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About Melanie Knoepfle

I grew up on a farm near Eureka, South Dakota. In case you’ve never heard of it, that’s just 10 miles from the North Dakota boarder which means I’ve been in many blizzards and have actually felt 80 below wind chills. After high school, I attended the University of South Dakota and majored in Criminal Justice with a minor in Religion. Summer school and heavy credit loads set me up for graduation in just 3 years. How does this lead to becoming a financial advisor? Well hold on the for the ride! Next, I went to law school at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. While in law school I worked as the Executive Director of a non-profit and always had a heart for helping people. Soon after graduation, I moved to Columbus, NE as the City Prosecutor and 9 months later, opened my own law office! Fast forward 19 years……. I decided life was too short for so much stress in my career so at the ripe middle age of 44, I gave up my law practice to become a financial advisor. I became a Certified Divorce Financial Analyst, Certified in Long Term Care, and a Certified Financial Planner. Now I get to help people who are planning for their future, for their family’s future, for their church and charities, and for their legacy. Helping people in this career is so rewarding and fulfilling!

I am married to Mike Slizoski and we have 5 kids and 6 grandchildren! We love to travel and explore new foods, cultures and regions of our world. Then, I get to scrapbook the pictures! That’s my favorite hobby (where a couple of times a year you will find me at an event from Friday to Sunday with my friends!) along with reading and acting. I have done lots of small parts for murder mystery fundraisers for the Arts Council and the Immanuel Extravaganza seed parties. I had not acted on stage in 26 years until recently getting the opportunity to perform along side my daughter in a play with the Platte Valley Playhouse. We even played the parts of a mother-daughter! Presenting at workshops to educate our clients and the public is one of my passions. People need to be empowered with information about their finances.

Living Generously in my community

Serving as Secretary on the Board of Directors for Habitat for Humanity, Columbus, NE
A founder of the Comfort Closets for our community schools project
Former Board Member and Big Pal for the Big Pals/Little Pals Program
Member of Federated Church
Former Board Member for Center for Survivors and Columbus Area Arts Council.
Former member of Sheriff’s Merritt Commission and coach for numerous years for Mock Trial

Education & Accomplishments

Certified Financial Planner
Bachelor of Science from University of South Dakota
Juris Doctorate from the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, College of Law
FINRA Series 07 General Securities Representative
FINRA Series 66 Uniform Combined State Law
Life & Health Insurance Licenses
Certification in Long Term Care, CLTC
Certified Divorce Financial Analyst, CDFA
Fraternal Insurance Consultant, FIC

Meet My Team

Empower Financial Group

Empower Financial Group

Title: Team Practice
Website: https://connect.thrivent.com/empower-financial-group

Licensing is available through your State Insurance Department’s website, which can be located through the National Association of Insurance Commissioners website.

Thrivent and its financial professionals do not provide legal, accounting or tax advice. Consult your attorney or tax professional.

Thrivent financial professionals have general knowledge of the Social Security tenets. For complete details on your situation, contact the Social Security Administration.

Thrivent provides advice and guidance through its Financial Planning Framework that generally includes a review and analysis of a client’s financial situation. A client may choose to further their planning engagement with Thrivent through its Dedicated Planning Services (an investment advisory service) that results in written recommendations for a fee.

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Insurance products, securities and investment advisory services are provided by appropriately appointed and licensed financial advisors and professionals. Only individuals who are financial advisors are credentialed to provide investment advisory services. Visit Thrivent.com or FINRA’s Broker Check for more information about our financial advisors.

Designations

For additional information on professional designations and the requirements to earn them, visit https://www.thrivent.com/designations

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

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