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Meet Our Team

Supported by the global resources of Merrill, our team is comprised of talented and experienced individuals committed to building strong client relationships based on trust and personalized service.

Additional Resources

The following specialists do not make securities recommendations. Please contact your Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Advisor if you have questions about how a specialist might be able to assist you.

Matthew Bennett

Wealth Management Banking Specialist

Merrill

Christopher Caradec

Wealth Strategies Advisor

Bank of America, N.A.

Gary B Ehrlich

Wealth Management Lending Officer

Bank of America, N.A.

NMLS #589394

Where do we begin? It starts with you.

At Merrill Lynch Wealth Management, your financial advisor focuses on the things you care about most- family, goals and priorities - even as they change over the years.

Understanding Your Life

Welcome

At FCMH Wealth Management & Associates, we have earned our stripes and an impressive clientele by providing an uncommon level of wealth management – especially when clients need it most.

The people we assist come from all walks of life, with varying degrees of wealth. Many are highly accomplished and hope to accomplish more. Others are building nest eggs and seek a seasoned team of advisors capable of growing their wealth. Facing important financial decisions – both professional and personal – all clients can rely on us for our decades of practical experience, intimate knowledge of best practices, complementary skillsets, and ability to provide seasoned insights in timely fashion.

Who do we serve? A largely referred clientele spanning more than 20 states and four generations. Many client families are led by senior-level corporate executives, physicians, attorneys, entrepreneurs, athletes, entertainers and financial sponsor principals who respect our ability and integrity.

While they’ve taken different paths to our door, most clients will experience a critical inflection point in their financial lives. Perhaps they have or will sell a business or practice, take a company public, attain a new level of professional success, or receive an inheritance.

Applying the lessons learned in private banking and our rigorous planning-based approach, we help these clients navigate key junctures and assist with everything from concentrated stock and associated risk, to exit and succession planning, cash flow and cash management solutions, tax-minimization and estate planning strategies, and philanthropic planning. When it can prove beneficial, we may meet with clients, spouses, entire families and employees. To help enhance results and save clients time, we often coordinate our efforts with those of their CPAs, attorneys and other trusted advisors.

We also work closely with foundations, endowments, and board members. Our advisors are well versed in the special challenges faced by non-profit organizations and understand the responsibility of managing the assets, expectations, and mandates of each organization. Supported by our firm’s vast resources, we feel privileged to provide a “boutique-like” approach designed to simplify what may seem complex and uphold an organization’s mission.

The sophisticated and more typical needs of our clients deserve our anticipation, coordination, and relentless follow through. Having “cut our teeth” in private banking, it is our practice to provide all three, with each advisor ready to help clients plan and prepare for circumstances they anticipate and those they don’t.

What Clients Can Expect

While there are several aspects to providing superior wealth management, we at FCMH Wealth Management & Associates believe it begins by having a genuine appreciation of your financial situation, mindset, and motivations.

Each day we apply our complementary skillsets across investment management, financial planning, capital markets, trust and estate planning services, private and commercial banking, and liabilities management to help our clients achieve their goals.

Our objectives mirror those of each client – to grow, preserve, and insulate their wealth, mitigate investment risk and tax consequences, generate market-like returns, and always – to put their assets and liabilities to work, and minds at ease.

As our client, you can expect that we will:

• Do our best work as your needs expand. The more you ask us to do, the more value we can deliver.

• Serve your best interests. Applying a fiduciary standard, we will act as stewards of your wealth and wishes.

• Abide by our principles: Be proactive, professional, transparent, straightforward, respectful, and fact-driven.

• Explain what actual outcomes look like. Beyond spreadsheets and simulations, we will illustrate real-world scenarios and discuss them with you.  

• Communicate with you regularly, at your discretion – by phone, email, Zoom, or wherever you’d like to meet. We will also serve as a “sounding board” for your ideas and financial issues.

• Work to prevent you from making poor financial decisions, at the wrong time – especially during periods of volatility and personal difficulty.

• Try to build a relationship with your family and educate “the next generation” – so that children can understand how wise financial habits can contribute to their own lives. We want to be the only financial resource your heirs will need.

• Take strategic direction our firm’s Chief Investment Office and input from our award-wining research analysts. Based on your attitude toward risk, investment timeline, need for liquidity, concentrated positions and personal objectives, your portfolio may include a blend of equities, bonds, ETFs and alternative investments*.

• Formulate your investment management strategy with considerations for estate planning strategies always in mind – addressing your needs and those of principal beneficiaries. We are quite familiar with the fiduciary challenges and complexities of individual and family trusts.

• Work to align our tax-minimization and estate planning strategies with those of your CPA and attorney – or call upon our firm’s trust specialists to help structure your wealth that shapes your legacy. We can also meet with your organization’s board members to interpret manager performance and make changes where necessary.

• Provide access to the vast resources of Bank of America. We stand ready to expedite matters whether you’re looking to purchase a home or boat, expand your business, finance equipment, or meet with a trust specialist.

• Have long memories. Over the years, many clients have experienced financial circumstances and opportunities similar to yours. When helpful, we can share solutions we found effective and implement them on your behalf.

*Some or all alternative investment programs may not be in the best interest of certain investors. No assurance can be given that any alternative investment’s investment objectives will be achieved.

*Global Wealth & Investment Management (GWIM) is a division of Bank of America Corporation. The Chief Investment Office, which provides investment strategies, due diligence, portfolio construction guidance and wealth management solutions for GWIM clients, is part of the Investment Solutions Group (ISG) of GWIM.

*Institutional Investor magazine announced BofA Global Research as one of the Top Global Research Firms in 2022 based on surveys held throughout the year. The magazine creates rankings of the top research analysts in a wide variety of specializations, drawn from the choices of portfolio managers and other investment professionals at more than 1,000 firms. BofA Global Research is research produced by BofA Securities, Inc (“BofAS”) and/or one or more of its affiliates. BofAS is a registered broker-dealer, Member SIPC, and wholly owned subsidiary of Bank of America Corporation. Learn more about the methodology at Institutional Investor. Rankings and recognition from Institutional Investor are no guarantee of future investment success and do not ensure that a current or prospective client will experience a higher level of performance results and such rankings should not be construed as an endorsement.

*BofA Global Research is research produced by BofA Securities, Inc. (“BofAS”) and/or one or more of its affiliates. BofAS is a registered broker-dealer, Member SIPC, and wholly owned subsidiary of Bank of America Corporation.

Our Passion for Planning

At FCMH Wealth Management & Associates, we have cultivated enduring relationships with clients that underscore our care, consideration, and curiosity. We are fascinated by the stories we hear from clients – about the bumps and risks they’ve taken along the road to financial success. By doing our jobs well, we become deeply ingrained in the lives of clients and families.

We are active listeners who encourage clients to share what they may not have told a previous advisor, or even a close friend. We remind clients that the more we know, the more we can help.

We help each client explore, articulate, and prioritize specific objectives – from a rewarding retirement lifestyle spent traveling the world, to the satisfaction of building and selling their enterprise, to shaping a family legacy.

We recognize that your life experiences are unique and that your attitude towards wealth is clearly yours. Rather than make assumptions, we make time to appreciate your mindset and motivations. We will also try to decide if we’re a good fit for you – and vice versa. Given our highly personalized, multi-faceted approach, we want to be sure you can benefit from it.

In early discussions with you and your spouse, we may ask, “Who are you responsible for? Tell us about your kids, parents, and career. Where do you want to be in five years? How do you think you’ll get there? What planning have you done? What’s your greatest concern? Why have you come here – and why now? What role would you like us to play?”

In addition to your goals, we will look for “holes” in your financial pictures – areas that may have been ignored in a previous advisory relationship. We will ask about your trusts, wills, and other important provisions. This can prompt a worthwhile discussion about insulating your wealth or, at minimum, a simple update of beneficiaries.

Only after these critical steps, will we ask about – and examine – your investments and other assets, stock options, and retirement plan investments. We will also review your personal and professional liabilities, how you manage debt, and opportunities for you to improve cash flow.

Your achievements, sacrifices, and values have led to financial and personal success. Therefore, it is incumbent upon us to help manage your wealth responsibly and in the most prudent manner.

White Glove Service for Individuals & Organizations

At FCMH Wealth Management & Associates, we serve a limited number of families and organizations. This allows us to dig deeper and provide the intense focus that complex and often-conflicting needs require.

Most clients come to us for the added layer of sophistication required to address the needs and nuances of their financial picture. We are resolute in meeting challenges and issues with fresh perspectives and holistic strategies. No less important, we provide clients with the boutique-like experience we honed during our years in private banking.

As an established team of professionals, we have four senior financial advisors who are diverse in age and competencies. This helps us relate well to clients of all ages, with specialized needs. It also allows for conversations that are more comfortable than formal – about mutual interests and passions, not just financial matters.

Ultimately, our ongoing awareness of your changing circumstances allows us to make timely adjustments to your investments and, if needed, your overall wealth strategy. We are equipped to provide a streamlined, positive experience – to relieve you of managing your assets across generations and, especially, to provide the confidence that comes from the tax-efficient preservation and transfer of wealth.

Staying on Track

We understand that both your life and the financial markets can change over time. By checking in to discuss changes in your life and revisiting your financial approach, our goal is to help you stay on track to achieve what's most important to you.



Reviews to help you
stay on track

We’ll meet with you to review your goals and the progress you’ve made toward reaching them. We’ll also discuss any adjustments needed to your financial approach to help you stay on course.



    Changes in your life
    and to your goals

    Your life and goals change. As these changes occur, we can update your approach to reflect them.

    #DigitalMerrill

    MyMerrill is your online destination for access to your financial information, secure communications, and a robust offering of tools and capabilities.

    Your advisor is a click away within our site or mobile apps

    You can manage account security with our customizable security capabilities such as touch ID, one time passcode, and other security features

    Access to your complete financial life is available with My Financial Picture, Merrill’s asset aggregation tool

      Let’s Have a Conversation

      Helping you reach your goals starts with getting to know you personally. Through understanding what matters most to you, together we can help you create a financial approach that reflects your personality. Only then can we offer an approach that is built around your life priorities and the advice you need to help you address fluctuations in the market and changes in your life. Let’s work together to help you achieve your goals.

      Why Merrill?

      As Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Advisors, we will sort through the financial complexities of your life, helping you build a customized investment approach to address your needs and pursue your goals.


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      We put you first, every day.
      Learn more about the dedicated one-on-one relationship you can have with a Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Advisor.

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      Transcript of Video 

      No question too big or moment too small
      For every question you have, every decision you make and every answer you need, we are with you to listen and help guide you along the many paths your life can take. Watch this video to see some questions we can address together.


      The Power of the Right Advisor®
      Working with a dedicated Merrill advisor means you get personalized investment strategies from Merrill plus access to comprehensive financial solutions only Bank of America can deliver.

      Personalized advice from a dedicated financial advisor.

      We get to know you and your family, your financial situation and what matters most to you.

      A comprehensive approach, built around your life’s priorities.

      Drawing from our experience and the best thinking of Merrill, together we will design an approach that reflects your unique needs, priorities and financial situation.

      Adjusting your investment approach as your life and the markets change.

      We will work to help you stay on track, regardless of what the markets are doing.