Our Board
Executive Commitee
FHC Board President, 1000 Friends of Florida
Jaimie Ross
FHC Board President, 1000 Friends of Florida
Jaimie Ross’s Biography
JAIMIE A. ROSS is the Affordable Housing Director at 1000 Friends of Florida, a statewide nonprofit growth management organization. Prior to joining 1000 Friends of Florida in 1991, Ross was a land use and real property lawyer representing for profit and nonprofit developers and financial institutions.
During her tenure at 1000 Friends, Ross initiated the broad-based coalition that successfully advocated the passage of the William E. Sadowski Affordable Housing Act, providing a dedicated revenue source for affordable housing in Florida. She continues to facilitate the Sadowski Act Coalition to ensure funding for Florida’s state and local housing programs. Her work includes all forms of legislative and administrative advocacy and education related to the planning and financing of affordable housing. She authored “Creating Inclusive Communities in Florida: a Guidebook for Local Elected Officials and Staff on Avoiding and Overcoming the NIMBY Syndrome”, originally published in 2004, updated and republished in 2006. With funding from the Rockefeller Foundation, Ross produced “Creating Inclusive Communities”, a macro-media flash presentation on best practices for inclusionary housing programs.
Nationally, she serves on the Board of the Innovative Housing Institute. Ross is the President of the Florida Housing Coalition, founder of the Florida Community Land Trust Institute, past Chair of the Affordable Housing Committee of the Real Property Probate & Trust Law Section of the Florida Bar, and a former Fannie Mae Foundation James A. Johnson Community Fellow.
FHC Board Chair, Pasco County Community Development
George Romagnoli
FHC Board Chair, Pasco County Community Development
George Romagnoli’s Biography
GEORGE ROMAGNOLI is the Community Development Manager of the Pasco County Community Development Division, a position he has held since 2002. Before that, he served as Assistant Community Development Manager, Housing Coordinator, and Community Development Specialist for Pasco County. As Manager, his department administers the NSP, CDBG, HOME, ESG, and SHIP programs, as well as the Housing Finance Authority and is the lead agency for the Homeless Coalition. His department manages comprehensive neighborhood redevelopment programs, and successfully received a $13 million Section 108 loan from HUD, which, combined with $10 million in other funding is redeveloping Tommytown, the county’s poorest neighborhood. The county’s housing programs has assisted over 5000 families for homeownership, rehabilitation, foreclosure prevention, rental development, and other programs. Pasco County is now administering the 17th largest NSP Program in the county, and, with its successful non-profit agency partnership, is being used as a model program. Romagnoli received his bachelor’s degree in political science from Stetson University. He went on to receive a master’s degree in urban and regional planning from Florida State University. He is active with the Boy Scouts, serving as a Vice-President of the West Central Florida Council. Romagnoli is also the Chair of the West Central Florida SHIP Steering Committee and is on the Executive Board member of the Pasco County United Way.
FHC Board Vice-Chair, City of St. Petersburg
Sophia Sorolis
FHC Board Vice-Chair, City of St. Petersburg
Sophia Sorolis’s Biography
SOPHIA SOROLIS has more than 20 years experience in the public sector with local government, educational institutions, and the creation of public-private partnerships. Her career track includes business consulting with the Small Business Development Center, and housing and economic development experience with the City of St. Petersburg, where she is currently the Economic Development Manager. She has a Master of International Business Studies (MIBS), from University of South Carolina, and a B.A. in marketing, from the University of South Florida. Additionally, Sorolis has taught marketing and economics at the junior college level, and is currently serves the Tampa Housing Authority as a commissioner.
FHC Treasurer, Tampa Bay C.D.C.
Gregg Schwartz
FHC Treasurer, Tampa Bay C.D.C.
Gregg Schwartz’s Biography
Gregg Schwartz serves as the Treasurer for the Florida Housing Coalition and he is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Tampa Bay Community Development Corporation (CDC), a non-profit organization that promotes homeownership opportunities in Pinellas, Pasco and Hillsborough counties. Schwartz has been responsible for the administration and management of the CDC since 1989. Funded by the local government jurisdictions, TBCDC provides down payment and closing cost assistance loans to eligible families. He is also responsible for the administration of the HomeBuyers Club, a pre- and post- purchase-counseling program that provides education, guidance and support on an individual basis to club members. The HomeBuyers Club also administers a Foreclosure Prevention Loan Program that preserves and protects the homes of Tampa Bay Area residents from foreclosure through problem identification, counseling, budgeting and emergency mortgage payment loans.
FHC Secretary, First Housing Development Corporation of Florida
Ed Busansky
FHC Secretary, First Housing Development Corporation of Florida
Ed Busansky’s Biography
ED BUSANSKY has more than 20 years of real estate expertise including both market rate and affordable multifamily housing transactions. He has worked for Citibank, GMAC, and the Community Development Group of Bank of America. Currently, he is a Senior Vice President with First Housing Development Corporation where he oversees their Affordable Housing Real Estate Group. Busansky is a graduate of The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, with a Bachelor of Science in finance. He currently serves on the Board of Hillsborough County Finance Authority and on the Board of the Florida Housing Coalition.
At-Large, The Hendrickson Company
Mark Hendrickson
At-Large, The Hendrickson Company
Mark Hendrickson’s Biography
MARK HENDRICKSON is the President of The Hendrickson Company, which specializes in assisting clients in all areas of affordable housing, including finance and related legislative issues. Clients include for-profit and non-profit developers, the Florida Association of Local Housing Finance Authorities, and three County HFA’s. Past clients include US HUD, a national investment banking firm, a Florida lending consortium, an alliances of both Florida and Georgia developers. Hendrickson also authored a whitepaper in 2009 for the Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta on the economic impact of their housing programs, “Economic Benefits of The Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta AHP and FHP Programs”.
The Hendrickson Company has assisted developer clients in closing 98 rental development loans, totaling 22,495 units valued at over $1.672 billion. Financing has included bank loans, tax-exempt and taxable bonds, federal Housing Credits, federal HOPE VI, McKinney Act, and ARRA funds, State and local government HOME and SHIP funds, and State of Florida SAIL second mortgage funds. For County Housing Finance Authority clients, The Hendrickson Company has provided financial advisory services on 54 transactions totaling $566.9 million, including financing of two HOPE VI developments, and five New Issue Bond Program issues.
Prior to forming the Hendrickson Company in 1994, Hendrickson served as the Executive Director of the Florida Housing Finance Agency from 1981 to 1994, and previously as the Executive Director of the Arkansas Housing Development Agency from 1978 to 1981. During his tenure at the FHFA, the landmark Sadowski Affordable Housing Act was enacted, and he was responsible for the oversight of all state-administered affordable housing programs, including SHIP, HOME, SAIL, HAP, the Single-family and Multifamily Mortgage Revenue Bond Programs, Housing Credit, and the Florida Affordable Housing Guarantee program. As Executive Director of two different State HFA’s, Hendrickson served under six different Governors, including Democrats Pryor, Clinton, Graham and Chiles, and Republicans White and Martinez.
At-Large, Meridian Appraisal Group, Inc.
Robert Von
At-Large, Meridian Appraisal Group, Inc.
Robert Von’s Biography
ROBERT VON is the President of Meridian Appraisal Group, Inc. (formerly Realvest Appraisal Services). Prior to joining Meridian Appraisal Group, Von was commercial manager at Pardue, Heid, Church, Smith & Waller, Inc., a Review Appraiser for Barnett Bank, and a Senior Review Appraiser for Home Federal Bank. Von has over 20 years of real estate appraisal experience and has completed appraisal assignments in 14 states and the District of Columbia. He specializes in Planned Unit Developments, subdivisions, and affordable housing. Von has completed over 600 market studies and appraisals on proposed and existing affordable multifamily projects throughout the state of Florida. Von received a Bachelor of Science in Real Estate Finance from California State University at Northridge. He is a member of the Board of the Florida Housing Coalition.
At-Large, Progress Energy Company
Melvin Philpot
At-Large, Progress Energy Company
Melvin Philpot’s Biography
Melvin Philpot is the Senior Program Development Coordinator for Progress Energy in Lake Mary. He joined Progress Energy in May of 1982. Since then, he has held various positions, including Customer Service representative, Energy Services representative and Account Specialist. Philpot is also active in the community and serves several organizations, including: immediate past chairman of the Florida Housing Coalition Board of Directors; past chairman of the Rescue Outreach Mission Board of Directors; vice-chairman of the City of Sanford Martin Luther King Jr. Steering Committee; advisory board of the City of Sanford Front Porch Project; and vice-chair of the Stanford Housing Authority.
Board
Orlando Neighborhood Improvement Corporation
Bob Ansley
Orlando Neighborhood Improvement Corporation
Bob Ansley’s Biography
Bob Ansley, FAICP, is president of Orlando Neighborhood Improvement Corporation (ONIC), a nonprofit development company that operates in Central Florida. ONIC is a member of NeighborWorks® America. Since 1989, ONIC has developed or co-developed 21 communities, totaling 2592 units. Ansley has a bachelor’s degree in economics from Duke University, a master's degree in regional planning from the University of North Carolina, and is a member of the College of Fellows of the American Institute of Certified Planners. Ansley previously served the City of Orlando as Chief of Housing and manager of downtown planning. He also has served on the Governor's Affordable Housing Study Commission.
Wachovia, a Wells Fargo Company
Michelle Braun
Wachovia, a Wells Fargo Company
Michelle Braun’s Biography
Michelle Braun is the Senior Vice President and Community Development Market Manager for Wachovia. As a part of the newly formed Social Responsibility Group, Braun is responsible for community development, Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) compliance, and statewide/local community partnerships. She and her team work throughout Florida to establish partnerships and leverage bank resources to revitalize communities and meet credit, housing, and small business needs of low- and moderate-income individuals and families. Braun joined Wachovia in 2006 and has worked in the philanthropic and community development areas for 18 years. Prior to joining Wachovia, she worked for Bank of America and the United Way. In addition to serving on the board of the Florida Housing Coalition, she serves Florida’s communities through her work on multiple boards including: Chair of the Jacksonville Real Sense Prosperity Campaign, the Florida Community Loan Fund, Jacksonville Local Initiatives Support Coalition (LISC), United Way of Northeast Florida, the Executive Committee of the Early Learning Coalition of Duval, and the state Take Stock in Children board. She received a bachelor’s degree in business administration/philosophy from The University of Notre Dame and a master’s in nonprofit management from the Weatherhead School of Management, Case Western Reserve University.
Florida Legal Services
Charles Elsesser
Florida Legal Services
Charles Elsesser’s Biography
Chuck Elsesser is an attorney with the Community Justice Project of Florida Legal Services, specializing in representing community organization involved in affordable housing litigation and policy advocacy. He has more than 30 years of experience initially in California and, for the past 12 years, in Florida advocating on behalf of low-income tenants and homeowners. In his current position, his work has focused on protecting low-income homeowners’ and tenants’ against displacement. Most recently, he has been involved in advocacy on behalf of resident organizations, protecting existing affordable housing from loss through the expiration of rent restrictions, rapid gentrification or demolition. He has assisted resident organizations that were challenging decisions by HUD permitting owners of federally subsidized housing to prepay a federally insured mortgage. Chuck has also been active in assisting Public Housing resident organizations attempting to gain input and influence in the HOPE VI process.
Bank of America
Denise Freedman
Bank of America
Denise Freedman’s Biography
Denise J. Freedman is Senior Vice President and the Bank of America Florida Community Relations Manager. She is responsible for providing statewide direction and assistance for Bank of America local and state leadership to deliver affordable financial services and products to low/moderate income households through investment, education, advocacy and community partnerships. Freedman’s career with Bank of America spans 22 years, having served her first 13 years in Gainesville, Florida as a manager in residential lending for both mortgage loan origination & operations. Over the years, she has served the community in numerous leadership roles. Most recently, Freedman was Chairman of the Board of Directors and remains on the executive committee of the Florida Community Loan Fund, a statewide financial intermediary lending to, and recently investing in non profits to create affordable housing and community facilities. She also serves on the Board of Directors of the Florida Housing Coalition. Freedman provided direction and expertise on the committee to develop the State Housing Initiative Partnership Program (SHIP) in North Central Florida; SHIP education committee in Alachua County; Chair of the HOPE House for Gainesville Builder's Association; Education Committee for the North Central Florida Mortgage Banker's Association and served as the Home Mortgage Lending instructor for the Florida Banker's Association Banking School for 7 years.
Florida Power & Light
Bradford Goar
Florida Power & Light
Bradford Goar’s Biography
BRAD GOAR serves as Program Manager for FPL’s Residential Conservation Services and Low Income Weatherization programs. Prior to his being a program manager, he was responsible for product marketing of FPL’s residential and business DSM programs. Prior to his joining FPL, Goar was the Director of Marketing and Sales for Comcast Communications in Naples/Ft Myers Florida. He has more than 20 years experience as a marketing/sales director for a variety of communication companies in a variety of locations through out the United States and Puerto Rico. Goar has a Bachelor of Arts degree from Maryville College, Maryville, Tenn.
City of Jacksonville
Wight Greger
City of Jacksonville
Wight Greger’s Biography
Wight Greger is the Director of the City of Jacksonville’s Housing and Neighborhoods Department. As Director of the Housing and Neighborhoods Department, Wight serves as Executive Director of the Jacksonville Housing Finance Authority (JHFA) and oversees both single-family and multi-family bond programs. Wight’s primary responsibilities include managing the department’s 46-member staff and $20+million budget, including the NSP, SHIP, HOME, CDBG, HOPWA, and ESG programs; creating and structuring programs to respond to community needs; and recommending policy options to the Mayor and City Council. In early 2008, Wight recommended and implemented numerous programmatic changes, which incorporate housing preservation strategies to protect and strengthen these community assets. Prior to her employment with the City, Wight served for 10 years as Senior Technical Advisor for the Florida Housing Coalition, managing the delivery of technical assistance services to local government and local nonprofit organizations as well as developing and delivering statewide workshops on a variety of affordable housing topics. Wight has a strong background in public policy development, affordable housing development, organizational development and implementation of all aspects of affordable housing programs. Wight has a broad working knowledge of the state's affordable housing programs, including SHIP, CDBG, HOME, Housing Credits, Multifamily Mortgage Revenue Bonds and the Predevelopment Loan programs. Wight is a Magna Cum Laude graduate of the University of North Florida with a Bachelor's Degree in political science and public administration.
Boley Centers, Inc.
Jack Humburg
Boley Centers, Inc.
Jack Humburg’s Biography
JACK HUMBURG is the Director of Housing Development and Americans with Disabilities Act Services with Boley Centers, Inc. Humburg serves as the State Network Administrator for the Florida Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Leadership Network. This network is the state affiliate of the Southeast Disability and Business Technical Assistance Center, a program of the U. S. Department of Education. In addition to his ADA responsibilities, Humburg is responsible for the development of affordable housing at Boley Centers. Currently, Boley Centers owns and operates more than 500 units of affordable housing, manages another 70 units, and administers more than 500 Section 8 vouchers for individuals with disabilities. Humburg was recognized as the Outstanding Community Advocate by the Florida Independent Living Council in 2004 and received the Fair Housing Award from the Tampa Bay Fair Housing Consortium in 2007.
Pinellas Habitat for Humanity
Barbara Inman
Pinellas Habitat for Humanity
Barbara Inman’s Biography
Barbara Inman serves as the Executive Director for Habitat for Humanity of Pinellas County. In 16 years with Habitat for Humanity, she has been instrumental in the creation of more than 500 affordable housing units, not only in California and Florida, but in developing countries as well. She has raised more than $17 million for Habitat for Humanity, not including land contributions. At each affiliate, she successfully increased production and achieved overall growth of 300 percent during her tenure. Inman secured that same percentage of growth in just three years at Habitat Pinellas.
Seltzer Managment Group, Inc.
Ben Johnson
Seltzer Managment Group, Inc.
Ben Johnson’s Biography
Ben Johnson is President and majority shareholder of Seltzer Management Group, Inc. Seltzer’s primary focus is providing financial services to Florida’s affordable housing lending community with its largest client being the Florida Housing Finance Corporation. Seltzer has been under continuous contract with Florida Housing for more than 16 years. Seltzer also provides similar services to most large county local housing finance authorities located in Florida. Johnson has worked at Seltzer since 1996 and been its President since 1998. He maintains direct managerial responsibility for Seltzer’s credit underwriting function. Prior to Seltzer, Johnson was the controller and in-house CPA for a publicly traded Real Estate Investment Trust. He received a B.S. in Accounting from Virginia Tech and M.S. in Finance from Kings College.
Kiss & Company
Jeff Kiss
Kiss & Company
Jeff Kiss’s Biography
JEFF KISS is President of Kiss & Company, Inc., and specializes in assisting clients in all areas of affordable housing with emphasis on financial advisory and real estate development services. Clients include investment banking and public finance advisory firms, public housing authorities, local and state housing finance agencies as well as not-for-profit and for-profit developers of affordable housing. Kiss also is a Principal of PackerKiss Securities, Inc., a broker/dealer providing investment advisory services for municipal issuers. Prior to his current positions he provided investment-banking services from 1987 to 1992 for Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette Securities Corporation and was the Deputy Director for the Florida Housing Finance Agency from 1984 to 1987. Kiss has extensive program experience in mortgage revenue bonds, housing credits, SHIP, SAIL, PLP and other related federal housing programs such as HOME, CDBG, USDA and HOPE VI. As a Board Member of both the Florida Housing Coalition (FHC) and the Coalition of Affordable Housing Providers (CAHP), Kiss remains actively involved in the industry’s efforts to expand affordable housing opportunities and restore full funding to the existing programs promoted through the Sadowski Affordable Housing Act. He received an M.B.A. from Florida State University, an M.P.A. from Florida Atlantic University and a B.A. in Political Science/History from Allegheny College.
Kropp Real Estate Advisory, Inc.
Steve Kropp
Kropp Real Estate Advisory, Inc.
Steve Kropp’s Biography
STEVE KROPP is currently a Partner in Highland Investment Partners, LLC, a company recently formed to acquire and preserve troubled affordable housing projects in Florida. He is also the President and Broker of record of Kropp Real Estate Advisory, Inc., a licensed real estate brokerage company in Florida. From 1995 until 2008, Kropp served as president of LCA Development which developed and managed over 4,000 affordable and market rate apartments in Central Florida. He graduated from Florida State University with a degree in Finance. He then served as a commercial real estate loan officer for Barnett Bank. Following his short career in banking, Kropp was the first person to receive concurrent master’s degrees from the University of Florida, obtaining an MBA in Finance and a Master of Arts in Real Estate Valuation and Urban Analysis. He was awarded the Matherly Scholar designation for finishing in the top ten of his MBA class. Kropp obtained the MAI designation from the Appraisal Institute and the CCIM designation from the Commercial Investment Real Estate Institute.
Wells Fargo
Michael Marra
Wells Fargo
Michael Marra’s Biography
Michael Marra is Senior Vice President of Development for American Housing Initiatives, based in Boca Raton, Florida. He is responsible for development, acquisition and investments in multifamily residential developments. Marra specializes in affordable multifamily tax-exempt bond and Low Income Housing Tax Credit finance. A long-time advocate of affordable housing, Marra’s knowledge is built on more than 18 years of success working in the affordable multifamily and single-family housing sectors. Since 2001, he has been focused on developing and financing affordable multifamily properties using Low Income Housing Tax Credits. During this period, Marra has closed nearly $500 million in debt, representing more than 6,000 affordable housing units. In addition to conventional and Low Income Housing Tax Credit finance experience, he has 22 years of tax-exempt bond experience. Marra’s experience includes positions with: Citi Community Capital’s community development lending group; Housing Trust Group, an affordable multifamily tax credit developer; Salomon Smith Barney’s (now Citigroup Global Markets) Public Finance Department; and in the Corporate Trust Department of several major commercial banks including NationsBank (now Bank of America), US Bank and Southeast Bank. Marra received his B.S. and B.A. from Boston University.
Shimber Center for Housing Studies
William O'Dell
Shimber Center for Housing Studies
William O'Dell’s Biography
WILLIAM O'DELL is a key member of the University of Florida's Shimberg Center for Housing Studies research team. Prior to his appointment as Associate Director, he managed the Florida Housing Data Clearinghouse housed in the Shimberg Center. He has worked closely with the Florida Housing Coalition for many years on a variety of issues. The Clearinghouse has, for example provided the information needed to determine housing need for the Sadowski Act Coalition and the information the Florida Housing Coalition uses in its work around mobile home park closure displacement. O’Dell’s work includes the development of tools and applications that utilize the Center's evolving housing database. He is currently focusing on site suitability for affordable housing, revisions to the affordable housing needs assessment, assisted multi-family housing preservation and expansion of the Center’s research and data capacity. He received a bachelor's degree in architecture and a master's in political science.
Neighborhood Housing Services of South Florida
Arden Shank
Neighborhood Housing Services of South Florida
Arden Shank’s Biography
Arden Shank is Executive Director and President of Neighborhood Housing Services of South Florida (NHSSF) for Miami-Dade and Broward counties. NHSSF provides a full line of homeownership services from pre-purchase to post purchase in English, Spanish, and Creole. NHSSF is a certified homeownership and foreclosure counseling agency, a licensed lender in Florida, a licensed real estate brokerage company, and an affordable housing developer. Shank joined NHSSF after a successful 15-year stint with an Indiana-based NeighborWorks® organization. Shank is a graduate of the first community development Advanced Practitioner Program, an 18-month program jointly sponsored by NeighborWorks® America and the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. Shank is the Board President of the South Florida Community Development Coalition which educates and advocates on behalf of community development in Miami-Dade County, a board member of the Florida Housing Coalition, and board member of the National NeighborWorks® Association, as well as other professional organizations.
Neighborhood Lending Partners, Inc.
Cecilia la Villa-Travieso
Neighborhood Lending Partners, Inc.
Cecilia la Villa-Travieso’s Biography
Cecilia la Villa-Travieso is the Market President of Neighborhood Lending Partners in South Florida (NLPSF) serving Monroe, Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties. NLP is a mortgage-lending consortium with membership representing over 80 financial institutions in Florida. Before joining NLP, la Villa-Travieso was the Deputy Director of Fannie Mae’s South Florida Community Business Center for 11 years. She has more than 20 years experience in affordable housing and community development.
Advisory Council
American Realty Development, LLC
James Dyal
American Realty Development, LLC
James Dyal’s Biography
Jim Dyal is the managing partner of New Vision Communities, LLC, an affordable housing developer based in Tampa, Florida. He is responsible for all aspects of development including site selection, design, and finance of affordable communities. Previously, Dyal developed affordable communities for American Realty Development and was in charge of affordable housing development for the Courtelis Company. He has spent the past 14 years working with affordable multifamily properties financed by state and federal programs such as tax exempt bonds and housing credits, and has been involved with more than $1 billion in financings. Dyal serves on the Board of Directors of the Florida Housing Coalition.
RBC Capital Markets
Helen Hough Feinberg
RBC Capital Markets
Helen Hough Feinberg’s Biography
Helen Feinberg has been employed by RBC Capital Markets for 25 years. She presently serves as the co-head of the firm’s Housing Finance Group which includes 20 bankers located in various offices across the country. Her affordable housing practice includes both single family and multifamily finance involving public housing authorities, developers and non-profits. In addition to servicing multifamily developer clients throughout the country, Feinberg has primary responsibility for serving as lead manager for the Florida Housing Finance Corporation as well as various local housing finance authorities in the State of Florida. Feinberg graduated from Wake Forest University where she received a Bachelor of Arts degree with majors in both Economics and Spanish and she completed graduate work in Finance at the University of South Florida. She is a licensed General Securities Representative, Municipal Securities Principal and General Securities Principal. Feinberg currently serves as an advisory council member for the Florida Housing Coalition. In 2003, Feinberg was appointed by Governor Jeb Bush to serve as Chair of the Affordable Housing Study Commission for a four year term and served as a member of Fannie Mae’s National Advisory Council for a two year term.
Consultant
Dan Horvath
Consultant
Dan Horvath’s Biography
DANIEL R. HORVATH was President of Community Enterprise Investments, Inc. (CEII) based in Pensacola, Florida for the past 28 years. Under his leadership, CEII developed strong programs in both the affordable housing and economic development arenas. CEII is a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) which provides small and micro business loans, training and technical assistance in 22 counties of NW Florida and 30 counties of Southern Alabama. Over $16 million has been successfully loaned out since 1982 with a cumulative loss rate of less than 5 percent and over 2000 jobs created. CEII operates multiple loan funds with different capitalization sources. In all, Horvath has over 40 years of experience in community-based economic development with an emphasis on small and micro business development and finance and affordable housing development, management and finance. He is an attorney and is a member of the Florida Bar and four other State Bars. He is the longest tenured member, as well as a former Chairperson, of the Florida Housing Coalition’s board of directors. He also has served on numerous local, state and national boards of directors. He is an entrepreneur and is the owner/operator of Big Dan Indian Trader, Inc. On his retirement in March, 2009, Horvath increased his focus on his retail operations and is providing limited consulting services in both affordable housing and small business lending areas as well as board and CDC capacity development and training.
Financial Services Committee
Regions
David Christian
Regions
David Christian’s Biography
David A. Christian is currently a Senior Vice President and Regional Manager for Community Affairs at Regions Financial Corporation. His responsibilities include the management of the Bank’s community development initiatives, reputation risk and corporate community affairs programs for the State of Florida. Previously, Christian held the position of Senior Vice President and Community Development Lending Manager for Florida at Bank of America. Christian serves on the Boards of Tampa YMCA, Florida Community Partners and Non-Profit Leadership Center of Tampa Bay. He is a past Chairman of Leadership Tampa and formerly served in leadership positions on the Tampa Museum of Art, Museum of Science and Industry and The Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce. Christian attended Florida A&M University at Tallahassee, Florida and holds a degree in Urban Studies from the University of Tampa. He is a graduate of the Retail Banking Graduate Program at the University of Virginia.
SunTrust Bank
Deana Lewis
SunTrust Bank
Deana Lewis’s Biography
Deana L. Lewis has been with SunTrust Bank for 26 years and has her background in Loan Operations, Regulatory Compliance and Community Reinvestment. She currently serves as First Vice President and Florida Community Development Manager, managing a team of Regional Community Development/CRA Managers across the state. She is a graduate of ABA National Compliance School at the University of Oklahoma. Lewis serves on several state and local boards for civic and non-profit organizations that focus on affordable housing, economic development, financial literacy and other community activities including the following: The Florida Community Loan Fund (CDFI), Pensacola Enterprise Zone Advisory Board, Community Enterprise Investments, Inc. (CDC/CDFI), Financial Advisory Council for Florida Housing Coalition, and Corporate Board for the Florida State Conference of NAACP.
PNC
Aileen Pruitt
PNC
Aileen Pruitt’s Biography
Aileen M. Pruitt is the Florida Market Manager for Community Development Banking for PNC Bank. PNC is devoted to improving low-to-moderate income neighborhoods by offering and delivering financial education courses, consumer products, community development lending products and direct investments within these communities. Pruitt’s community service includes: serving as Treasurer and Board Member of the Governor’s Commission on Volunteerism, Board Member for the Governor’s Foundation for Volunteerism, Advisory Board member for the St. Lucie County Volunteer Center, Board member for the Florida Community Development Association, Advisory Board member for the Treasure Coast Children’s Home Society and periodically volunteers for various other organizations. A graduate of the University of Florida, Pruitt resides in Port St. Lucie with her husband, former Senate President Ken Pruitt.