investment Adviser Representative of Commonwealth Financial Network^®. Ed also serves as the lead financial columnist at Airlinepilotcentral.com, and has been quoted in periodicals, such as the New York Times and Boomer Magazine.

Honors and Recognition:

Ed was honored by Goldline Research¹ in the 3-24-2008 issue of Forbes Magazine as one of the "Top 10 Most Dependable Wealth Managers in the Northwest and Hawaii".
Ed has been recognized in Seattle Magazine² 5 years running as a "Best in Client Satisfaction Wealth Manager".
Ed was awarded the honor of "40 Under 40" business executives in South Puget Sound³.
Ed was honored by NABACAP⁴in the October 2010 issue of Seattle Met Magazine as a Premier Advisor of Washington.
In March 2011 Ed was recognized at Pacific Lutheran University's School of Business 50 Year Celebration as one of the top 50 graduates of the School of Business to excel and exemplify the fundamentals of "Lead, Innovate, Succeed"⁵.

His designations, registrations, licenses, and memberships include:

CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ practitioner certification
ChFC, Chartered Financial Consultant designation
CLU, Chartered Life Underwriter designation
Member of the Financial Planning Association
Member of the Society of Financial Services Providers
Member of the Tacoma Estate Planning Council
FINRA Series 7, 24, 65, 6 & 63 registrations through Commonwealth Financial Network
Life & Health Insurance license

Ed lives in Gig Harbor with his wife Kathy and three children: Quin, Kai and Zoë. He has been a member for several years of the Board of Directors for the Point Defiance Zoo Society and currently serves as the board vice president. Ed also sits on the board of the Greater Tacoma Community Foundation. Ed and Kathy are ardent supporters of many local and national charities.

¹ - Goldline Research uses a rigorous proprietary research process and they investigate tens of thousands of service providers in the financial services industry to assemble a research guide featuring outstanding companies in this sector. These advisors are selected for exceeding in the following criteria of: Comprehensive Range of Wealth Management Services, Registered Investment Adviser, Fiduciary Oath Taken, No Unresolved Lawsuits or Grievances, Advanced Certifications Held and At Least 15 Years of Industry Experience.

² - Crescendo Business Services conducts a regional survey and asks clients to evaluate only wealth managers whom they have worked with. The survey is conducted of nine criteria: customer service, integrity, knowledge/expertise, communication, value for fee charged, whether the wealth manager meets client financial objective, post sale service, quality of recommendations, and overall satisfaction. The overall evaluation score reflects an average of all respondents and may not be representative of any one client's evaluation. No fee is paid to be included in the research or the final list.

³ - 40 Under Forty represents the diversity of South Sound and includes individuals who have had great accomplishments and made significant contributions to their business, industries and communities. This is a peer nominated award and reviewed and selected by a panel of judges appointed by the South Sound Business Examiner.

^{4 -}NABACAP works to identify top advisors regardless of size, firm or channel that they are affiliated with. Advisors are nominated or invited to participate in a 20 category of practice management verification process that utilized a multistep process of verification through independent resources to narrow down and create a final publication list. The ultimate goal for NABACAP is to provide investors and advisors a trusted standard of excellence to help guide them within the Financial Services Industry.

^{5 -}The Board of Directors of the PLU School of Business reviewed all graduates for the last 50 years. They narrowed the list down to the top 50 who to them have carried the School of Business dream of "Lead, Innovate, Succeed" into their professional life.

Jim Forsyth, CFP^®
Executive Vice President

Jim grew up in Lake Oswego, Oregon and attended Pacific Lutheran University. He graduated Magna Cum Laude with a bachelor's degree in communication. Jim began his career in financial services in 1997 after a thriving career managing and opening restaurants.

Jim is highly successful in creating financial plans to support the dreams and goals of his clients. He is an 8-year qualifying member of the Million Dollar Round Table, an international, independent association that represents the world's top-producing sales professionals in the life insurance-based, financial services industry. He was invited to join Summit in 2008 and establish an office on the north end of Puget Sound.

His designations, licenses, and memberships include:

CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER^™practitioner certification
Member of the Financial Planning Association
Member of the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors
Member of the Million Dollar Roundtable
FINRA Series 7, 66, 6 & 63 registrations
Life & Health Insurance license

Jim lives on Whidbey Island, Washington with his wife Teresa and daughters Bailey and Parker. His passions include his family, golf, and travel.

Molly Hill
Director of Operations

Molly first joined Summit as a student intern in summer 2004. During her internship, she impressed the principals and staff of the firm with her integrity, follow-through, and dedication to quality. It was also during this time that Molly discovered her passion for finance.

Molly was born and raised in Montana and moved to the Puget Sound region to attend Pacific Lutheran University. After her graduation from PLU, Molly was offered a position at Summit as a financial assistant and immediately became an integral part of the team. She advanced quickly to become director of operations. She also assumed responsibility for leading Summit's internship program and for managing all personnel.

With a degree in business and experience in her family's small business, Molly is well-suited for helping people. Molly is life and health insurance-licensed in Washington and Montana and a registered sales assistant of Commonwealth Financial Network^®. She has FINRA Series 6 and 63 securities registrations. Molly is constantly continuing her educational pursuits in finance.

As director of operations, Molly has excelled and helped Summit stand out in client service. In 2009, she received Commonwealth Financial Network's national award of Staff Person of the Year. She has also helped Summit's advisors earn recognition in Seattle Magazine for five years running as “Best in Client Satisfaction Wealth Manager.”

Molly lives in Port Orchard, Washington, with her husband, Dustin. When not working, Molly enjoys reading, cooking, traveling, exploring wine country, and spending time with family and friends.