About Financial Knowledge Institute
The FKI is a nationwide 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that helps employees and communities by increasing financial education. The speakers come from your community and include financial advisors, attorneys, mortgage brokers, real estate professionals, tax professionals and long-term care insurance professionals who donate their time to provide complimentary, on-site, unbiased, non-selling financial informational workshops.
GOLDEN GATE CHAPTER
Roger Gainer, CFP®
Golden Gate Chapter Director
Roger is an Investment Adviser Representative (IAR) and a licensed insurance agent in life and health insurance. Roger holds the Chartered Financial Consultant designation from the American College. In addition, he is a certificated paralegal for estate planning. Roger started his career in financial services in 1984 as a commodity broker. It was here he learned about various degrees of risk and to understand and respect the consequences of that risk. The commodities world is fast paced and complex, and it can be quite high on the risk scale. As a result, Roger learned from this experience that managing assets and having a long-term plan can help avoid unnecessary detours in clients’ financial lives. With over 22 years in his current financial and insurance services practice, Roger helps clients gain greater control over their financial situation. He also has served as a mentor to other financial professionals. Roger’s passion for educating the community led him to the Financial Knowledge Institute to enable him to provide sound financial advice on personal financial matters on a larger scale.
SILICON VALLEY CHAPTER
Eric Heckman, CFP®
National Director
eric@financialknowledgeinstitute.org
California Insurance License #OE89971
Eric Heckman, CFP®, is the national director of the Financial Knowledge Institute. He also is the president of Heckman Financial and Insurance Services, Inc., a Registered Investment Advisory firm he founded in 1992.
Eric holds a Bachelor of Science in finance from Santa Clara University. He is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional and holds the Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC) and Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU) designations.
Eric finds that many professionals simply get caught up in the crisis of everyday business and family concerns, unwittingly postponing their personal and family financial planning and thereby running the risk of sacrificing their current and future security. With the high speed of life in Silicon Valley, people need to stop to make sure they are on track financially. With a desire to help people plan for their financial futures, Eric assists individuals and families of all income levels in identifying their personal and family goals in order to obtain a comfortable level of financial security for today and tomorrow.
Eric is a member of the San Jose Downtown Rotary and is on the board of the Santa Clara County Boy Scouts and the Horace Mann School Foundation. He is a Cub Scout den leader and a soccer coach. Eric and his wife, Anna, have three sons, Owen, Ethan and Aidan.
Ashley Hannah
Regional Coordinator
Throughout her career, Ashley has maintained a people-first philosophy. She believes everyone should feel valued, supported, and heard, and she takes pride in doing whatever she can to ensure each interaction is a positive one.
A Bay Area native, Ashley grew up in Milpitas and graduated from San José State University. Outside of work, Ashley enjoys spending time with family and friends, especially her husband, Alexander, stepson, Gabriel, and their beloved pup, Buster.
Harry Sangha
Regional Manager
Harry is passionate about helping individuals and families make confident and informed financial decisions. He graduated with honors from the London School of Economics in 2014 with a Bachelor of Science degree. From an early age, Harry was involved in his family’s retail businesses, where he developed a strong appreciation for hard work and the importance of delivering excellent customer service—values that continue to shape his approach with clients today. After graduating, Harry began his career as a private equity research analyst before transitioning into financial advisory. He spent over seven years with a boutique wealth manager in Cambridge, UK, where he qualified as a Chartered Financial Planner. During this time, he worked with a diverse range of clients, including high-net-worth individuals and institutional investors such as endowment funds for the Colleges of the University of Cambridge. He is known for taking the time to simplify complex financial concepts and building long-term, trusted relationships. In November 2025, Harry joined Financial Knowledge Institute, after relocating to California with his wife and newborn son. Outside of work, he enjoys hiking, golfing, and spending quality time with his family. He is also a passionate football (soccer) fan and, when time allows, enjoys following Chelsea FC.
Bill Smithers
Regional Manager
Drawing on nearly a decade in financial services and more than two decades as a senior sales executive in Hi-Tech, digital engineering, next-generation technology services, and cybersecurity, Bill brings a strategic and business-minded perspective to wealth management. His practice focuses on helping clients navigate retirement income, tax-efficient investment strategies, legacy planning, and concentrated equity positions. Bill works closely with clients to understand the full picture of their financial lives and develop strategies designed to preserve wealth, manage risk, and support their long-term goals. Bill’s approach is highly personal and collaborative—providing sophisticated planning with the clarity, responsiveness, and attention to detail that complex wealth demands. In his spare time, Bill enjoys spending time with his family, gardening, BBQing, and playing with his dog-Gemma
D.M.V. CHAPTER
Bryan Slovon, MRFC®, CEP®
Chapter Director
Bryan Slovon is the District, Maryland, and Virginia area Chapter Director for The Financial Knowledge Institute and the President of Stuart Financial Group, a boutique financial planning firm serving retirees and soon-to-be retirees in the Greater D.C. metro area.
He is a financial planner focused on helping his clients own their retirement readiness and reach their retirement goals with peace of mind.
Bryan began his career in the financial industry in the 1990s. This decision was influenced by the financial struggles his widowed mother faced after his father’s passing due to the lack of proper planning and subsequently following improper advice for someone in her situation. Witnessing the devastating impact a lack of planning can have on a family approaching retirement inspired Bryan to dedicate the last twenty-five-plus years to educating and helping others prepare for and live their retirement on their terms. In addition to working with his clients, Bryan teaches retirement and tax planning courses at various local community venues and partners with companies to bring financial education into the workplace.
Bryan is a fiduciary advisor, legally and ethically obligated to act in the best interest of his clients. He holds the Master Registered Financial Consultant® (MRFC) and the Certified Estate Planner® (CEP) designations. As a Comprehensive Wealth Manager, he offers investment advisory services through J.W. Cole Advisors, Inc. (JWCA). His insights have been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Kiplinger’s Personal Finance, Financial Planning, OnWallStreet, Investor’s Business Daily, and other local and national media.
A native Washingtonian, Bryan now lives in Montgomery County, Maryland, with his wife and business partner, Lucy, and their dogs, Coco and Leo. His hobbies include cycling, hiking, charity work, and traveling far and wide to enrich his cultural experiences and broaden his perspective on life in other areas of the world.
Lucy Slovon
Chapter Coordinator
Lucy is the DMV area Chapter Coordinator of the Financial Knowledge Institute.
She is also a managing partner and advisor at Stuart Financial Group, a boutique financial planning firm in the Greater D.C. metro area. Lucy and her team are dedicated to helping their clients achieve financial peace of mind through education and personalized guidance.
Raised in Fairfax County, Virginia, Lucy began her career in the financial industry at a local mid-size CPA firm, where she witnessed the significant tax implications that successful professionals and business owners faced when proactive tax and investment planning were not prioritized. This experience led her to join her business partner and husband, Bryan, in establishing and running Stuart Financial Group to provide comprehensive financial and retirement guidance to families in the DMV area. Lucy is insurance licensed and an investment advisor representative under J.W. Cole Advisors, Inc. (JWCA), with over 20 years of experience in the financial industry, overseeing the day-to-day operations of the firm.
In her leisure time, Lucy enjoys reading, traveling, spending time outdoors with her dogs, Leo and Coco, and training for long-distance running races with close friends. She has completed over a dozen marathons, a fifty-mile ultra-marathon, and several short-distance triathlons.
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