Chris Freimuth is Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer at Elk River Wealth Management.

Prior to founding Elk River Wealth, Chris was President and CIO at CoBiz Wealth until the firm was acquired by BOK Financial in 2018, at which time he was named Managing Director responsible for trading and portfolio management.

Before leading CoBiz Wealth, Chris spent 15 years at the firm’s predecessor companies, Alexander Capital Management Group (ACMG) and CoBiz Financial, where his roles included co-managing the firm’s equity product and expanded to working with the investment team and other staff members to devise highly customized asset allocation strategies, fixed income trading, equity analysis, portfolio management and client communication.

Chris began his career at Affiliated Bank/Banc One Securities in trading and portfolio management, moving to Wells Fargo Bank as a financial consultant. He later became the primary portfolio manager with CoBiz Trust before joining ACMG.

Chris is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA®) a member of the Denver Society of Security Analysts. He has a B.S. in Finance from Arizona State University.

Chris spends his free time enjoying the greater outdoors with his family and friends. He is an avid fly fisherman and a less than scratch golfer.

Howard T. Alexander is Chairman Emeritus at Elk River Wealth Management.

Howard began his investment career with the First National Bank of Denver in 1966, ultimately being promoted to Senior Vice President in charge of the Personal Trust Department. In 1978, he was a founding partner in an investment advisory firm that was a predecessor to Alexander Capital Management Group (ACMG).

In 2003, ACMG was acquired by CoBiz Financial which was renamed CoBiz Wealth in 2010. During this transition, Howard continued to play a pivotal role in the growth of the firm. He retired from the firm in 2019, upon its acquisition by BOK Financial in October 2018.

Howard received a B.A. Degree in Economics from Washington and Jefferson College and a J.D. from Southern Methodist University Law School. He is a member of the Colorado Bar Association and has been active in various professional and civic organizations.

Howard has spent a lifetime enjoying the Colorado outdoors and continues to be an avid fly fisherman and occasional golfer. He, along with his wife Char, have raised five children and are active with their grandchildren.

Brooks Merrifield is a Senior Wealth Advisor with Elk River Wealth Management. His primary focus is tailoring investments and financial solutions to help his client families meet their goals.

Prior to joining Elk River Wealth, Brooks owned his own RIA firm, Merrifield & Co., developing investment portfolios for high net worth individuals and families. Prior to founding Merrifield & Co., Brooks worked for several financial service companies including: Wedbush, LPL Financial, Prudential Securities, Morgan Stanley, and Dain Rauscher (RBC).

Before working the “sell side” of the financial industry, Brooks worked for Franklin Templeton in San Mateo, California. There he worked in a variety of capacities: money market trader, analyst (High Yield), and in the marketing arm for the firm as well.

Brooks earned a Bachelor of Science in Economics from the University of Oregon. He lives with his wife, Linda, and their three children in Denver and enjoys playing golf in his spare time.

Dan Owens is a Managing Director and Senior Wealth Advisor for Elk River Wealth focusing his efforts on the Arizona market.

Dan has over 20 years of experience in the financial services business and is a Certified Private Wealth Advisor (CPWA^®). Dan values building relationships with clients and focuses on the financial needs of individuals, families, and business owners. Dan enjoys what he does and is dedicated to helping people successfully navigate the complexities of the financial system.

Since moving to Arizona in 2003, Dan has been an active member of the community, volunteering for projects and organizations that support the greater Arizona community. He has served on local boards, committees, and foundations, including UMOM, HandsOn Greater Phoenix, SARRC, CoBiz Cares Foundation and CoBiz Biz Bash. Today, he is a proud member of the Team Bradley Bear board helping families struggling to pay bills while battling pediatric cancer.

Dan met his wife, Kim, while both were volunteers and together remain passionate about helping others. They make their home in central Phoenix and enjoy riding bikes, hiking, and other outdoor activities with their two children.

Rita Koch Day is the Chief Compliance Officer and Managing Director of Operations at Elk River Wealth Management, bringing extensive RIA experience and subject matter knowledge to the firm.

Rita began her career in the investment advisory business when she participated in the successful formation of an independent RIA firm in 1978. She was a principal owner of the firm’s successor firm, Alexander Capital Management Group (ACMG), and was instrumental in its development.

ACMG was acquired in 2003 by CoBiz Financial and became CoBiz Wealth in 2010. At the same time, and in addition to her other responsibilities, Rita was appointed the Chief Compliance Officer of the firm and continued in that capacity until its acquisition in 2018 by BOK Financial.

Throughout the original firm’s formation, acquisition, merger, and name changes, Rita held roles as a principal owner, partner, and senior officer. In addition to providing client service and communication, she has been a senior portfolio manager and held security trading responsibilities.

Rita received two Bachelor of Science degrees from Metropolitan State University, one in Finance and one in Business Management.

Her husband, Dave, has been her partner since they met in 1975. Together, she and her husband are world travelers, enjoying such diverse locations as China, Chile, Christmas Island and the Czech Republic.

Julie Hull is Director of Relationship Management at Elk River Wealth Management. She is a Certified Financial Planner™ professional (CFP®) who brings significant experience to her role.

Julie began working at CoBiz Wealth in 2010 after spending 20 years living in England. Julie has cultivated skills in the areas of client service, portfolio management, custodian-relationship specialist—supporting both the firm’s wealth advisors and its extensive client base.

Julie attended the University of Colorado-Boulder where she earned a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Design. She was raised in Denver and has family in Ohio and Brazil. Julie is a board member of Hull House Real Recovery, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization providing peer support services for those in recovery from an eating disorder and/or addiction.

Julie shares her home with her life partner, Byron, and their dog, Lilly. Julie has traveled extensively and enjoys home renovation projects and country music.

Corey Gragg is the Director of Financial Planning at Elk River Wealth Management.

Corey is an experienced wealth advisor that works with individuals, families and business owners to put together goal-based, comprehensive financial plans. What he enjoys most is working with families to ensure that they have the financial peace of mind provided by detailed planning regarding cash flow, investment management, tax reduction, retirement savings, risk management and legacy/estate planning.

Prior to joining Elk River Wealth Management, Corey held various sales and advisory roles with American Century Investments, located in Kansas City. During his time there, Corey earned the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER (TM) certification, as well as a Master of Science Degree in Personal Financial Planning through The College for Financial Planning. He had previously earned undergraduate degrees in Accounting & Finance from Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas.

Corey lives and works in Denver, Colorado. He loves to hike, run, golf, and spend time with family and friends in his spare time.

JT Rusinko is the Director of Investments at Elk River Wealth Management. He started his investment career as an analyst at CoBiz Wealth, where he honed his skills in asset allocation research, fund manager due diligence, fixed income portfolio construction and equity research.

With the merger of CoBiz and BOK Financial Private Wealth, JT moved into a portfolio manager position working with the firm’s advisors to implement investment decisions and monitor client asset holdings. He continued to trade bonds and build custom fixed income portfolios for clients.

More recently, JT, as a research analyst, worked with the team at WealthShield to assist clients in the construction of portfolios, qualitative research, and proposal development. During his time at WealthShield, he served as a liaison to Elk River Wealth and was an active member of the firm’s investment committee where investment decisions are discussed and implemented.

JT graduated from the Daniels College of Business at the University of Denver with a bachelor’s degree in Finance and a minor in Accounting. He is a CFA charterholder. Outside of the office, JT is an avid golfer and a Minnesota sports fan.

Josh Weisel is an Associate Analyst at Elk River Wealth Management.

Josh grew up working in his family’s well drilling business in Minnesota. He traveled to Wisconsin for school, attending Concordia University of Wisconsin earning a B.S. degree and an MBA both in Finance.

Josh’s focus at Elk River primarily includes supporting investment research, portfolio modeling, trading, and reporting. Josh is pursuing the CFA designation and is currently a Level II candidate.

Josh enjoys spending most of his free time outdoors—as a sportsman when seasons permit. He is an active member of his church community, an avid reader and guitar player, and hardly ever misses an opportunity to learn something new.

John Phoenix is a Partner at Elk River Wealth Management. He is also the co-founder of Wealth Advisor Growth Network (WAGN), a company focused on helping financial advisors deliver better outcomes to their clients.

Prior to founding WAGN, John led Envestnet’s High Net Worth Sales division where he worked with RIAs, hybrid RIAs and Independent Advisor Networks. John also served as the National Sales Manager for the Institutional Business Development team at Envestnet where he was responsible for leading new business efforts around large enterprise firms looking to deploy the Envestnet suite of services. John’s work at Envestnet included supporting the firm’s Bank, Independent Broker Dealer, Regional Broker Dealer and Registered Investment Advisor channels.

John was also the former CEO and Founder of Metamorphosis Money Management (M3), an RIA in Denver, CO that he eventually sold to Envestnet. Prior to M3, John worked for six years as a Managing Director at Alexander Capital Management Group, where he was head of sales and marketing. Earlier in his career, John served as a Regional Director for both Putnam Investments as well as Kemper Financial Services in Atlanta, Georgia.

John earned his undergraduate degree in History from Washington and Lee University and holds a FINRA Series 65 security license. John lives in Denver with his wife and two children and enjoys skiing, golf and cycling in his free time.

Jay Hummel is a Partner at Elk River Wealth Management. He is also the co-founder of Wealth Advisor Growth Network, a company focused on helping financial advisors deliver better outcomes to their clients.

Jay is the author of The Essential Advisor, a book focused on helping advisors and customers build value in their relationship. He is also the former President and Chief Operating Officer of a large independent advisory firm which focused on the needs of 250 high net worth families. Prior to that, Jay was the head of the Personal Financial Solutions business at American Century Investments which served over 600,000 individual and small business clients.

Jay is a proud husband and father of two sons and a daughter. He is not a good golfer but enjoys playing when he finds the time. Broncos fans: don’t hold it against him but he and his wife live in Kansas City. Jay received his BBA and MS from the University of Cincinnati Carl H. Lindner College of Business.