Announcing Marlis Gilberts Retirement in our 30th Anniversary Year

Pictured Partners: Jerit Tripp, Megan Rosenstiel, Marlis Gilbert, Linda Cook, Chris Cook and Brandon Grimm

2023 brings us a mixture of joy, celebration, and frankly a little sadness. As we celebrate the 30th Anniversary of Gilbert & Cook, we also honor our Partner, Marlis Gilbert as she retires in February 2023.

Marlis Gilbert & Linda Cook turned their friendship and mutual admiration for each other’s work in the financial industry, into what is now a thriving private wealth management firm, managing over a billion dollars and serving individuals and families across the country.

Marlis earned the Certified Financial Planner (CFP®) in 1984, which was ground-breaking at the time. Her certificate from the College of Financial Planning was only the 1,848th in the nation.  “Financial planning strategies deeply interest me and I knew I needed to get as much education as I could to be in the right position to help others.” Marlis shared.

With Linda’s vision and Marlis’s passion for serving the community they realized the value they could bring by merging their strengths. The Gilbert & Cook ensemble that you see today, is what Linda and Marlis have planned and spent their careers developing and growing.

Linda adds, “What I absolutely love about Marlis is that she deeply cares about people and is so good at finding what matters most to them.”  As a firm, we have incorporated this value into the core of what we do – find out what matters most to people and work alongside them to create the financial means to support their life of abundance. Throughout this process, we create genuine relationships which last generations.

In the beginning, Linda and Marlis served clients side by side. This allowed them to see one another’s strengths, learn from each other, grow and refine their individual styles. As the business and team grew, the vision of becoming an ensemble became a reality. That has been the path to the firm we have today.

Over the past 30 years, Gilbert & Cook has grown to include in-house planning and investment teams. This depth of intellectual capital, provides the ability to surround clients with a unique experience and the strategies they need. What Marlis and Linda realized 30 years ago, is now at the heart of Gilbert & Cook… to recognize what each client needs, and tailor specialty services to meet them where they are. The firm is positioned to give current and future clients confidence that the team can provide sophisticated strategies to help clarify their complex situations.  

“You will often hear us tell clients, ‘Always be an expert in your own situation.’ There is a lot of financial noise out there, but what people really need to know and understand is what is relevant to them and their individual situation.” – Linda Cook

Throughout the past 30 years, Gilbert & Cook has worked alongside individuals and families to determine what it means for them to live a life of abundance and set financial priorities based on that definition. Today, each relationship begins with an Abundance exercise, helping them to create that vision.

“Through the years, I have seen the joy of that abundance in our clients’ lives over and over.  My life of abundance includes quality time with my husband and family, a healthy lifestyle through diet and exercise, some travel experiences, and a slower paced life in retirement. The Gilbert & Cook team will continue to help me live my life of abundance through this transition and whatever the future brings.” – Marlis Gilbert

While the team will miss seeing Marlis in person on a daily basis, we will continue to see her in the large and small touches she leaves with us throughout the firm. Marlis sets an example for everyone blessed to know her – in her professional life, in her personal life and now in her retirement life.  She has always been authentic and genuine and now she is modeling what it looks like to retire into her life of abundance in the way she has shown our clients throughout her career.

To celebrate Marlis’ retirement, the Gilbert & Cook team will honor her and our 30th Anniversary on April 13th at Glen Oaks Country Club.

Marlis, we are so grateful for you. You have made an immeasurable impact on the lives that you have touched. Congratulations on your very well-deserved retirement.