Our Team

Diana Pedersen is our lead – Group Health Benefits Specialist for our practice.

She has been an awesome addition to our office and has already proven to be a valuable team player.

She has been a licensed agent since 2004 and specializes in Medicare, Group Health Benefits and Life Insurance.

Diana takes extreme care with our business partners, bringing Big Benefits to Small Businesses. She makes sure they receive a high level of customer service, all while saving money and streamlining the onboarding of their employees with their group benefits, helping with efficiency and training of the systems that we use. She has embraced change and technology and has very exciting value propositions to add to our existing partnerships and the new ones that we bring on.

In addition to handling our group business, Diana also handles all our Guided Medicare Solutions reviews. Diana is licensed and certified to offer Medicare Supplements and Medicare Advantage Plans in Washington and Idaho for retirees. She goes through multiple trainings each year to make sure that she understands Medicare’s changing rules and all our product offerings. Diana has a deep desire to help individuals with their Medicare needs and helping them understand their options under State, Federal & Private programs.

Diana prides herself on providing first class solutions for each business and personal client that she works with, as each have unique needs, depending on which stage of life they find themselves.

Diana spends her time enjoying the outdoors, golfing, fishing, camping and traveling.  Most of the time, you can find her doing all these activities with her husband, daughters and grandchildren.

Denel Ingraham has been a pioneer in the Financial Services Industry, starting off working with Lutheran Brotherhood over 50 years ago. 

Denel helped generations of families and farmers, protect their hard earnings against untimely death and disabilities, educating them on how Life insurance and Disability insurance can be used as as a tool  to mitigate those risks.  He also helped them plan for retirement with always keeping his clients needs up front 

and at the top of his mind.  He wore out many vehicles, putting 1000's of miles on back country roads and highways, come rain, hail, sleet or snow.  

He has many good stories to tell as we sit around the table with the clients that he has asked us to serve.  He is always present when he is not on his 

boat over on the west side of the mountains.  Denel no longer carries his securities licenses, however his knowledge and experience is always accepted 

in our office when we have our staff meetings.  He always has a smile on his face and is one of the most positive people to have in your presence.  He has been

married to his longtime sweetheart and best friend Judy Ingraham for over 50 years.  His family is large and also fun to be around.  He loves serving at his church, driving his classic cars, and being on his boat when possible. Oh and building houses!   We love you Denel!  

Soon after graduating from Lewis & Clark Highschool in Spokane WA, Jim headed to Eastern Washington University for college.  Jim graduated with honors from EWU with a degree in Economics and minor in Mathematics and Business Administration. Jim spent his first 6 years out of college as a sales manager for True Value Hardware then a Regional manager, helping entrepreneurs successfully open their own True Value Hardware stores around the Pacific Northwest.

 In 1980 Jim founded, Insureco Inc., an insurance and investment firm.  Jim worked as a commercial insurance advisor and also offered 401k plans to the many same businesses because he saw the great need to provide these benefits to small business.  He soon began working personally with the business owners as well.

In January of 2015, Jim sold his ownership in Insureco Inc., his property and casualty agency and began to focus solely on what he loved to do, work with his long-time clients and friends in the Financial Services Industry.

With no regrets, he began the journey to build another office focused around serving Individuals/ Families and Business Owners in all aspects of Investments and Benefits.  In January of 2019, he formed Starr Investments & Benefits and brought on his partner Kirby Brown.  

Fast forward to 2022, his office has grown from 1 to 5 professionals.  Starr investments and Benefits created one place for Individuals/Families and Businesses to call when needing help in the area of Investments and Benefits.  They built out a product offering of all types of investments, based on specific goals and objectives and added a tremendous amount of additional ancillary benefits & services that are at the top of mind for anyone getting ready to retire and for our small businesses partners.  (1-100 employees) 

 Jim Starr is President and managing partner at Starr Investments & Benefits and holds a Series 6 and Series 63 Securities license as well as all his insurance licenses.  He is licensed in multiple states and is also managing the annuity product lineup, making sure to have the best products to solve the permanent and long-term income needs retirees need today.

Jim’s passion is to work with Business Owners and like-minded individuals that value our experience in using tax strategies with retirement plans and Individual IRAs’ and annuities’.  

Jim spends much of his time working outside, traveling, biking, boating, hiking and exercising. Most of these activities are done at his Seven Bays Washington home and with Mary, his best friend and life partner.  Jim is also acting President of Ridgeview Heights HOA and Treasurer of Ridgeview Estates HOA on beautiful Lake Roosevelt.

Kirby Brown is the Vice President of Starr Investments & Benefits.

After graduating high school in the small town of Brewster Washington, Kirby spent 2 years at Wenatchee Valley Community College and transferred to Eastern Washington University.  He graduated there, with a degree in business administration with a focus in operations and human resources management.  He immediately entered the insurance and benefit’s industry in 1994, where he has spent the last 25 years.  He took a position as a sales director for a regional carrier managing 5 states, from 2004 to 2009. However, he missed working one on one with clients, and moved back to the retail side of the industry.  In 2018 he joined his current business partner, Jim Starr to create Starr Investments & Benefits and the team they now have. 

Kirby’s passion or his "WHY" do you do what you do?  To simply make a difference. "No one encouraged me to save while I was younger or educate me on investing early and options.  "Statistics from Morning Star say those who work with a financial advisor tend to retire with as much as 2.97 times more than those who don't." 

They are coaching and encouraging people every day to "stay the course" and stick to their plan to achieve their financial goals.  Helping business owners to provide a meaningful way both they and their employees can save for retirement with employer sponsored retirement plans.  Studies have shown that a 401K can represent upwards of 70% of an individual's total retirement. 

Kirby is also a licensed Insurance producer offering Annuity solutions when it fits and guarding against a sudden death or disability with quality products, he can access through his broker dealer. 

Kirby spends his spare time working outside and enjoying the outdoors, golfing, fishing and boating. 

Kirby is an active board member for Feed Spokane, a local non-profit that rescues quality food from restaurants and grocery stores from being thrown away and it's distributed in the form of meals to approximately 20,000 people a week in the Spokane area.  

He enjoys spending time with his wife of 30 years, Tracy and their beautiful growing family and looks forward to another 25 years in this ever-changing business!