July 2012

Will Angels Save the USA? andGoing for Gold in Omaha

I had the great privilege of attending a recent meeting of the Northwest Energy Angels as a guest. NWEA (http://www.nwenergyangels.com/) is a group of successful entrepreneurs and executives that fund new businesses in the clean tech energy sector by investing seed capital, and through providing management and leadership guidance to these start-up companies. The groups members are named angels because they are so called angel investors who provide money to start-up companies and acquire an ownership share in exchange for that seed cash. The agenda of the meeting was companies presenting their new technologies and explaining their business plan with the goal and hope that the angel investors in the group would invest in, and otherwise help their fledgling companies to grow and succeed. The presenters/company owners were brilliant scientists and talented engineers who were trying to turn their intellectual discoveries into a business success. I was fascinated by the presentations, and reflected later that these folks were really the heart of our capitalistic system and the real soul and fabric of our free enterprise system. These men and women were risking a great deal; their time and energy and finances with the dream of creating a viable and profitable business out of their ideas and talents. If they succeed, (and many of them may not based on the history of start-up companies,) they might improve our country in numerous ways. A successful company hires many new employees and provides vital jobs and careers. A successful company becomes a buyer of services and goods from their vendors, suppliers, landlords and service providers and thus creates demand and success in other firms. A successful company pays local and federal taxes and supports our governments. A successful company provides goods that consumers want and make their lives better. And, in the case of the type of companies that NWEA is trying to support, these successful companies are reducing our usage of energy, reducing impact on the environment and offering money- saving energy technology. Finally of course these visionary business owners also hope to become wealthy themselves, as do the angel investors. Creating wealth while helping others and improving our country and environment that is the ideal of the American Way.

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What a breath of fresh air after the economic travails of the last several years, and story after sordid story about the big banks and Wall Street firms and the many problems their shoddy and unethical practices have wrought on the US and our economy. Some of the technologies presented that day included; a former Detroit engineer who has created a one wheel electric scooter, that is fun, inexpensive, and a possible alternative to cars in urban areas. You can see his invention here. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojv8vIRvf6A There was also a physicist who is one of the worlds leading researchers and scientists in the area of fusion. He has invented a prototype for a relatively small cold fusion plant that promises to provide inexpensive electricity with little or no environmental impact. You can read more about their research here: http://woodruffscientific.com/wp/fusion Another company had a new technology for quickly and efficiently recycling food waste into fertilizer and natural gas which they in turn will sell for a profit. They are in the process of working with large grocery store chains and restaurants to install these plants behind their stores to take their waste and produce natural gas and organic fertilizer. You can read about their goals here: http://wiserg.com/the_problems.html Another engineer had built the worlds fastest electric motorcycle. His company had taken that technology to create a plug and play electric motor from sizes that would fit a Kia, a Porsche, or even a military tank with the hopes of retrofitting cars and vehicles with these energy saving, efficient and environmentally friendly electric drives. You can see his motorcycle here: http://motoczysz.com/ They may succeed or they may not, but this really is a lot of the hope and future of the American Economy; talented and smart people willing to take huge risks, and working for the promise not only of increasing their own wealth, but the satisfaction of improving the world in the process.

Going for Gold in Omaha

I spent last week watching the US Olympic Swimming Trials in Omaha, Nebraska. The trip was my oldest sons choice for a graduation present, and we were joined by three of his teammates. It was a fantastic experience we spent the whole week cheering the athletes, and when we were not at the Qwest Center pool we were eating BBQ, or playing basketball and working out. A middle-aged dad hanging out with 4 teenagers, it was a raucous good time! Our whole family is swimmers and swimming fans, (my oldest is a very good swimmer and will be attending a college in CA on a swimming scholarship) and it was quite amazing to watch these world class athletes perform. One of my sons friends had qualified and was competing in the Trials, and we cheered her on, as well as Michael Phelps, Ryan Lochte, Dara Torres, Matt Grevers and many others.

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My 63 son with Olympic Gold Medalist Matt Grevers I came away from the Trials with several observations that left me optimistic and hopeful for the future.

Some Parts of the US seem to be doing Very Well!

This was my first trip to Omaha. We flew in through Kansas City, MO where we visited friends, then drove through Iowa and Kansas. Omaha, and the other cities and towns we passed through were new, developing, and clean and seemed bustling with prosperity. Neighboring North Dakota has the lowest unemployment rate in the US almost anyone with a pulse can immediately get a higher paying job there. Rising crop prices for corn and soybeans, coupled with a booming resources industry, like natural gas, has been very good for the region, and the city and business leaders have seemed to taken full advantage of their good fortune. It is encouraging to see areas of prosperity in our country. Perhaps a lesson that the Midwest is offering is that a tried and true path to success is to produce things that the people want and need to buy.

The US is Still a Great Place to Live

As much as I like swimming, I have to admit objectively that it is a rather pointless sport just traveling back and forth inside of a large concrete box filled with water. And really sports in general

Will Angels Save the USA? Going for Gold in Omaha

July 2012 Gevers Wealth Management, LLC Page 4 are trivial. Kicking a ball through a goal, carrying a ball from one end of the field to another or dropping it into a ring, or running laps around a track, produce no goods or tangible improvements to the economy. And yet, sports are inspiring, heroic and capture our attention and imagination. The swimming trials were held in a brand new arena, and they had constructed a world class aquatics facility inside the building just for that event and which was to be removed after the end of the competition. Sitting in the stands, I marveled at the economic power of our country, and the surplus that allow us to stage such a magnificent show. One of the fruits of a successful economy is surplus of money and leisure time to enjoy non-productive activities like sports, music, and arts. The USs success has blessed us tremendously in those areas.

Hes smiling because he got to meet world record holder Rebecca Soni

The Power of Focus, Passion and Vision

The amount of effort, dedication and energy it takes to even qualify for the Trials is staggering. I still compete as a masters swimmer, and even though reasonably proficient in the pool, I could not swim the qualifying times with an outboard motor strapped to my feet.

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My sons friend who swam at the Trials has dreamed of competing in the Olympics since she was a young girl. At age 12 she set these goals, and over the ensuing years, has swam countless millions of yards, endured long grueling practices 8 or more times per week, many at 5:00 AM, and sacrificed many normal activities in pursuit of her goals. As a result of her diligence, she was a high school All American and state champion, earned a scholarship to a major Division 1 University, and qualified for a chance to compete for a spot on the US Olympic Team. Every athlete at the Trials has a similar life story it takes focus, passion and vision to reach those lofty levels. As a spectator you could feel their energy, and passion, and sense the effort that had been focused into this. It was encouraging, inspiring and uplifting to be in that environment. Our country is in a financial mess, and much of Europe even worse, mostly because of debt. Although the problems are immense and grave, they could be solved. I suspect that diligence, intensity, perseverance and quite a bit of sacrifice will be required to clean up our debts. Hopefully our leaders will take note. As those Olympic athletes showed us in Omaha much is possible with focus, passion and vision. Hope that you enjoyed a blessed Independence Day!

With hope for the future, Warm Regards,

William R. Gevers Financial Advisor

PS: We are adding something new to our periodic client letters. Recent economic and market trends have been driven largely by US monetary and debt policy and the strength or weakness of the USD. Potential adverse outcomes include inflation (increasing asset and commodity prices) or the polar opposite, deflation (decreasing asset and commodity prices.) Pasted below are some current charts showing the growth of money in the US, the price (strength) of the USD and year to date price changes for many of the major commodities and basics of our everyday life that we can watch to help us spot inflation or deflation.

PPS: We have been repeatedly asked by clients if they could share these e-mail notes with their friends or neighbors. Please feel free to forward this with the stipulation that it may only be forwarded if done so in its entirety with no portions omitted. We would be delighted to share our comments and opinions

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July 2012 Gevers Wealth Management, LLC Page 6 with your friends, and welcome your comments and feedback. If you received this and would like to be included on our newsletter list, please email us at wgevers@geverswealth.com

Copyright 2012 William R. Gevers. All rights reserved.

Gevers Wealth Management, LLC I-90 LakePlace Center 1605 NW Sammamish Road, Suite 250 Issaquah, WA 98027 Office: 425.657.2238 Fax: 425.657.2138 E-mail: wgevers@geverswealth.com
The views are those of William Gevers, Gevers Wealth Management, LLC, and should not be construed as individual investment advice. All information is believed to be from reliable sources; however, no representation is made as to its completeness or accuracy. All economic and performance information is historical and not indicative of future results. Investors can not invest directly in an index. Please consult your financial advisor for more information.

Securities and advisory services offered through Financial Network Investment Corporation, Member SIPC. Gevers Wealth Management and Financial Network are not affiliated.

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US Money Supply, US Dollar, and Inflation/Deflation Watch

US Money Supply Adjusted Monetary Base

http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/graph/?s%5B1%5D%5Bid%5D=AMBNS#

Will Angels Save the USA? Going for Gold in Omaha

July 2012 Gevers Wealth Management, LLC Page 8 US Dollar Price (DXY) USD Index Measured against Other Currencies

(http://data.cnbc.com/quotes/.DXY/tab/2)

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July 2012 Gevers Wealth Management, LLC Page 9 Inflation/Deflation -Year to Date Price Increase in Commodities and Basics as Measured by Futures

(http://www.finviz.com/futures_performance.ashx?v=17)