Michelle’s decision to enter the financial services industry was driven by her desire to assist others. She completed a finance program with a concentration in investments during college. Rather than being confined to number-crunching behind a computer all day, she chose to engage directly with clients. Her main objective when working with clients is to simplify complex concepts and help them understand. Michelle strives to provide a sense of calm and celebrates clients’ milestones, such as purchasing a new house, welcoming a new family member, achieving retirement savings targets or retiring. Michelle earned a Bachelor of Science degree in finance from Minnesota State University Moorhead, passed the Series 7, 63, 65 and 24 exams and holds Minnesota life, accident and health insurance licenses. Michelle’s career in the industry has been varied and extensive. She held positions at Waddell & Reed and Prudential before joining Members Investment Services (affiliated with IBM Mid-American Employees Federal Credit Union), where she served in various roles with her final one being operations analyst. Subsequently, she worked at UBS, Stifel, Nicolaus & Company and Morgan Stanley. Beyond her professional life, Michelle cherishes spending time with her family. She has been married to her husband, Jeff, for nearly 30 years and they have three sons, a daughter-in-law and a grandson. Michelle’s hobbies include babysitting her grandson, reading historical fiction and nonfiction, playing the piano and watching sports, such as football, basketball, track and field and gymnastics.