Benjamin J. Blackwell was born in Mobile, Alabama and raised on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. After graduating Gulfport High School, he served 10.5 years in the U.S. Air Force & Mississippi Air National Guard, working flight-line avionics on the B-1B, C-141, and C-17 aircraft. Following the events of 9/11, Ben’s unit (172nd Airlift Wing) was deployed to Germany for over a year in support of Operations Northern Watch, Enduring Freedom, Noble Eagle, and various other counter-terrorism missions across Europe & southeast Asia.

While serving overseas, Ben was also working at the WorldCom Network Operations Center in Jackson, Mississippi where he witnessed firsthand one of the darkest chapters in American corporate history. WorldCom’s $11 billion accounting fraud, in which executives falsely inflated earnings to mask the company’s declining profitability, devastated the savings of countless families and retirees, triggered massive stock losses, and ended with the conviction and imprisonment of CEO Bernie Ebbers.

For Ben, this was never just a news story. It was personal, and it lit a fire in him that has never gone out and became the foundation of his mission: protecting clients from the very mistakes that leave so many people financially vulnerable. Addressing the gaps that too many advisors overlook, excessive risk that fails to account for a client’s changing needs as they age, poor planning for future income needs, long-term care, and tax implications, and the lack of a proper estate plan. Where fee-based advice often falls short, Ben is committed to putting his clients’ best interests first — every time.

Ben’s greatest assets are his children: Colby, Rebecca, Riley, and Trinity. Outside of work, he plays the drums in his church’s worship band, is always up for new adventures and making memories with his family and friends, creating music, traveling, being out on the water, fishing, hunting, or playing golf.