Ron Carson
		Founder of PEAK, Ron Carson is also an actively practicing financial advisor and owner of Carson Wealth Management Group. Ron has been a top advisor for 25 years and has grown his practice to assets under management of over $1 billion. He is also a 19-time #1 producer with the nation’s largest independent broker dealer. Ron’s Tested in the Trenches™ ideas from Carson Wealth are the foundation of the PEAK coaching programs and software system. He is the inspiration and the execution for the company! Because of his boundless energy, Ron does find time for activities and interests outside of running two businesses. He enjoys golf, wine, piloting his plane, and is actively involved in his kids’ activities. Originally from Tekamah, Nebraska, he now resides in Elkhorn, Nebraska, with his wife Jeanie, daughters Chelsie and Madison, and son Grant.

		Steve Sanduski
		Steve partnered with Ron in May 2001 with the intent of creating a coaching, training, and software company that could help advisors build their businesses and enhance their quality of life. As the Managing Partner of PEAK, Steve helps set direction for the firm, creates intellectual capital, writes books, coaches clients, and speaks to audiences throughout the country. Prior to PEAK, he was the President of a start-up broker dealer and an SEC-registered investment advisory firm, and the Vice President of Business Development for a major broker dealer. In a previous life, he was a corporate finance grunt for Caterpillar, Hewlett-Packard, and American Express. A big believer in continuous learning, Steve graduated from Illinois State University with a Finance degree and from Indiana University with an MBA. He is also a CFP® professional and a former holder of the Series 7, 24, 63, and 65. An Omaha native, he now lives in Mequon, Wisconsin, and is learning to like brats, cheese, and the Packers. When not working or hanging with his beautiful wife Linda and their three very lovely daughters, Paige, Cori, and Tenley, he can be found riding his bike along the shore of Lake Michigan, hiking, writing, researching the next ten-bagger, or holed up with a good book and a gooey coffee.

		Kimberly Anderson
		Kimberly is a Business Development Consultant for PEAK. Her responsibilities include assessing the needs of advisors and assisting them in choosing the PEAK programs and services that best meet their needs. Kimberly travels with Ron and Steve to coaching events all over the country and enjoys helping advisors learn how to grow their practice. She graduated with a bachelor's degree from South Dakota State University and has prior experience in business development and marketing. Kimberly, a native of Aberdeen, South Dakota, and her husband, Cade, have been married since 1995. They have a daughter, Madelyn, and a son, Peyton. They currently reside in Bellevue, Nebraska. Kimberly's special interests include listening to music, routine workouts, singing in her church jubilation choir, and spending time with her family and friends.

		Tom Baden
		Tom is a Technical Support Analyst with PEAK.  His primary role is supporting the GoldMine® contact management system and our customized Breaking Away™ overlay.  He also assists with internal technology related issues and projects.  Tom has a degree in Mathematics from the University of Nebraska at Omaha and has work experience in various IT disciplines. Tom and his wife, Connie, live in Omaha and have a daughter, Julie, in Scottsdale, Arizona, who is attending school and working.  Tom enjoys taking his dog on walks, biking, canoeing, and camping.  He also enjoys watching movies, listening to music, working on computers, and serving on his church council.

		DeAnna Basler
		DeAnna is a True Wealth Coach with PEAK. She has over 20 years of experience in the financial services industry including stints as a financial advisor, National Marketing Director, Managing Director, President, and CEO. DeAnna worked for major companies such as Oppenheimer Capital, American Century Investments, UBS Global Asset Management, JP Morgan Asset Management, and UMB Financial Services. She holds the Series 7, 24, 6, and 63 securities licenses. Leveraging her experience in the financial services industry, DeAnna founded and owns BAM Results, Inc., where she acts as a corporate advisor and life coach. Her interest in life coaching led her to complete the rigorous curriculum of the Coaches Training Institute and she is passionate about helping people reach their full potential. DeAnna is also an avid snowboarder, fitness enthusiast, tri-athlete, and proud wife and mom to a wonderful husband and five terrific children.

		Pam Burwell
		Pam is the Administrative Specialist for the PEAK team. Her role includes managing a variety of activities that keep PEAK running as efficiently and smoothly as possible. She sees to the administration of the PEAK Academy, updates the website, and other general responsibilities. Before joining PEAK in November 2006, Pam’s previous experience includes 13 years of civilian government service in the personnel arena, bookkeeper, receptionist, and various retail experience. Pam, a native of San Antonio, Texas, and her husband Mark have been married since February 1987 and live in Papillion, Nebraska.  They have two daughters, Diana and Stephanie.  Diana lives in Maryland with her husband David and their daughter Allison, and Stephanie is attending the University of Nebraska-Kearney. Pam treasures her time with her family and their two miniature dachshunds, Bud and Lou. She also loves to sing in her church choir and create greeting cards using rubber stamps. Pam also enjoys making quilts for her family and friends.

		Chris Dahlgren
		Chris' primary role with PEAK is Practice Management Coach. He works with advisors and assistants to help them implement the Quest for Excellence™ program and other day-to-day practice management issues that arise in their offices. Before joining PEAK in December of 2006, Chris was an Executive Recruiter for four years, helping financial advisors transition to either an independent B/D or wire-house. Prior to his experience recruiting, Chris was a Dean Witter/Morgan Stanley financial advisor. Chris earned his Bachelor’s Degree from Barry University in Miami, Florida. Chris and his wife Barbara have been married since 1995. Chris and Barbara love to travel.

		Tami Davis
		Tami is a Business Development Consultant for PEAK. Her responsibilities include assessing the needs of advisors and assisting them in choosing the PEAK programs and services that best meet their needs. Tami graduated from Bellevue University with a bachelor’s degree in management. She has over 15 years experience in the financial industry with the last five years managing a team of sales professionals before joining PEAK. Tami and her husband, Jeff, live in Omaha and have two boys, Trevor and Logan. She enjoys boating, camping, and spending time with her family. Tami is an avid fan of traveling, wine, and the Huskers football and baseball teams!

		Heidi Fethkenher
		Heidi is the Sales and Marketing Administrative Specialist at PEAK. Her role includes managing a variety of administrative activities relating to sales and events for PEAK. Heidi brings to PEAK nine years of experience in sales management for one of the largest hospitality companies worldwide. Heidi was born and raised in Omaha, Nebraska, where she currently resides. Her special interests include cooking and reading, as well as spending quality time with her family and close friends.

		Amy Gamble
		Amy is the Senior Administrative Specialist for the PEAK team. Her role includes managing a variety of activities that keep PEAK running as efficiently and smoothly as possible. She also performs all of the client billing and shipping activities, and answers a variety of questions from coaching members. Amy’s previous experience includes similar responsibilities in the retail industry. Amy and her husband, Matt, live in Omaha with their Bulldog, Harley. Amy especially enjoys shopping, decorating, gardening, and spending time with friends and family.

		Becci Gearman
		Becci is a Technical Support Analyst with PEAK. Her primary role is supporting the GoldMine® contact management system and our customized Breaking Away™ overlay. She also assists with internal technology related issues and projects. Becci has a degree from Bellevue University in Business Information Systems, and has a wide variety of experience in the areas of technical support and training. Becci and her husband Ken are originally from Buffalo, New York, and now reside in Omaha with her son, Dylan, and their two dogs, Barnum and Bailey. When family isn’t keeping her busy, she likes to read, watch football, and try new recipes.

		Matthew Halloran
		Matthew is a Practice Management Coach who assists and advises coaching members with the day to day practice management issues that arise in their offices. He has a bachelor's degree in Business Ethics from Western Michigan University and a master's degree with a focus on Life Coaching from Bellevue University. Before joining PEAK, Matthew was the co-founder and President/CEO of a life coaching company. He was also the mental health therapist working with individuals and families to help them achieve their therapeutic goals. With his extensive experience as a personal and business coach, Matthew is especially valuable helping PEAK's coaching members with personal goal-setting and clarifying their mission, vision, and values through the blueprinting process. He believes in building a strong foundation of values, purpose, vision, and goals to build a successful and profitable practice. Matthew and his wife Angela have been married for eight years and they have twin boys, Wesley and Derek. Matthew and Angela remodeled an old country church which is now their home. When not playing with his boys, Matthew enjoys fly fishing and is an amateur photographer.

		Shelly Kerber
		Shelly is a Human Resources Consultant for PEAK. She is responsible for all human resource functions including recruitment and selection, employee relations, training and development, compensation, and benefits. Shelly is also responsible for implementing the HR consulting service for PEAK’s coaching members. She graduated from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln with a degree in Business Administration and has worked in the human resources field for nearly a decade. Prior to joining PEAK, Shelly worked as an HR professional for an architectural firm in Lincoln, Nebraska.  More recently, she worked for Lozier Corporation for over five years as an HR Generalist. Shelly grew up on a farm near Treynor, Iowa, and currently resides in Omaha.  She enjoys spending time with her family and friends, weekend trips with her sorority sisters, Husker sports (especially football), golfing, volleyball, and traveling to Colorado whenever possible.

		Marcus Knecht
		Marcus is PEAK’s Senior Technical Support Analyst. His primary roles are assisting with internal technology related issues and projects, as well as, supporting the GoldMine® contact management system and our customized Breaking Away™ overlay. Marcus originates from northern Iowa obtaining a BA in Computer Science from Wartburg College in 2004. He currently resides in Omaha. Besides computers and all other advanced technologies, he also enjoys learning about other cultures and religions. Marcus has traveled to Costa Rica, Germany, Tanzania, South Africa, and Namibia during his years in school and to Australia for World Youth Day in 2008. He dreams of making it to Egypt, Ireland, India, Japan, and Vatican City some day. Marcus also keeps up with his Christian religious studies through faith-sharing and Bible-study groups.

		Amy Carlson Koenig
		Amy’s primary role with PEAK is Practice Management Coach. She works with advisors and their teams to help them implement the Quest for Excellence™ program and other day-to-day practice management issues that arise in their offices. Amy graduated from the University of Northern Iowa with a degree in Mathematics. For the 10 years prior to joining PEAK, she worked in the financial services industry in various capacities, including operations and financial advisor. Amy holds her Series 7, 63, and 66 licenses, as well as Life, Accident, and Health licenses. Amy grew up in Atlantic, Iowa, and moved to Omaha in 1992. She enjoys spending time with her husband, Jon, home improvement projects, and ballroom dancing.

		Ellen Konsdorf
		Ellen’s primary role at PEAK is Practice Management Coach. She advises coaching members to help them implement the Quest for Excellence™ program and explore other day-to-day practice management issues. Ellen has over 20 years of management experience in corporate finance and investor relations. She graduated from Wayne State College in Wayne, Nebraska, with degrees in mathematics and sociology. Ellen grew up in Norfolk, Nebraska, but has lived in Omaha since college. She is actively involved with her two children, Krystal, who is a Speech Language Pathologist at a local hospital, and Ryan, who is attending the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Ellen also enjoys wine, travel, trying new restaurants, Husker football, dancing, golf, and spending time with family and friends.

		Joe Luna
		Joe is PEAK's Breaking Away™ Business Development Consultant. His primary role is to assist advisors in their customer relationship management strategies and the overall advancement of their practices. Joe graduated from California Coast University with a bachelor's degree in business administration and is currently pursuing his master's degree in business administration from Columbia Southern University. Joe grew up in the agricultural Mecca of Salinas and lived in the beautiful city of Visalia, California, before relocating to the Midwest. He served military tours in the Middle East and Europe which gave him the opportunity to see and travel to destinations such as Iraq, Spain, Poland, Austria, Holland, Germany, and Italy, just to name a few. Joe enjoys playing sports, the outdoors, and most of all, spending time with his wife Angie and their two sons, Noah and Eli.

		James Mackiewicz
		James’ primary role with PEAK is Practice Management Coach. He works with advisors and their teams to help them implement the Quest for Excellence™ program and other day-to-day practice management issues that arise in their offices. James graduated with a bachelor’s degree from the University of Nebraska and MBA from Bellevue University in Bellevue, Nebraska. Prior to joining PEAK, he spent over 9 years working for TD Ameritrade and Bank of the West in various roles previously holding the Series 7, 24, and 65, and completing the Graduate School of Retail Bank Management. James, and his wife, Kari, have been married since 1995. They have developed a small horse ranch outside of Council Bluffs, Iowa, where they enjoy entertaining family and friends. James teaches business classes for Kaplan University, as well as Junior Achievement for middle school students. They both enjoy travelling and outdoor activities, as well as a good movie or book.

		John Mason
		John is the Tech Team Leader at PEAK. He graduated with a degree in Mathematics and a minor in Physics from the University of Nebraska at Omaha and is also a GoldMine® certified professional. John’s primary roles are managing the Tech Team, assisting with technology-related issues and projects, and supporting the GoldMine® contact management system and our customized Breaking Away™ overlay. John was born and raised in Omaha, Nebraska, where he currently resides. He has been married to his wife, Alyssa, since June 2000, and they have two sons, Joshua and Brendon. John’s primary hobby is music. He started playing the drums at age 11 and the guitar at age 13. He has a home studio in his basement where he records his own songs. John aspires to record a Christian rock CD sometime in the near future. He also enjoys spending quality time with his family, watching movies, and Husker football.

		Jess Meekma
		Jess is a Business Development Consultant for PEAK. His responsibilities include assessing the needs of advisors and assisting them in choosing the PEAK programs and services that best meet their needs. Jess graduated from Northwestern College with a degree in Finance and Management. Prior to joining PEAK, he was a financial advisor for eight years with New York Life. Originally from Orange City, Iowa, Jess now lives in Omaha, Nebraska, with his wife Lisa and their two daughters Sophie and Hannah. When not spending time with his beautiful girls, Jess loves to be in the outdoors hunting.  He has pursued everything from pheasants and deer to moose, elk, and black bear.

		Annie Olson
		Annie is the Client Events Coordinator at PEAK. She is responsible for the planning and execution of all member and prospect events and conferences. Annie graduated from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln with a degree in Advertising and Fashion Merchandising. Prior to joining PEAK, she has over five years experience in the marketing, design, and event planning industry. Annie grew up in Lincoln, Nebraska, and moved to Omaha in 2003. When not working or traveling for PEAK, she enjoys spending time with family and friends, golfing, Husker football, decorating, doing graphic design, and traveling.

		Greg Opitz
		Greg's primary role with PEAK is Practice Management Coach. He works with advisors and assistants to help them implement the Quest for Excellence™ program and other day-to-day practice management issues that arise in their offices. Greg has been working with financial planners for his entire professional career.  Before joining PEAK in May of 2006, Greg served seven years as Director, Certification Services at the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards. For the four years prior to his experience at CFP Board, Greg was the Director, Student Service Center at the College for Financial Planning. He has 17 years of managerial experience to draw upon to assist coaching members. Greg earned both his BS in economics and MBA degrees from the University of South Dakota. Greg, and his wife, Marilyn, have been married since 1985 and have three daughters. His family is his first passion and priority, but Greg would enjoy fishing every day if possible.

		Laura Pierson
		Laura is the General Manager of PEAK.  She is responsible for the management of the PEAK team and the day-to-day operations of the company.  Laura graduated from Drake University with a degree in Psychology. She has prior management experience in the retirement services industry and also holds her Series 6 and 63 licenses.  Laura and her husband, Nick, have been married since 2002.  Although they are Nebraska natives, they moved to Omaha from the Minneapolis area in 2006.  Laura and Nick love to travel—recent destinations include Iceland, Costa Rica, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, and Austria.  When not working, you can find Laura taking long walks and runs, reading a good book, playing with her golden retriever, Kramer, and spending time with family and friends.

		Mary Williams
		Mary joined PEAK in 2008 after 23 years of chasing news. Mary is an award-winning journalist with a passion for people. Her assignments have taken her all over the globe including time on the ground in Saudi Arabia covering local troops during Operation Desert Shield. Mary grew up at Offutt Air Force Base, Bellevue, Nebraska, and graduated from the University of Nebraska-Omaha. She began her career anchoring the news shortly after that. Now, she's anchored at PEAK and Carson Wealth Management Group as the Director of Marketing and Communications. When Mary is not at the office, she's chasing two kids at the zoo or on the soccer field and loving life.