Edward Jones Named Business of the Year

Ben Sisk has an affinity for small towns. He grew up in Coal City and his mother is from . So when a chance opened up to serve the Minooka community as the representative of Edward Jones, he jumped at it. Sisk trained under and eventually took over for Bill Reiss, who retired from the Minooka branch of Edward Jones in December 2011.

"Bill, who just retired, those are (his) good friends; they are not just clients," Sisk said of his business at 205 Mondamin St.

Sisk said his clients, some who became his after Reiss retired and some he has cultivated on his own, are the best part of his job at Edward Jones. He said that one-on-one interaction is part of the draw of clients to Edward Jones.

"People want to do business locally," he said. "They want to see a face to go with the name.

"We're pretty unique in this whole game."

People seek out Edward Jones for financial assistance. Sisk's number one advice - diversify.

"Spread out your investments and you spread out your risks," he said.

Sisk said he helps clients by coaching them through the tough financial times and encouraging them to not panic. He also helps at the grassroots level.

"If you're not used to investing, it's like a foriegn language," he said. "Part of my job is to change a foriegn language into plain, old English."

In addition to serving as the financial advisor to his clients, Sisk is active in the Minooka community. He is a member of the , is an ambassador at the Grundy County Chamber of Commerce and serves on the Community Advisor Panels for Azko Nobel and Lyondell.