Stan Stewart, MBA
Virtus Financial Partners
Stan Stewart is the founder of Virtus Financial Partners. Stan works with healthcare professionals, business owners and executives by offering them comprehensive approaches to planning for their futures. Typically, his new clients are seeking a financial advisor who will be with them over the long term and who can deliver relevant information they can understand that addresses their concerns. Many of Stan's clients turned to him to help them develop a plan to stay the course through periods of economic uncertainty. He feels they remain with him because of his level of customer service and the level of experience that he and his team provides. "The increased communication and understanding has helped my clients make more informed decisions and better position themselves to meet their goals now and into the future. They appreciate that I put their interests at the forefront of every solution." He also believes for financial planning to be successful, the entire team must understand and believe in the process. Thus the reason he takes his time with each and every client to ensure they feel comfortable with the solutions he recommends.
Stan received his undergraduate degree from the University of Florida where he played baseball for the Gators. He then went on to play professionally with the New York Yankees before finishing his education with a Master of Business Administration with a concentration in finance in 2002.
Stan enjoys the opportunity to educate his clients and his community on the importance of financial independence and responsibility. He is a regular guest speaker at several medical and dental programs throughout the country. In his spare time he enjoys the outdoors with his wife and two children and regularly volunteers his time teaching members of the urban community about the importance of protecting our environment through camping and hiking excursions.
BRAD J. COMBES, MBA, CLU®
Virtus Financial Partners
As partner, Brad has grown his financial practice over the last 15 years by integrating his background in leadership and team building.
Brad works diligently with his clients. He builds his client’s confidence by taking the time to educate from the start of the relationship. He takes a long term, comprehensive approach to their needs. Each planning approach is specific to each client. His client’s financial goals and objectives are the foundation of his conversations and he continues to review their goals on an ongoing basis.
Brad received his Bachelor of Science degree from Berry College in Rome, GA where he played collegiate basketball. He continued his education and graduated with his MBA from Berry in 2005 while coaching the inaugural women’s volleyball team. Brad also holds the CLU® professional designation from the American College.
Brad is a dedicated member of the community. He partners and volunteers with several organizations including Athlete Connections, Make a Wish, Guys with Ties, and the Central Florida YMCA. Brad married his wife Liz in 2012. Together they enjoy an active lifestyle of traveling, boating and attending sporting events with their season tickets for Dallas Cowboys, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Orlando Magic. Brad and Liz welcomed their first son Dutton in July and are proud dog owners of two English bulldogs, Wellington and Risotto.
Alex Planes, DDS
LifeStreamU
CEO of LifeStreamU. A graduate of Columbia University Dental School, ICOI Mastership, Member: AACD,ADA,AGE,AAID. I opened my first dental location in 2014, currently have 9 total locations producing $20million in Revenue, with LOI's for 5 more. I have placed over 20,000 implants and done over 800 Full Arch Procedures in my career.
Jason Nunez
Provide
Jason Nunez is the regional business development office for Provide Financial. For more than a decade Jason has assisted thousands of dentists with their practice financing, this includes practice acquisitions, start ups, real estate, and multi practice lending.
Jason resides in Boca Raton with his wife Erin and two children Avery and Ryder.
John Backer, CPA
Gracey-Backer, Inc.
John Backer, CPA, is an owner of Gracey-Backer, Inc., an independent insurance agency in Delray Beach, FL. Gracey-Backer, Inc. serves a sophisticated clientele of physicians and surgeons, oral surgeons, dentists and high net-worth individuals. With advanced technology and experienced staff, they can custom-design coverage packages to fit your unique business or personal situation. In addition, with a statewide presence and almost 100 years in business, they have the strength and “clout” to secure the finest insurance protection at the most reasonable cost.
John earned a BS BA from Auburn University and a Masters in Accounting from Auburn University. He is a trustee of Gulf Stream School and serves on the Advisory Boards of both Fortress Insurance Company and Main Street America Insurance group. John also volunteers as a Board member of the Boys & Girls Club of Delray Beach, and is the past Chairman of the Board. In his free time, he plays tennis and spends time with his wife and three young boys.
Jon Voeller, MBA
DDSmatch
Jon Voeller brings more than 20 years of experience in healthcare financial services (including dental) to DDSmatch.
As a DDSmatch Professional, Jon serves dentists in Southwest Florida. His financial background provides great insight into understanding the details of dental practices and their transitions.
A former Colorado resident, Jon now lives in Southwest Florida where he enjoys the sunshine. Jon loves outdoor adventures (he is certified in sky diving!), and spending time with his two children, Aidan and Ashton.
Julie Goldberg, DDS
Fortress Insurance and OMSNIC
Dr. Goldberg is the Education Program Developer at OMSNIC and Fortress Insurance. Julie received her undergraduate training at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and her dental degree from the University of Illinois College of Dentistry. She is a Chicago area native who has been in private practice in Illinois as well as in the Ft. Lauderdale, FL area, and currently maintains membership with the ADA as well as the Chicago Dental Society.
Julie brings her clinical dental experience and knowledge to the Patient Safety and Risk Management Department.
Dr. Goldberg has nothing to disclose.
Michael Ragan, DMD, JD, LLM
Fortress Insurance and Nova Southeastern College of Dental Medicine
Dr. Ragan is a defense trial attorney in a Miami, Florida law firm with 25 years of experience. Dr. Ragan received a B.A. from Syracuse University, a D.M.D. from the University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine, a J.D. from the Georgetown University Law Center, and an L.L.M. in Health Law from Loyola University College of Law.
Dr. Ragan is presently Adjunct Professor in the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at the Nova Southeastern College of Dental Medicine. Dr. Ragan practiced clinical dentistry for fifteen years and supervised healthcare professional liability claims for seven years within the insurance industry. Dr. Ragan was on the Board of Directors of Fortress Insurance Company as well as the Chairman of their Claims Committee and currently serves as Medico-legal Consultant for Fortress. Dr. Ragan is a Fellow of the American College of Dentists, the International College of Dentists, and the American College of Legal Medicine.
Dr. Ragan has nothing to disclose.
Mike Ruso
Arc Medical Realty
As Managing Partner | Broker at Arc Medical Realty,
I am grateful to be able to assist the medical community in the Florida market! I'm elated by the team of people I'm working with that will transform the lives of those that we are passionate to help. I'm also humbled by the overwhelming support that we are receiving.
Circe Mott
Culture Dental Advisors
Circe Mott is a dental operations advisor with over 10 years of extensive dental management experience. She has successfully incorporated fundamental changes necessary for increased profitability and streamlined processes- working with both private practice and corporate dental offices.
In 2022 Circe became the founder and CEO of Culture Dental Advisors. Culture Dental Advisors provides operational support to private practices, small private practice groups, and corporate dental offices. Services include recruiting and retention, provider credentialing, fee schedule negotiations, staff training and development, marketing strategies, and A/R recovery.
For more information, visit www.culturedental.com.
Circe lives in Port St. Lucie, Florida and works with over 200 offices throughout the country. She is available for a free 30-minute business telephone consultation.
Peter Freuler, Jr., P.A., CPA
Peter Freuler & Associates CPA
Peter succeeded his father, Peter Sr., at the helm of the family's public accounting business in 2005. The practice has operated since 1984 and provides quality, personalized service along with the friendly and responsive assistance you would expect from a family-run business.
Peter is licensed as a Certified Public Accountant in Florida. He holds a Bachelor's degree from Columbia University and a Master's degree in Accounting from the University of Central Florida. Peter is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants, and is a Certified Tax Coach (CTC).
Tom Mantia
GradFin
Tom specializes in income-driven repayment strategies and refinancing student loans.
Before GradFin, Tom worked with New York Life & NyLife Securities, as well as Citizens Bank and Citizens Investment Services. With Tom’s background in both banking and financial services, he can provide expertise and advice to student loan borrowers.
Tom lives in Foxborough, MA with his girlfriend and their dog Paisley. He is an avid Patriots fan and golf enthusiast.
Tom’s favorite thing about working for GradFin is building relationships with borrowers, and helping to simplify student loan repayment options for them. And of course, saving them money!
Natalie Barreto
RiseAboveMKTG
Natalie is the founder of RiseAboveMktg, an agency collective that brings together strategy-driven marketers and talented creative minds to elevate brands to a higher level. She bings more than a decade of digital marketing experience with brands of all sizes and across a variety of industries, ranging from healthcare and nonprofts to lifestyle consumer brands and restaurants.
Lloyd Katz
The Benefit Practice
Lloyd Katz is a co-founder and Managing Partner of The Benefit Practice. Lloyd is an actuary with over 35 years of experience as a retirement consultant working with Fortune 500 companies, small businesses, nonprofit organizations, and governmental entities.
His primary role at The Benefit Practice is as the firm’s Chief Actuary and Senior Retirement Consultant. Lloyd works closely with clients and their accountants and financial advisors to develop creative plan designs that benefit key personnel. He is an expert at working with complex issues including plan valuation, financial disclosure, nondiscrimination, plan termination, and asset/liability projections.
In his role as the Chief Actuary, Lloyd has successfully developed state-of-the-art programs and strategies to assist plan sponsors in making the most of their retirement plan budgets and to resolve issues with their existing programs:
- Defined Benefit & Defined Contribution combination programs to optimize benefits for owners & key employees
- Architect of the RiskFree Plan® to greatly reduce investment risk under a defined benefit plan
- Development of creative funding solutions to minimize required plan contributions
- Determination of “what-if” scenarios to meet cash-flow constraints and to assist in union negotiations
- Creation of funding & “mark-to-market” valuation strategies to enable sponsors of underfunded plans to reach fully funded status for termination
- Consulting on plan compliance and correction issues
Lee Goldberg
Goldberg The Realtor
Lee Goldberg is blessed to be named one of the top Realtors in the country. Better known as Goldberg the Realtor (GTR), Lee has been in the Real Estate business since 2010 and runs the #1 Coldwell Banker team for half of Florida with over $100m in annual sales.
You may have seen Goldberg the Realtor on TV or heard him on the radio, where he’s frequently invited as a National Real Estate Contributor. He’s been a featured guest on Fox News, Fox Business, and several radio programs. You can also catch Lee on TLC’s “Doubling Down with the Derrico’s” Tuesdays on TLC or streaming on Discovery Plus. You can also follow Lee across all major social media platforms (@GoldbergTheRealtor) to keep up with the latest excitement.
Lee, a single dad to an incredible young woman- who has committed to play volleyball at UNC-Asheville- splits his time between Orlando, Charlotte and Las Vegas.
GTR also created The Gold Rush Virtual Training Program to help the next wave of Realtors. As a national Real Estate Coach & Trainer, Lee has developed The Gold Rush to be a highly effective program designed to empower real estate agents to grow their business, their brand and increase their overall effectiveness and bottom line.
Amanda Howard
Florida Healthcare Law Firm
"In an industry that can be complex and confusing, my goal is to present legal advice and offer solutions that ensure each client’s success and provide peace of mind that they and their businesses are protected.”
Amanda's background is focused on real estate and healthcare law and she brings knowledge and practical advice to a wide range of healthcare industries such as: Dental, Veterinary, Medical, Medical Spas, and Health & Wellness.
Prior to joining the Florida Healthcare Law firm, Amanda practiced in real estate litigation and was a senior accountant at a premier investment and management real estate company.
Amanda received her Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration with a focus on finance from the University of Florida and her Juris Doctor degree from Loyola Law School Los Angeles.
Chase Howard
Florida Healthcare Law Firm
Chase Howard is a transactional and regulatory healthcare lawyer who focuses his practice on advising dental clients through practice transitions such as strategic structuring, start-up, mergers, sales, and acquisitions of dental practices as well regulatory and licensure matters. Chase’s practice is focused on both operational and business considerations for healthcare providers and businesses, as well as regulatory compliance issues. His background of growing up in a family of dentists and physicians led him to a career where he can serve the transactional and regulatory needs of healthcare professionals. Chase is a member of the ADCPA dental lawyer group and regularly lectures to dental associations, schools, residencies and societies nationwide.
Chase is a graduate of the University of Miami School of Law where he served as the president of the Health Law Association and has been named to the Best Lawyers in Healthcare list for the last 4 years.