E. Matthew ‘Whiz’ Buckley
E. Matthew Buckley, a former decorated Navy fighter pilot, is the Chief Executive Officer for Top Gun Options LLC (TGO) and Strike Fighter Financial LLC in Boca Raton, Florida. Prior to starting TGO he was the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of the Options News Network, a financial media company headquartered in the Chicago Board of Trade. He rose from the position of Managing Director of a leading Wall Street firm to CEO in one year at the age of 38. His areas of expertise include strategic planning and execution, raising capital, mergers and acquisitions, managing profitability, public speaking and relationship building, charitable fund raising, leadership development and team building.
Prior to this Mr. Buckley was the Managing Director of Strategy for the largest Wall Street proprietary equity options trading firm. He was responsible for the strategic development, successful execution, and debriefing of all strategic plans across the firm and retail business units. His efforts enabled the firm to grow from 99 employees to over 600 and increase in enterprise value from $150M to over $2.5B in just 3 years.
Before heading to Wall Street Mr. Buckley was the Director of Leadership with a military themed consulting company, where he became an internationally recognized and highly sought-after public speaker. He created and deployed leadership and strategic planning processes and was a primary executive consultant to many Fortune 500 companies, including GE, Cisco, Sanofi, Macquarie, McKesson, AT&T, VMWare, Logitec, Fidelity, Cargill, Oracle, Capital One, MasterCard, Medtronic, VMWare, Medtronic, Siemens, and Gilead Sciences.
From 1991-2006, Whiz was a highly decorated Naval Aviator with the United States Navy serving at multiple duty stations worldwide. He was an F/A-18 Hornet Instructor and Adversary Pilot with combat experience. He flew 44 combat sorties over Iraq and was awarded 2 Strike/Flight Air Medals. He graduated from the Navy Fighter Weapons School (TOPGUN). He served as a Department Head in a fighter squadron responsible for the safe operation and combat capability of 12 F/A-18 Hornet aircraft worth over $500 million. His responsibilities included the supervision and management of 200 naval personnel and material assets during combat operations. He managed the career paths and professional development of officers and enlisted personnel, managed a $25 million operations budget, and was responsible for planning, coordinating, and directing allied assets in the Persian Gulf theater as the Mobile Targeting Officer in Riyadh, KSA. He conducted briefings for the highest levels of the National Command Authority and held a Top Secret/SCI clearance. He was recalled to active duty and served during Operation Noble Eagle and Enduring Freedom.
Mr. Buckley lost his sister at the age of 19 to a drunk driver when she was a freshman at Villanova University. Whiz vowed to fight drunk driving and support Mothers Against Drunk Driving and their mission of ‘No More Victims’. He currently serves as the MADD Dash 5K honorary co-executive chairman and for 3 years in a row raised the most donations both as an individual and company.
Mr. Buckley serves on the Broward Sheriff’s Office Advisory Council as well as the Executive Committee for the Parkinson’s/Alzheimer’s Research & Education Foundation of Broward and Palm Beach counties.
He has combined his unprecedented experiences in the military and in corporate America in the writing of From Sea Level to C Level: A Fighter Pilot’s Journey from the Front Lines to the Front Office.
Mr. Buckley is married to Susan and has 3 children – Matthew, Jack, and Keeley. Matthew and Jack plan on following in their father’s footsteps by serving their country in the Marine Corps and Navy.
Suzi Buckley
Born in Kettering, Ohio, and raised in Boca Raton, Florida, Suzi Buckley has seen most of the United States while living at different military bases as a Navy Wife. The many moves required constant readjustment to new environments, which brought a unique set of challenges. For those who know the bright-eyed, warm, ever-positive Suzi, it is easy to understand that while challenging, resilience is a part of her nature.
While her husband was flying F/18 Hornets during 44 combat missions over Iraq, Suzi was not just at home at their three children. Regardless of her home being off-base, the distance from her family and adjustment of living in a small town – Suzi was always actively involved in the Navy community.
When a spouse serves, the entire family serves, and it became a way of life to make sacrifices to protect the country they loved. Isolation makes casualties of many, yet Suzi’s indomitable spirit and commitment to her country only made her more committed to cause. She also spent time studying new courses to expand her mind, all while raising a young family.
As a wife to a veteran, and part of the Navy community, Suzi has seen firsthand how difficult the transition from military to civilian life can be on those who protect our country. Many of her husband’s veteran military brothers and she would see the impact firsthand it would have on them and their families. She also respectfully noticed with quiet reverence the many who did not come home.
The impact on her family and those around her she met during her husband’s time in service was undeniable. Suzi believed that those difficult moments could lead to opportunities or downfall and that for each veteran, and their family, it was different. She did not know when or how, but she knew she wanted to help others more than she could at the moment. Suzi’s impact on others did not go unnoticed.
Her husband retired as a decorated Navy fighter pilot and became Founder & CEO for his options trading school, TOPGUN Options. Suzi, who had found time for continuous learning while deployments, joined him to oversee operations, affiliate support, and client relations. Together they have built a multi-million-dollar business, which has enabled them to give back to the causes they hold dear.
Suzi holds a Bachelor of Science in Early Childhood and Elementary Education from Jacksonville University. She supports various causes, including serving as a Board of Director for the TOPGUN Fighter Foundation.
In her spare time, when not supporting her children’s competitive athletic events, Suzi loves to entertain, especially during the holidays, working out to stay healthy, watching hockey games, and spending time at the beach. She chooses to live each day with a remarkable sense of gratitude, a twinkle in her eye, an infectious laughter, and is never too busy to go out of her way for her husband, family, parents, friends, and often even a stranger.