OUR TEAM

COE SCHLICHER

CEO & FOUNDER

Coe Schlicher is the Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Kong Capital, where he provides strategic direction of the investment strategies, as well as overall leadership of the firm.

Prior to founding Kong Capital, Coe launched the Titan Development Real Estate Fund 1 at Titan Development in 2016, where he was Fund Manager, Principal and independently responsible for the Senior Living Group. Previously, Coe worked as CFO of Ernest Healthcare which developed 20 post-acute hospitals and successfully prepared the company for exit, before returning to his engineering background as CEO of Silicon Audio, an Austin based engineering and manufacturing company that focuses on high tech sensor systems.

Coe graduated from Washington University in St. Louis with a Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and earned an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management in Chicago.

What’s your favorite vacation spot?

A tiny shack on the beach in Maine with my whole family.

What is the most interesting part of your job?

Figuring how systems work and figuring out which risks are real vs perceived.

What’s one thing someone would be surprised to know about you?

I made it to the Olympic Trials for the Modern Penthalon. As it turns out I run a little too slow to make it the Olympics.

What was the first concert you went to?

Aerosmith Pump. Just lost the t-shirt from the concert to my wife’s last Goodwill run which was assembled without my knowledge.

CORY WOLFENBARGER

PRINCIPAL & VP OF OPERATIONS

In his role, Cory manages the performance of the company’s portfolio of assets and source new strategic investment opportunities.

Prior to joining Kong Capital, Cory served as Senior Vice President of Operations for The Wolff Resident Experience Company, a Scottsdale-based senior living management firm where he also held the position of Vice President of Senior Living Asset Management. Mr. Wolfenbarger also led business development and operations for two regional home health and hospice firms located in Northern Utah and Southeastern Idaho.

At Wolff, Wolfenbarger was instrumental in the underwriting, design, and development of 18 independent living communities in the western United States including Nevada, Colorado, Washington, California, and Idaho; eight of which are currently operational and 10 that are in various stages of entitlement or construction and scheduled to open within the next 18-24 months. During his first three years with Wolff, Cory added his operating experience to the design and underwriting of the portfolio. When Wolff assumed operations of their communities, he was given responsibility for overall operations of Wolff’s senior living portfolio.

Prior to joining Wolff, Wolfenbarger served in various operations leadership roles throughout the western United States for Emeritus Senior Living and Brookdale Senior Living, including Regional Vice President of Operations in Southern California. He was responsible for communities in California, Colorado, Utah, Idaho, and Montana and led the transition from Emeritus to Brookdale for communities in those markets following the merger of the companies.

During his employment with Wolff, Wolfenbarger served as a member of the American Seniors Housing Rising Leaders program. He also served as a board member of the Utah Assisted Living Association earlier in his career.

What was your very first job?

Utah Jazz ball boy – I was 14 years old! It was my dream job at that age.

If you weren't in private equity, what would you be doing for you career?

Teaching English Literature and coaching high school football

What’s your favorite quote?

“Ladies and gentlemen, take my advice. Pull down your pants and slide on the ice!” -Dr. Sidney Freedman, M*A*S*H

What was the first concert you went to?

The Thompson Twins and Berlin

MICHAEL DECKER

DIRECTOR

Michael diligences, underwrites, and helps close new opportunities,
assists in managing portfolio performance, and handles investor reporting. Prior to joining Kong Capital in 2024, Michael held acquisition and development roles at Regent Properties and Provident Realty Advisors, where his roles consisted of underwriting, closing execution, portfolio management, reporting, and investor interfacing. Michael earned a bachelors degree from Vanderbilt University in Economics and History and was a member of the men’s golf team.

What was the first concert you went to? Not exactly sure but I definitely have Tate McRae circled on my schedule (both times she visits Austin this year)

If you weren’t in private equity, what would you be doing for your career? Either a sports agent or an entrepreneur

How do you spend your free time? Spending time with friends and family, anything active (workout classes, golf, running the lake), or trying to find my next favorite show or book

What was your first job? I was an analyst at Provident Realty Advisors in Dallas. It was a great environment to learn about development and underwriting new opportunities