Steve and Mary Hill, Andrea, Spencer, Maclin, Aaron, Eliee, and Noah.

Employee Spotlight – Aaron Hill, CFP®

With his bags packed, Aaron Hill eagerly awaited his future—which was slated to start in only a few days. He received a call on a Wednesday to play pro-basketball in Germany, and he was to leave the following Saturday.

But when Saturday came and went, it became clear that God had other plans.

“The contract never showed up and I never heard from the agent again,” Aaron recalled. “It was disappointing, but God shut that door. I had to slowly walk through what it looked like to have faith in the middle of the unknown.”

Aaron was an athlete, but he also enjoyed being part of the financial world.

A recent graduate of Rockhurst University in Kansas City, Aaron earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting and an MBA from the Helzberg School of Management at Rockhurst.

Before his offer to play in Germany, Aaron interned for a summer at Ernst & Young, one of the four largest accounting firms in the world known as one of “The Big Four.”

“At Rockhurst, all of my accounting professors were so supportive and encouraging,” he said. “I also really enjoyed the summer at Ernst & Young. They were just sweet people.”

However, basketball continued to draw him. Soon after his offer in Germany fell through, Aaron received another opportunity—and one that would take him even farther.

“This time I was offered a spot in Australia to play for the Ringwood Hawks,” he said. “I really started learning at this point to trust God’s timing.”

Across the world from his hometown of Canton, Mo., Aaron was hopeful to play several seasons abroad. But when he injured his knee only four months into the season in Australia, he discovered again that God’s plan differed from his own.

His second knee injury in a couple years, Aaron returned home for surgery. Again, he questioned what was next and found himself drawn to a different kind of opportunity in sports.

“While I rehabbed my knee, I had to decide if I wanted to keep playing,” Aaron reflected. “But instead, I ended up volunteering as an assistant coach at Quincy High School for boys’ basketball, which I also did before I left.”

In Quincy, Aaron also met his wife Andrea through family friends at church. Their relationship became long distance when Aaron was offered an assistant coaching position at Eastern Arizona College. During his two years there, Aaron and Andrea married, and she joined him in Arizona.

They then spent four years in Oklahoma while Aaron was coaching at East Central University, where they also welcomed their first son Noah in Ada, Okla.

In 2018, an offer he couldn’t refuse took Aaron full circle. 

Culver-Stockton College offered him the head men’s basketball coaching position, which returned him to Canton and gave him some big shoes to fill. Steve Hill, Aaron’s dad, held the same position for 14 years, retiring in 2004.

“C-SC is a special place to my family, and always has been,” Aaron said. “Coaching the same team my dad did years ago really meant a lot.”

Although basketball brought him back, Aaron began to sense that coaching was not his forever calling. While the sport and his team remained in his heart, he now had a greater passion to pursue.

In Canton, he and Andrea were blessed with three more children alongside Noah—Maclin, Spencer, and Eilee.

“I found myself becoming an okay coach and an okay dad—and that’s not how I wanted it to be,” Aaron said. “With the late nights and long weekends required to coach, I couldn’t fully commit to both. I needed to make a change.”

In 2023, Aaron joined the team at BFG. This time he became a colleague of his dad, who joined Pat Benson many years earlier as one of the first full-time advisors at Benson Financial Group.

After becoming a financial advisor himself, Aaron realized he was still coaching—just in a different way.

“I love being part of a team and watching people grow and accomplish goals they have set,” he said. “And with the team approach we take to planning and how we interact and coach clients, the relationship building aspect here is really strong.”

Aaron’s connection with clients has been his favorite part of the job.

“I have gotten to know clients and see familiar faces as they walk through the door now. We get to walk with them as they navigate big and important decisions, and through the hard seasons of life. We often grieve with our clients, but we also strive to offer them hope,” he said. “Yeah, that’s the part I really love.”

Aaron is also grateful for those God used to coach him when he was a new advisor, while he sat beside seasoned advisors who helped guide him in the profession.

Aaron has since earned his CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® marks. He is now working toward a certification as a Certified Kingdom Advisor®, a standard for advisors who align financial planning with Christian values, focusing on stewardship and generosity. This designation is only held by one percent of advisors nationwide. One of Aaron’s favorite verses also leans into the wisdom and generosity of God.

If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. –James 1:5-6

“This just really speaks to that God is a generous and relational God who wants to share with His children and help them,” Aaron reflected. “I am just so grateful for that.”

As the days of summer often bring sunshine and good times, this time of year also presents a higher risk of identity fraud. Forbes reported last year that most incidents of stolen identity happen in the summer.

Javelin Strategy & Research 2025 stated that consumers lost a total of $27.2 billion in 2024 due to identity fraud. This includes taking your information to start new accounts, steal from existing accounts, and make purchases by credit card fraud.

To help you keep your funds and credit score safe, here are five tips to protect yourself from identity fraud.

1. Remember that public Wi-Fi is not secure. Logging in at your favorite coffee spot can be a fun way to work remote, but unsecure networks are also where cyber thieves sometimes lurk. If possible, use your own hotspot, or make sure you save sensitive data, such as online banking, for your private network.
    

2. Freeze your credit. Freezing your credit stops any new credit accounts from being opened in your name. It is free to freeze your credit and does not affect your credit score. You can lift the freeze when doing things like applying for a new credit account, starting a new job, buying insurance, or applying for a rental home, and then refreeze it once you are finished.

   A credit freeze can always be in place to prevent fraud, but it’s especially important if your information was exposed in a data breach, or any other type of identity theft concerns.

   To place a credit freeze, you will need to contact all three credit bureaus—Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. When lifting the freeze, you can find out which bureau will be used for the credit check and only contact them.

3. Don’t get scammed by online fun. It might seem fun to find out what cartoon character you are, but this is also a common fraud. Make sure you don’t share personal information with these types of apps or social media links.

   Giving your birthday or sharing your mother’s maiden name, your hometown, or the name of your favorite pet are also typical security questions for online access to accounts and passwords. When asked for personal information online, make sure it is for a legitimate reason and weigh the risk.

4. Take advantage of multi-factor authorization when it’s offered. Multi-factor authorization (MFA) requires an additional security method after your password is provided. This is often a code sent to your phone or email, or an authorized app. Many banks and other agencies now require MFA and others strongly suggest it. It’s a good idea to take the opportunity for the extra level of protection when it is offered.
    
5. Pay close attention to your accounts. Make sure your bank statements and online banking transactions are familiar. If you don’t recognize a charge, call your bank or card service provider immediately. You can also freeze or block the card on some mobile banking apps. The bank will likely require you to fill out a fraud report, but if not, it’s a good idea to create a fraud alert on your account. After an incident of fraud, change your banking passwords and review your account for any other fraudulent charges.

In today’s high-tech world, there are times our data gets out there even after our attempts to thwart it. If your information is compromised, remember there are people out there to help you. Call your bank and take action quickly to secure your accounts and limit any potential damage.

When to Give Your Social Security Number

Protect your Social Security number. Just because you are asked for it does not mean you have to provide it. Many businesses use your Social Security number as an identifier, but they may not actually need it. Always confirm that it is truly required before sharing it.

Common situations where your Social Security number may be required:

• Employer: For tax reporting and employment records
• Financial transactions: Applying for credit cards, loans, bank accounts, or certain large transactions that require IRS reporting
• Government services: Social Security benefits, taxes, or public assistance programs
• Insurance or healthcare services: For billing and identification purposes
• Credit checks: When a business needs to review your credit history