25 years ago, Randy came to Michigan to pursue his dreams of financial planning with the intention of helping others by making life easier for them. Coming from a versed background in farming, financial planning was similar to farming for Randy in the way that through patience, hard work, and doing right, the odds of success were likely to sprout like crops. He knew not everything was going to come easy, but he was always taught that if you work hard and smart, good results will eventually come. With that mindset in place, one day, on a sporadic taxi cab trip from Chicago to Michigan, Randy was given the chance to be mentored by LaVerne Schut, who was the Senior Advisor at the Investment Centers of America (ICA) office, located at Valley Ridge Bank in Kent City, Michigan.
In 2004, Laverne ended up retiring and during which, Elizabeth came onboard. A couple years later, Randy and Elizabeth decided to join the investment center when Valley Ridge Bank merged with ChoiceOne Bank in 2006. In 2012, Kathy joined the team. After 10 years of working at the bank, the team had a strong desire to focus more on financial planning. They wanted to help guide clients by making financial decisions easier to understand by taking sophisticated financial topics and explaining them in customized terms people would understand and use in their day to day lives. Most people want to spend their life focusing on their families and experiencing life in a way that brings them the most joy - whether it is traveling, trying out new experiences, or buying a house. We have a passion for investment management that allows our clients to enjoy those things. So, it was decided for the team that it was time to move on and grow on their own together, and as a result, Ridgetown Investments was born on October 1st, 2017.
Since then, the team has been expanding and has welcomed another Financial Advisor, James, who has been mentored by Randy, and Helen, who is our most recent addition. At Ridgetown Investments, our goal is to help others achieve life the way they want to, while maintaining financial stability in their life, and for the future generations to come.