Our Team

Chris embarked on his financial services career in 1980, driven by a personal understanding of the vital role financial planning plays. Having lost his father to colon cancer at the age of twelve, Chris witnessed the hardships that ensued due to the absence of life insurance. Motivated by this experience, he is dedicated to ensuring his clients have comprehensive financial plans, addressing both expected and unexpected life events.

Throughout his career, Chris has not only prepared tax returns for a decade but also conducted financial planning seminars for major corporations, including K&N Energy, JD Edwards, Channel 7 News, The Denver Post, and IHS. With a talent for simplifying complex financial issues, he hosted radio shows in Denver and developed a trademarked investment strategy to optimize returns while minimizing risk. Chris has provided sound financial planning to numerous families and businesses, aspiring to help clients achieve a life of fulfillment and success by establishing a foundation of financial security.

In his commitment to clients, Chris values each relationship, treating them as the cornerstone of his practice, resulting in enduring connections. Chris has served on a variety of non-profit boards as well as numerous leadership positions within his religious community.

Christian started his career in finance in 2007 after earning his degree from CU Denver. That year, just as he was entering the workforce, the economy began to slow down and eventually fell into what is known as the Great Financial Crisis. This challenging time taught him early on the importance of being cautious and not just focusing on potential gains. Witnessing the Dow Jones drop by hundreds of points daily, he decided to adopt a more systematic approach to investing. He implemented a machine learning and algorithm-based investing system that focuses on math and science, reducing the influence of emotions on investment decisions. He also explored ways to lower taxes, starting with traditional methods and then moving on to teach more innovative strategies for business owners and accredited investors.

Outside of work, he’s a husband and father to three energetic kids. He spends a lot of his time supporting them and coaching their teams when he can. He loves being outdoors, whether it’s mountain biking, skiing, snowboarding, golfing, or learning about how to improve his health and longevity.

Chase’s journey into the world of insurance and finance began right from his roots, having been immersed in the terminology throughout his life. In 2008, he officially joined the family business and, since then, has expanded his experience in the industry by working as a life insurance specialist for a large marketing group in Atlanta, and is now acting as a Vice President for Visita Capital. Vistia Capital specializes in alternative investment vehicles and sophisticated tax reduction investment programs.

Chase holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Entrepreneurship with a minor in Financial Planning from Utah State University. Chase is passionate about utilizing his expertise to make a positive impact in the realm of insurance, tax reduction strategies, and wealth management.

Tara plays a pivotal role on our team, often likened to the quarterback leading the charge. With a career in the mortgage and financial services sector dating back to 1987, she has dedicated herself to providing exceptional care to our clients.

Tara oversees the servicing of all client accounts, both business and personal, ensuring accurate and timely processing of all paperwork. Her unwavering focus is on meeting the needs of our clients, fostering long-term relationships as the years unfold. Whether you have questions about your account or need assistance, feel free to reach out to Tara or your advisor – we’re always delighted to help!

As a founding Partner of Goodspeed Merrill, Mr. Merrill advises affluent families and individuals and successful, entrepreneurs and businesses in relation to their personal, family and business legal needs. Mr. Merrill heads the firm’s Advance Tax Strategies practice which incorporates all aspects of corporate, estate planning and tax planning in a strategic and integrated focus. Mr. Merrill’s practice involves addressing a wide range of challenges, including essential start-up questions such as choice of business entity and initial formation and capitalization issues, the growth process, financing, general business counsel, shareholder disputes, executive compensation, and business transactions such as asset and stock acquisitions and divestitures, and mergers.

Strategic Tax Counsel: Mr. Merrill received a master’s degree (L.L.M.) in taxation and applies this unique skill set and passion to help clients achieve the highest degree of tax efficiency that supports each client’s individual goals and tolerances. Mr. Merrill endeavors to consistently develop and identify bespoke strategies  to facilitate unique and customized solutions that serve a wide variety of his client’s needs.

Estate Planning: In the area of estate planning, wealth preservation and family and business succession planning, Mr. Merrill advises families and individuals with respect to the preservation of their intended legacy. He accomplishes this through properly conceived and drafted estate plan, which include the creation of wills, revocable trusts, a variety of lifetime irrevocable trusts for wealth transfer, charitable and insurance planning, and business and family succession planning, for affluent families. Mr. Merrill assists with the establishment and ongoing legal support for family offices, which serve multiple generations of family members and helps to promote the family’s growth and development through managed deployment of legacy. Mr. Merrill has partnered with best in class “Fam-Tec” provider More than Money 360 to obtain exclusive access to essential “non-legal” services that support the estate plan.

Nina has over a decade in the insurance industry, but expanded her business to include Medicare 5 years ago.  She specializes in Medicare Advantage, Supplement and Prescription Drug Plans.  

Medicare is a very complex subject and you need someone to talk to who can take the mystery out of all the terminology and confusing information. There are so many options that selecting the plan that’s right for you can be overwhelming. We can help you select a plan that works best for you now and work with you over the years as your medical needs change. Keeping your current doctors and making sure that all of your prescriptions are covered are just the starting points for us.