The Team

Heart, soul and a sense of humor  

Thomas Jensen, Owner and Principal Advisor, grew up in Denmark and attended college in the United Kingdom. He and his wife moved to the U.S. in 2003 and now live in Portland, Oregon with their daughter, a cat and a few ornery, cackling chickens. They help him rise and shine.

Thomas holds a Masters of Science degree in Economic Development and Anthropology from University of London. He is also a graduate of the Certified Financial Planner Training program at the University of Portland. He has a curious obsession with numbers and finance and believes everyone (even Queen Elizabeth), benefits from financial planning. He also believes that too many people are taken advantage of by self-serving sales people who call themselves financial advisors.

Thomas thinks that braggarts who boast about beating the market consistently should read more books, particularly history books. The only true way to achieve long-term growth is to focus on what you can control. Keep costs low and minimize risk. Forget about “timing” the market or discovering the next “great thing.” Saving and investing are the means to a meaningful end. The goal? To live the life you want.

Sarah Chenven, Business Associate, has spent over a decade working for nonprofit and public sector organizations helping disadvantaged groups create systemic change. She has managed numerous programs with sizeable budgets and staff and has experience working in diverse and challenging contexts. She’s as nice as she is smart. A person with a conscience as well as a heart. In addition to her work with Vaerdi, she manages a small community loan fund located in Portland.

Sarah’s experience includes working for Mercy Corps and directing its Hurricane Katrina program in New Orleans. She has a JD and a Master’s degree in Public Administration, and is a member of the Oregon State Bar. Sarah lives in Portland with her daughter, their rat terrier dog (rescued from Waco, Texas), and their orange tabby cat (rescued from Prishtina, Kosovo). How the cat got here from Kosovo we know not.

Julie Wang, AFC® Business Associate, specializes in financial stress reduction. She has spent the past few years managing adult financial education programs and designing programs that address the educational and habitual issues that prevent people from achieving financial goals. Prior to joining Værdi Financial, she worked in personal finance consulting, non-profit program management and training.

Julie founded the Financial Educators Peer Group, a professional development and networking group which brings together individuals in the Portland metro area to learn and share with each other. She earned her M.A. in Education and is an Accredited Financial Counselor.  Julie lives in Portland with her two favorite things:  her husband and her well-behaved golden retriever.