Our Team

Debra K. Brede

Founder | brede@bredeinvestment.com

After working for several years for firms that operated under a typical Wall Street business model, Debra K. Brede realized that the needs of her clients weren't always best served by a firm that sells its products to meet its sales goals. Debra had a different idea in mind when she founded her investment management firm about 30 years ago. At the firm that bears her name, the individual needs of each client have always been the primary focus.

Today, D.K. Brede Investment Management Company delivers investment management services to high-net-worth individuals (including clients who have recently sold their businesses and retired from their careers), corporations, retirement plans, charitable trusts, and municipalities. Every recommendation made depends solely on a client's individual needs, as determined personally by Debra herself.

Debra has been featured as a media commentator on various networks such as CNBC and Fox Business news. She's also been featured in the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, Businessweek, Financial Times, Reuters, Bloomberg, Forbes, Kiplinger's Personal Finance and Barron's.

Listen to Debra’s interview with Kathleen Hays and Pimm Fox of Bloomberg Radio as she discusses going independent, helping her clients prepare for their future, and the charitable work she’s done with Agape International.

A commitment to serve the community

Debra is involved in a number of charities and social causes in the Boston area and globally. She was one of three finalists for the Invest in Others Global Community Impact Award from InvestmentNews. She also had the honor of giving the commencement speech at her alma mater, Pennsylvania State University, and received the Distinguished Alumni Award. Her most recent community service commitments have included:

Executive Board of Directors

Board of Trustees and Committee 2013-2022

Institutional Review Board/Human Research Committee

Board of Trustees

Agape Aids Orphan Care

Debra has always balanced her professional career with an active commitment to community service, on both a local and global scale. Each year since 2006, she has traveled to Hyderabad, India, with her husband, who is a practicing dentist. While he delivers free dental care to 250 children at the Agape Aids Orphan Care, she and her children support the organization in various ways, from acquiring new books for the library to purchasing clothing for the children.

Debra is a trustee of Agape Agape Aids Orphan Care, which was founded by long-time former D.K. Brede Investment Management staff member Lynne Guhman-Voggu. Agape's mission is to provide homes, food, and love to children of the third world who've been orphaned by the AIDS crisis.

During a recent dinner, Debra was honored by Agape with a video highlighting all the work she has done and the impact she has had on the children and their schools.

As a result of her work with Agape, Debra was a finalist for the 2015 Invest in Others and InvestmentNews Global Community Impact Award. She was one of three finalists out of hundreds of nominations, a reflection of the dedication and passionate commitment she has for those less fortunate.

Barry J. Morgan, JD, MBA

Counselor | bmorgan@gwwade.com

Barry Morgan has 19 years of experience in investment management. He joined the GW & Wade team in 2009 and then D.K. Brede Investment Management Company after six years working at a boutique financial and estate planning law firm. Barry works with many types of clients including corporate executives, technology entrepreneurs, retirees, and young families. He also holds a General Securities Representative (Series 7) and Securities Agent & Investment Adviser Representative (Series 66).

Barry’s experience covers a broad range of topics including investment management, tax planning, estate planning, executive benefit strategies, retirement planning, and individual planning issues arising from mergers and acquisitions. Barry is also a member of the firm’s Investment Committee.

• Admitted to practice law in Massachusetts
• JD, Suffolk University Law School
• MBA with a concentration in Finance from Clark University Graduate School of Management
• BA in Psychology from University of Hartford
• 3 Year Recipient of the FIVE STAR Wealth Manager Award in Boston Magazine (2021 - 2023). Awarded each February by Five Star, based on data gathered from the previous year. 

Chanel Gullage

Senior Wealth Management Advisor | chanel@bredeinvestment.com

Chanel has been with D.K. Brede Investment Management Company since 2006 working with a wide variety of high-net-worth clients and their families from the accumulation stage through retirement years. Chanel has over 25 years of experience and extensive industry knowledge which enable her to work with clients to customize portfolios, provide financial guidance and develop individualized plans tailored to help clients achieve their financial goals. Prior to joining D.K. Brede Investment Management Company, Chanel worked at Adams, Harkness & Hill for 10 years, where she also worked as a Nasdaq trader. Chanel is also a member of the firm’s Investment Committee.

Chanel holds General Securities Principal (Series 24), General Securities Representative (Series 7), Securities Agent & Investment Advisor Representative (Series 66), Equity Trader (Series 55) and Uniform Securities Agent (Series 63).

• BS in Business Administration, Northeastern University

Derek Thisse

Wealth Management Advisor | derek@bredeinvestment.com

Derek joined D.K. Brede Investment Management in 2016. He earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration with an option in finance from the University of New Hampshire (UNH). While attending UNH, Derek worked for Merrill Lynch. He also holds a FINRA General Securities Representative (Series 7)
and Securities Agent & Investment Adviser Representative (Series 66).

Derek uses his experience to support Debra Brede in various aspects of the wealth management process:

• Maintaining relationships with clients by answering questions and solving problems
• Handling client transactions, such as trades involving buying and selling securities
• Performing investment research and analysis
• Rebalancing of portfolios according to parameters agreed upon by Debra Brede and her clients
• Conducting client review meetings

Kerry Ciapciak

Client Service Associate | kerry@bredeinvestment.com

Kerry joined D.K. Brede Investment Management in January 2014. Prior to joining our team, Kerry was a public relations specialist at Sun Life Financial in Wellesley, Massachusetts. Her career in public relations includes positions as media relations director at Graham Communications and public relations director at Massachusetts Respiratory Hospital. A graduate of Stonehill College, she earned a BS in business administration with a minor in communications. Kerry is also a licensed real estate agent in Massachusetts. 

As a member of the team, Kerry handles various customer-based services, including:

• Handling client review and meeting preparation: generating reports, managing preliminary groundwork for meetings
• Conducting research for funds, stocks, and other financial products
• Maintaining relationships with clients by answering questions and solving problems
• Scheduling consultations and meetings

Karen Perkuhn

Client Service Associate | karen@bredeinvestment.com

Karen joined D.K. Brede Investment Management in September 2012. Prior to joining our team, Karen worked at Malaspina Communications, a financial communications firm in Needham, Massachusetts, as an editorial assistant and project manager. She graduated from Hartwick College with a BA in Spanish and Hispanic studies.

As a member of the team, Karen handles various operations and customer-based services, including:

• Providing proactive client account maintenance to ensure that clients' accounts are in order
• Handling client service needs, such as new account paperwork, incoming transfer of assets paperwork, updating contact information and address changes, and updating client beneficiary data
• Scheduling consultations and meetings 

Patricia Morse

Account Specialist | pmorse@bredeinvestment.com

Patty joined D.K. Brede investment Management in June 2021. She studied Administration studies at Sanford Brown College. Prior to joining our team, Patty worked as an Equity Trader for 18 years for Bank of Boston and Boston Advisors where she worked with the Portfolio Management Team and at Putnam Investments as the liaison between Putnam and the custodian banks for wires and settlements.

As a member of the team, Patty handles various operations and customer-based services, including:

• Handling client review and meeting preparation: generating reports, managing preliminary groundwork for meetings
• Maintaining financial software, data entry and generating reports
• Providing proactive client account maintenance to ensure that clients' accounts are in order