Rick Childress, CIMA®, PIM®, CRPC®

Rick is the founder of Agape Wealth Partners of Edwards Asset Management and a First Vice President and PIM® Portfolio Manager in our Naples office. Rick brings 25+ years of experience in providing personalized financial advice, focusing on the unique needs of affluent families. Rick collaborates closely with our planners and PIM® Portfolio Managers to offer a full range of investment choices and solutions. He also desires collaboration with clients outside advisors, namely Estate Planning Attorneys and Accountants, helping to quarterback a client’s team of Advisors to help ensure that all financial goals are met with precision and care. Rick was one of the first Advisors in Southwest Florida to utilize Structured Products to reduce systemic market risk and has designed various market-linked investments through some of the top global investment banks on behalf of his clients. An early embracer of Alternative Investments, Rick attended the Wharton School in 2004, completing the IMCA Investment Strategist Program at a time when few retail clients were embracing alternatives to help reduce risk and enhance growth and preservation.

Rick and Agape’s approach is centered on understanding individual goals, crafting strategies that balance growth with preservation, and helping clients navigate both expected and unexpected financial milestones. His expertise encompasses every facet of retirement planning, wealth preservation, tax strategies and estate planning strategies, ensuring a comprehensive and personalized approach to financial wellness and confidence.

When working with Rick, clients benefit from 1:1 advice, customized portfolio recommendations, and regular progress reviews. He provides convenient access to investments and digital tools, enabling a proactive approach to client service. His real-world experience in capital markets, financial and planning strategies, private banking, real estate development, business ownership, private equity, and various entrepreneurial endeavors all serve as attributes that enable him to provide wisdom and expertise to every relationship. Rick and Agape’s Wealth Partners limit themselves to serving 100 households that desire high-touch service and holistic advice based on Judeo-Christian values. Clients desire 24/7 concierge services, as well as a relationship founded on objective, selfless advice.

Rick attended The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania in 2003, completing the IMCA Certified Investment Management Analyst Program, and is a Chartered Retirement Planning CounselorSM (CRPC®) from the College of Financial Planning in Denver, Colorado. Rick holds a BA in Political Science and History from Ohio Wesleyan University and an MA in Counseling Psychology from the University of Akron. Rick has held various leadership positions at Merrill Lynch, UBS, and Ameriprise and has several supervisory FINRA registrations. Rick is married to Raimonda Childress, the owner of The BU Club, an online high-fashion women’s boutique with a location in Naples Venetian Village. Rick and Raimonda are the proud parents of five, ranging in age from 27 to 23, the last three being triplets. An active member of St. John’s Episcopal Church, Rick enjoys traveling, skiing, soccer, classic rock, history, and politics.