Stephen Gunter is an advisor and shareholder at Savant Wealth Management. He has been involved in financial planning since 2011 and holds a BS in economics from Samford University and a MS in financial planning from the University of Georgia. He’s a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® professional as well as a Chartered Special Needs Consultant (ChSNC®). He currently serves on the board of directors for Vantage Leadership Initiative, on the investment committee and Ambassadors Council for the Community Foundation of Greater Huntsville, and he teaches acting at Merrimack Hall. When not working or volunteering, Stephen and his wife enjoy spending time exploring Huntsville with their two kids and two rescue mutts.

What do you love most about living and working in Huntsville?

This is a special place, and I think it is a special time to be here, but it has to be the people. I’m not from here. I grew up in South Florida, but even with all the growth that I’ve seen in the city in the last 8 years it has done a remarkable job of retaining its roots and individuality, while still being warm and welcoming to newcomers like me.

What’s your best advice for starting a career in the Rocket City?

Get involved! This is an awesome city with no limit to the number of ways that you can get plugged into the community. Find your passion and I guarantee you that there’s already a group out there that will help you get plugged in. And if I’m wrong and there’s not, create one!

How do you like to spend your time outside of work?

Spending time with my family and friends and spending time in nature are my two favorite things. If I can combine those two, then that’s a pretty perfect day.

How do you like to give back to the community, and why is it important to you?

I like giving back to help out the marginalized. That can look a lot of different ways, but I feel incredibly blessed to have a loving, supportive family and be able to what I do, where I do it, with the people that I get to do it with, and I know that not everyone is that fortunate so I like to do whatever I can to help people feel even the smallest sense of that same blessing and belonging.

Do you have any hidden talents?

Not sure how hidden it is since I teach an acting class, but I think people are usually pretty surprised when they learn that their financial planner who loves data and charts also loves to get up on stage and sing and act.

Who has been the biggest influence on your career, and what valuable lesson did they teach you?

I’ve been very fortunate to have a lot of good influences in my career, but I’d have to say the biggest has been my wife. That’s not because she has any idea about how to mentor financial planners, but because she has been incredibly sacrificial and supportive throughout my entire career, and I have learned those lessons of what it means to be sacrificial and supportive time and time and time again from her over the past 20 years of life together.

Where is your favorite place to relax in Huntsville?

If I’m looking to just chill there’s no better way to do it than to grab my hammock when the weather is nice and go find a spot along one of the many trails to rest and relax.

What is your favorite workday jam?

I love music and my musical taste is pretty eclectic, but if I don’t want to think about it and I’m just putting on something that I know is going to get me going, it’s most likely going to be early 2000’s pop/punk or something pretty heavy.

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