John D. Folkert

Grant joined Northwestern Mutual as an intern in 2015 before joining the team a year later, in 2016.  Grant specializes in the in-depth analysis required to construct the intricate solutions presented to clients in both the corporate and personal space. 

Grant will routinely join John in client meetings to provide commentary on the internal analysis done by the team, and help the client understand how any client provided data was used to develop the solution/model being presented.

Grant graduated from Calvin University with his bachelor’s degree in Finance.  He also played baseball at Calvin and played one season in the Northwoods League. Grant lives in Byron Center MI with his wife Kate and son Merrick.  Grant and Kate love traveling and staying active.  During the summers they compete in softball and golf leagues.

Gus joined the team in a part time capacity in 2018 as he was attending Grand Valley State University. Upon graduation in the spring of 2021, he transferred to the team full time. Gus graduated Grand Valley with a Bachelor’s in Business and Administration, focusing primarily on Finance.

Gus enjoys using his finance background to construct high level, comprehensive financial plans for the clients and corporations our team works with. In his off-time Gus enjoys working out, golfing and spending time with his wife and dog.

Jill joined Northwestern Mutual in 2013. Her main focus on John’s team is assisting and guiding clients through the intricate set up and maintenance of executive benefit plans. Jill has her business degree from Cornerstone University.  She resides in Hudsonville Michigan with her husband Rick, where they run a busy event venue on their historic centennial farm.  Jill is passionate about time with family and adores her seven grandkids. She is a foodie who enjoys both cooking and dining at unique and fun restaurants. She and Rick enjoy traveling and exploring West Michigan’s craft breweries.

Casey grew up in Grand Rapids, Michigan and attended Michigan State University where she graduated with a Bachelors Degree in Spanish. Casey joined the Northwestern Mutual team in 2014 and joined the team in 2017. She holds her insurance producer license in several states and FINRA Series 7 & 63 registrations in Michigan. Casey manages John’s calendar and has learned the insurance servicing and underwriting, as well as executive benefit planning sides of the business to ensure each client’s case can be executed seamlessly from start to finish.

In her free time, Casey enjoys camping and hiking with her significant other, Jeremy, and dogs, Larry and Cora. She also loves to travel, check out new local restaurants, and spend time with her family.