About Rice Creek Group
Meet Our Team
Timothy Van Rooy
CAP®, FIC, RICP®
Tim is passionately committed to helping you grow with confidence and clarity. He brings more than 30 years of experience with Thrivent and the financial industry to support his clients’ success. He views money not as a goal, but as a tool — one that can afford you a life rich in meaning and gratitude. When he is not working, Tim can be found reading, biking, gardening, and spending time with his wife, Carol. Tim and Carol have enjoyed leading annual Habitat for Humanity Global Village trips.
- Title
Financial Advisor
- State(s) Licensed
- AZ, CA Insurance Lic. #0825029 , FL, MN, ND, PA, TX, WI,
- Website
- https://connect.thrivent.com/timothy-vanrooy
- Phone
- 651-219-5838
Michael Kauls
RICP®, CCPS®
Mike’s goal is helping you make informed, intentional, tax-efficient decisions that align with what you care about most, such as college education, retirement income planning, and financial security. As a Certified College Planning Specialist, he often leads education seminars in Twin Cities-area communities, high schools, and churches. He has valuable experience both inside and outside of schools, working for almost 10 years for Thrivent and for 10 years before that as a teacher at Mounds View High School. He actively supports organizations such as Ralph Reeder Food Shelf and local schools. He and his wife, Katy, have a daughter in elementary school and a young son.
- Title
Financial Advisor
- State(s) Licensed
- AZ, CA Insurance Lic. #0C70775 , CO, FL, IL, MN, NJ, NY, OH, PA, TX, VA, WI,
- Website
- https://connect.thrivent.com/michael-kauls
- Phone
- 651-219-5838
Eric Werlinger
ChFC®
What I love about being a financial professional is that I partner with clients to create a roadmap toward achieving financial goals. I love to see the progress around important financial decisions that we all make. Also, I have experienced some of the challenges in life that create financial events for clients. I lost my father-in-law and then my father nine years later in my 20s and 30s. I saw how one or two financial decisions can create a positive or negative wave across a client’s relationship with money.
My core belief is if I can guide clients on even one financial decision that they are likely better off because we had a conversation around something they valued. This makes me excited to meet new people every day, and I can’t wait to meet you next.
- Title
Financial Advisor
- State(s) Licensed
- AZ, CA Insurance Lic. #0K72450 , CO, FL, IL, MN, NJ, NY, OH, PA, TX, VA, WI,
- Website
- https://connect.thrivent.com/eric-werlinger
- Phone
- 612-324-2287
Edward Sachs
RICP®
Ed’s goal is to help you achieve your financial goals. Everyone’s financial situation is unique, and his number one goal is to help you create your personal financial blueprint designed to align with your own goals and timeline. Whether your needs revolve around investment strategies, college financing, retirement planning, charitable giving, or leaving a legacy to the next generation, his team can help you put the pieces together to achieve your goals. His wants you to have a sense of assurance knowing you have a comprehensive plan that helps meet your needs and provides you with protection against unknown challenges life may present down the road.
- Title
Associate
- State(s) Licensed
- FL, MN,
- Website
- https://connect.thrivent.com/edward-sachs
- Phone
- 651-219-5838
Carol Van Rooy
Carol is the Senior Office Professional for Rice Creek Group. She provides guidance, answers questions and works to create systems to keep the office running effectively to serve our clients. She worked for more than 30 years in Thrivent’s corporate office before bringing decades of experience in the financial services industry to our team. Carol is married to Tim, and enjoys quilting, crafting and co-leading Habitat for Humanity trips with Tim.
- Title
Senior Office Professional
Carol Horton
Carol has been working as an Office Professional for Mike for five years. She does scheduling, meeting preparation, meeting notes and other support. Before joining Thrivent, she worked for 20 years in restaurants and 30 years in payroll at Deluxe Corp. She retired for a week before going to work for Mike. Working for Thrivent has given her the opportunity to participate in four Habitat for Humanity builds in Kauai, Hawaii, picnics, concerts, celebrations and unlimited generosity. In her spare time, Carol enjoys spending time with family and her four fantastic grandkids, keeping alive as many family traditions as they can.
- Title
Office Professional
Lois Wigdahl
Lois found a rewarding part-time home with Rice Creek Group as an Office Professional. She supports Tim with general office administrative duties, including creating client meeting agendas, sending meeting reminders, and a variety of other office tasks. Lois works two days a week now after retiring from 30 years as an HR Generalist at Deluxe Corp. Working for Thrivent provides many opportunities to give back to the community, which she is grateful for. She enjoys traveling, reading, scrapbooking and spending time and money on her seven grandchildren.
- Title
Office Professional
Jeff Rush
Jeff likes to think of himself as the utility player for all the Twins fans in the office. As a licensed Associate, non-selling role, he does numerical analysis, does applications for new accounts and prepares paperwork for transferring money between accounts on behalf of Tim and Mike. Jeff worked as an editor and designer for newspapers for about 20 years and in schools for about 10. He likes to travel with his wife, Martha, and sometimes their two adult sons. At home, he likes to bike, garden and cook. He spoils his dogs and probably spends too much time reading mysteries.
- Title
Licensed Associate