While other 17-year-olds were fiddling with their iPods and flipping burgers for pocket money, Daniel Bussiere was at his parents’ kitchen table, picking stocks. Turned out he had a knack for investing and making money.

Not long after high school, Daniel was fortunate to start his career in finance at a large Canadian firm where he honed his skills and knowledge, and began to envision another kind of practice. One where he could forget about quotas and company products, and focus completely on his clients’ needs—take the time to get to know them, and have the creativity and independence to build wealth management plans outside the box. Four years later, Daniel struck out on his own and founded the practice that would eventually become Benewealth.

Today, a carefully selected group of clients appreciate his results, to be sure, but also his approach: He makes decisions with conviction and passion, and he explains them with clarity. Clients trust him.

Being the eldest of nine gave Daniel stacks of traits that would come in handy as an entrepreneur and employer. When he’s not spending time with clients or visiting family, you’re apt to find Daniel on a soccer or baseball field, or snowboarding on the champagne powder of the Okanagan.

Two moments of curiosity ignited Kelly McAuley’s unique career path. The first occurred in high school, when, in an accounting class, she learned that banks performed debits and credits from their point of view. Why was that? To Kelly, it seemed backwards. Why not from the client’s perspective?

And so, Kelly set off to become an accountant in a public practice, and became one of seven partners at a Lower Mainland firm of 50 people. To her, compliance was the bare minimum of what she could do for her clients; math is math. Where she exceled was outside the journals, face to face, finding out what she could really do for her clients’ families and businesses.

Which led to the second instance: Working with her clients’ financial advisors, she wondered, Why are they afraid to talk to me? What do advisors know that I don’t? Kelly set off to find the answers.

Those questions would take her from practising as an accountant to becoming a Certified Financial Planner® practitioner , and, eventually, to the door of Benewealth.

Today, Kelly plays an integral role in developing tax-driven estate and succession plans for the Benewealth’s client families. Her ability to walk with clients at their own pace, ask the tough questions, have conversations with family members and other advisors—all of this garners trust in Kelly that’s she’s doing what’s best for clients. And she is honoured to have earned that trust.

After hours, Kelly loves gardening and crafting, time with family and adventures, lots of adventures.

To a 15-year-old who had grown up on a grain farm in southeast Saskatchewan, the idea of spending his days in the fast-paced world of business finding ways to make people money sounded pretty intriguing. Within minutes of meeting his dad’s advisor, Dustin had found his calling.

After attending the University of Saskatchewan and earning a Bachelor of Commerce degree, Dustin went on to work at one’s of Canada’s largest wealth management firms in Saskatoon.

Early on, Dustin learned above all how important it was to sit back and really listen to clients. The paperwork could wait. What he loved best—and still does—is growing relationships with client families. His clients never question that he truly cares about them. And, in turn, he feels honoured to take the weight of financial planning stress off his clients’ shoulders.

Just a few years after getting married at an Okanagan winery, Dustin and his wife decided to make Kelowna their home. Outside the office, he is often out of breath, either from chasing after his two young daughters or from cheering on his teams—the Roughriders and the Blue Jays.

There isn’t much Debra Eamon doesn’t love about her work as a group benefits advisor at Benewealth. She spends her days meeting all manner of entrepreneurs, from restaurant owners to web designers. And they’re always just as glad to have met her: she strives to find clients more robust benefits packages and better rates.

Debra moved into the group benefits field at after spending 25 years in retail management. Having worked for two large group benefits firms, Debra appreciates the freedom and independence she has at Benewealth to come up with creative solutions and, ultimately, the best plans. Debra understands how much employers and staff value benefits, so clients appreciate how she acts quickly and with expertise to tackle challenges.

When she isn’t problem-solving and delivering good news to clients, Debra can be found at home renovating or gardening in her rubber boots.

During several of those take-your-kids-to-work days, Ryan Noren sat small in the grand leather seats of his father’s Vancouver office. He was a financial advisor, and even though Ryan was young, he picked up on how clients’ faces and voices went from tight at the beginning of meetings to smiling and relieved toward the end. Ryan was inspired to give people the same kind of financial care and relief.

After heading across the border to Lake Forest College in Chicago, Ill., to earn a business degree, in 2008 Ryan began to work at the Kelowna office of a national benefits firm and, later, a national investment firm.

In 2018, Ryan walked into the offices of Benewealth. He liked how it felt warm and welcoming, like a tight-knit family or a team collaborating to work toward the same goal for clients. Soon, he was part of the Benewealth team.

Ryan enjoys the mentorship of colleagues and the feeling that he’s a part of meaningful change for clients. Clients appreciate his thoroughness and his ability to help them understand how an approach will help them long-term.

After hours, you can find Ryan on just about any terrain of Kelowna’s great outdoors: ice rinks playing men’s league hockey, the lake where he boats, Big White mountain where he snowboards, and the wooded hills that he hikes.

Within months of joining Benewealth, Kelsey McAuley knew almost every client by name. That’s because her first major project as administrative assistant was to build a client database and Benewealth’s client relationship management system.

With a background in reception and customer service, Kelsey began supporting Benewealth with various administrative projects in 2016, and, with her outstanding time management and team player approach, she was asked to join the firm full-time in March 2017.

She also handles marketing and design tasks for client events and communication, and supports the rest of the administrative team. Kelsey loves being a part of Benewealth’s small and friendly team—including working alongside her mom, principal Kelly McAuley. Before becoming part of the team, Kelsey spent three years overseas and loves to travel, but she’s just as happy in a room with friends and family sharing laughs.

As a recent addition to the Benewealth team, Lana Bordon takes pride in being part of a dedicated group where every client’s name and story is known, and where everyone is made to feel comfortable and at ease, herself included.

Lana grew up amidst the orchards and dairy farms of rural Pennsylvania. While travelling in England, she met the man who became her husband. He came from another part of the world known for its apples: the Okanagan Valley. The couple moved to Kelowna two years ago and continue to share a love of travel.

Lana studied politics in university and worked as an administrative assistant in a chiropractic office before joining Benewealth. Approachable and relatable, Lana is often the first person clients meet when stepping through the doors at Benewealth. She endeavours to maintain a positive and friendly atmosphere, and to make sure everyone’s needs are met quickly and efficiently.