Our People

Our People Make Us Who We Are​

Our team is made up of skilled and experienced professionals from a variety of financial disciplines working together to provide seamless, tax-efficient solutions for optimizing your estate and financial plan. We have team members onsite at our main office in Austin as well as an external support network of specialists in insurance, tax, estate, charitable and retirement planning.

Grant Foster, CLU®, ChFC®, AEP®

Owner and Principal, Foster Financial Group

Edgar Gonzalez, CFP®, ChFC®

CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™

Meet Our Support Team

Some of the brightest minds in the business working on your behalf

Foster Financial Group is a Member Firm of Valmark Financial Group, a 59-year-old, invitation-only group of independent wealth and insurance advisory firms. Through this relationship, we have exclusive access to an experienced support team of over 100 professionals with credentials spanning multiple financial disciplines.

This enables us to leverage the knowledge and experience of these professionals to help us deliver innovative thinking and recommendations when helping our clients strategically plan for their futures. A sample representation of the team’s credentials includes:

AN UNDERWRITING ADVOCACY TEAM with several former insurance company underwriting vice presidents, directors and medical directors, a licensed physician, and a staff of case management, business processing and policy service specialists.

INSURANCE PLANNING AND ADVANCED CASE SPECIALISTS, including a team of attorneys, accountants, MBAs, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professionals, Chartered Life Underwriters, and Chartered Financial Consultants who provide independent assessment and analysis of recommended product sets, policy management and life settlements.

Michael Amoia

JD, LLM (Tax), CLU®, ChFC®

Vice President, Advanced Markets

Michael McClary

MBA

Chief Investment Officer

Keith Miller

MBA, CLU®, ChFC®

Chief Investment Officer

Zach Hurst

CFP®, CLU®

Director of Financial Planning

Michael Michlitsch

MBA, CRPC®

VP of In Force Insurance Solutions

FINRA BROKER CHECK

Grant Foster

CLU®, ChFC®, AEP®​
Owner and Principal, Foster Financial Group

Grant Foster is the Owner and Principal of Foster Financial Group, an independent insurance, retirement, and estate planning firm he founded in 1975. With a career spanning over 50 years, Grant has built a legacy of expertise and excellence, specializing in retirement planning, business continuation, and estate planning.

Throughout his distinguished career, Grant has earned numerous accolades in the insurance industry and continually expanded his knowledge and services. In 1984, he became licensed to sell securities, and over the years, he has achieved several professional designations, including:

  • Life Underwriting Training Council Fellow (1988)
  • Chartered Life Underwriter (1989)
  • Chartered Financial Consultant (1991)
  • Accredited Estate Planner (2004)

 

Grant is a life and qualifying member of the prestigious Million Dollar Round Table and has reached its Top of the Table Life Status. He is a perennial qualifier of the NAIFA Quality Award and remains an active member of NAIFA-Austin, NAIFA-Texas, the Estate Planning Council of Central Texas, and the Society of Financial Services Professionals.

As a sought-after speaker, Grant has shared his expertise at numerous industry events nationwide, including the 2008 Million Dollar Round Table Annual Meeting in Toronto, Canada. In recognition of his lifetime achievements, he was inducted into the NAIFA-Austin Hall of Fame in 2014.

Beyond his professional accomplishments, Grant is deeply committed to his community. His charitable contributions include supporting Austin’s Dancing with the Stars (benefiting the Center for Child Protection), Disability Resources, Inc in Abilne Tx, the St. David’s Foundation Toast of the Town, and Rotary International as a Paul Harris Fellow.

Grant and his wife Barbara cherish time with their family, which includes their two adult sons and their wives, along with their grandson Walker and granddaughter Libby.

The Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT) is a global, independent association of more than 43,000 of the world’s leading life insurance and financial services professionals from more than 500 companies in 67 countries. MDRT members demonstrate exceptional professional knowledge, strict ethical conduct, and outstanding client service. MDRT membership is recognized internationally as the standard of excellence in the life insurance and financial services business. The award is not indicative of future performance. Working with a Million Dollar Round Table professional is no guarantee of future investment success.

Top of the Table is exclusive to MDRT’s top membership level. It is designed to help high performers improve their professional and personal lives simultaneously.

The NAIFA National Quality Award is sponsored by the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors (NAIFA). The award criteria are based on production, NAIFA leadership participation and professional education. Applicants pay a fee to apply for the award and data used to determine if the applicant qualifies is provided by the applicant. Awards are not indicative of future performance.

Edgar Gonzalez

CFP® , ChFC®
CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™

As a proud graduate of the University of Texas at San Antonio, Edgar has built his career on helping individuals and families navigate the complexities of financial planning. Whether you are saving for retirement, preparing for a child’s college education, or refining your investment strategy, Foster Financial Group can provide clear, personalized guidance every step of the way.

Based in Austin, Edgar focuses on helping Grant Foster create tailored financial plans that align with clients’ goals and lifestyles. Their approach combines technical expertise with a commitment to building genuine relationships, ensuring that every decision feels informed and empowering.

When Edgar is not working you can often find him on the golf course, exploring new travel destinations, or enjoying Austin’s vibrant live music scene.

Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc. (CFP Board) owns the certification marks CFP®, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™, and CFP® (with plaque design) in the United States, which it authorizes use of by individuals who successfully complete CFP Board’s initial and ongoing certification requirements.

Michael Amoia

JD, LLM (Tax), CLU®, ChFC®
Vice President, Advanced Markets

As Vice President of Advanced Markets for our partner, Valmark Financial Group, Michael Amoia works with our clients and our clients’ advisors to implement advanced wealth transfer and business planning techniques that leverage the use of life insurance. With over 28 years of experience and a deep understanding of complex estate planning techniques, Mr. Amoia works closely with both our back-office life insurance case design and financial planning teams to create client deliverables that help illustrate how these techniques and strategies can maximize the ability for clients to efficiently transfer intergenerational wealth. Mr. Amoia is a frequent national speaker on various estate planning topics and an author of numerous industry articles. He is also a Chartered Life Underwriter® (CLU®), Chartered Financial Consultant® (ChFC®), Juris Doctor (JD) which he earned from University of Baltimore’s School of Law, and holds a LL.M in Taxation and Certificate in Estate Planning from Georgetown University Law Center.

Michael McClary

MBA
Chief Investment Officer

Michael McClary is the Chief Investment Officer of Valmark Advisers, Inc. and Valmark Financial Group, LLC. His primary responsibility is coordinating all investment management solutions for Valmark Advisers and Valmark Institutional, including TOPS®, TOPS® Strategic Allocation Portfolios, TOPS® Managed Risk ETF Portfolios and Valmark ACCESS™, and ACCESS™ Plus solutions. Mr. McClary was named by EFTReport as one of “10 Rising Stars” in 2012 and one of “10 All Stars” in 2014. He is nationally recognized as one of the first three members of the IMN/Research Magazine “ETF Advisors Hall of Fame” in 2007 and is regularly published on ETF.com. In addition, he has collaborated with the Wall Street Journal, Kiplinger’s, Financial Advisor, and Research Magazine, to name a few, on ETF-related topics and has been a featured speaker for organizations such as the S&P and the Financial Planning Association. Mr. McClary holds FINRA series 7, 24 and 66 securities registrations, is a Member of the Cleveland Society of Chartered Financial Analysts®, and is a Registered Investment Advisor. He earned an MBA in Financial Management and a BBA in Finance in Financial Services, Magna Cum Laude, both from the University of Akron.

Keith Miller

MBA, CLU®, ChFC®
Chief Investment Officer

Keith Miller is the Vice President of Insurance Planning for our partner, Valmark Financial Group. Keith works with the insurance planning team to provide advanced case design and sales expertise. His core areas of focus include customized wealth transfer solutions, product analysis and holistic life insurance design. Mr. Miller is a national presenter at the Association for Advanced Life Underwriting (AALU) annual conference. He received his BA from Samford University and his MBA in Finance from the University of Alabama. Mr. Miller is also a Chartered Life Underwriter® (CLU®), Chartered Financial Consultant® (ChFC®) and holds the Alabama Life and Health licenses.

Zach Hurst

CFP®, CLU®
Director of Financial Planning

Zach Hurst is a Director of Financial Planning for our partner, Valmark Financial Group. In his role, he is responsible for aspects of design, marketing and implementation of Valmark’s unique financial planning processes. He oversees a team that assists member offices with accumulation, income distribution, and legacy planning through various processes designed to best meet the unique needs of each of our clients. Mr. Hurst earned a BBA in Financial Services from the University of Akron, is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional, and holds FINRA Series 7, 24 and 66 securities registrations. In addition, he is licensed for Ohio Life, Health, Accident and Variable Life Insurance and is a Chartered Life Underwriter®. He has been recognized for Outstanding Work and Accomplishment in the Field of Financial Planning from the University of Akron’s Finance Advisory Board (2014) and has presented on financial planning topics at Valmark’s Member Summit (formerly School of Life) as well as at various College of Business courses and panels with the University of Akron. He has also been quoted in an Investment News article titled, What Advisors Need To Know About Popular Long-Term-Care Products.

Michael Michlitsch

MBA, CRPC®
VP of In Force Insurance Solutions

As the VP of In Force Insurance Solutions for our partner, Valmark Financial Group, Michael Michlitsch is responsible for integrating strategies and solutions for in force life insurance business. Michael is responsible for the Valmark Policy Management Company and Valmark’s Life Settlement division. Previously, he was Manager of Practice Management at Securian Financial Services, Inc., a Senior Training Manager for Woodbury Financial Services, Inc., and Sales Manager for Ameriprise Financial Services, Inc. Mr. Michlitsch earned his MBA from the Opus College of Business at the University of St. Thomas and his BA in Management and Marketing from Bethany Lutheran College. He is a Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor℠ and carries the following Financial Services Designations: CFS, CIS, CES, CAS and CTS. In addition, he holds FINRA Series 7, 24 and 66 securities registrations as well as Ohio Life, Health, Variable Life and Annuity licenses.