It’s been a big year here at Northstar, and we’ve added a lot of new staff to help us provide our clients with the quality financial experience they expect and deserve. Here are the new team members who joined us in 2021:

Felipe Mejia, CFP®

Lead Financial Advisor

Email address: felipe@northstarplanners.com

A lot of people view finance as a different language. As a Lead Financial Advisor, Felipe translates that language into plain English so clients can make better decisions and more easily achieve their goals.

Felipe provides comprehensive financial planning and investment management to new and existing clients. He relishes the fact that he gets to develop relationships with them and learn their stories.

Felipe’s most satisfying career moment has been earning the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ (CFP®) certification and serving as a fiduciary who sits on the same side of the table as his clients.

Fun Facts

• Felipe’s family was born in Colombia except for him—he was born in Florida.

• He lives in Miami with his girlfriend, Mariana, and his French bulldog, JP.

• Felipe enjoys any vacation where he can travel by cruise ship.

• His passion for mental health awareness led him to our firm and its expertise in helping families with adult children with mental illness.

• His hobbies include basketball, working out, and enjoying days off with Mariana and JP.

Education, Certifications, and Memberships

• CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™, CFP Board

• Executive Certificate, Financial Planning, University of Miami

• Bachelor of Science, Finance, Florida State University

Charlie Thomas, MBA

Associate Advisor

Email address: charles@northstarplanners.com

As an Associate Advisor, Charlie supports our Senior Advisors in providing comprehensive financial planning and investment management. He relishes his role in helping clients achieve goals such as a comfortable retirement and financial freedom.

While Charlie was growing up, he saw firsthand the need for solid retirement planning at the assisted-living facility that his parents owned. Entering college, he knew he wanted to work in finance, but it was an internship that prompted him into a career as a fiduciary financial advisor.

To that end, he is pursuing the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ (CFP®) certification.

Fun Facts

• Charlie played collegiate basketball for Southern Arkansas University.

• He is a recent transplant to Florida and lives in Ft. Lauderdale.

• Charlie is 6 feet 9 inches tall and wears a size 19 shoe.

• He counts Switzerland, with its mountains, views, waterfalls, and lakes, as one of the most beautiful places in the world.

• In addition to basketball, he loves baseball, CrossFit, yoga, fishing—basically, anything to do with physical activity or the outdoors.

Education, Certifications, and Memberships

• Master of Business Administration, Southern Arkansas University

• Bachelor of Business Administration, Financial Analysis, Southern Arkansas University

Lian Tepper

Client Service Specialist

Email address: lian@northstarplanners.com

Lian Tepper draws on more than a decade’s worth of hospitality and team management to provide above-and-beyond customer service at Northstar Financial Planners.

As a Client Service Specialist, Lian receives clients and guests, executes trades, processes mail—and really, whatever else she is asked to do!

Lian appreciates her role because it allows her to meet new people daily and learn their unique stories. She also likes being part of a team of professionals who genuinely care about their clients as individuals. 

Fun Facts

• Lian volunteers for the Human Rights Campaign and Florida Rights Restoration Coalition.

• She lives in Fort Lauderdale.

• Lian enjoys yoga, meditation, concerts, and all things Star Trek.

• She can start a fire by rubbing two sticks together.

•  A fan of classic films, Lian’s favorite is Casablanca.

Education, Certifications, and Memberships

• Bachelor of Arts, Hospitality Management, University of Central Florida