Coleman 2020 Lender Professional Awards- PPP, Mission-Based, and Emerging
December 10, 2020
Caity Roach
Editor
Coleman 2020 Lender Professional Awards- PPP, Mission-Based, and Emerging
PPP Lenders of the Year
Congratulations to Coleman’s 2020 PPP Lenders of the Year, Marisa Levitsis , Natalie Falatek, and Eric Flik!
Marisa Levitsis
“Marisa was an integral part in getting SaviBank’s PPP program off the ground and thriving,” says Joel Hamlin, SBA Loan Servicing Specialist at SaviBank. “It is extraordinary that a small local community bank like SaviBank has been able to help 650+ small businesses stay open.”
Since Levitsis stepped into an SBA management role at SaviBank in 2019, she has consistently demonstrated a fountain of knowledge about SBA. When the pandemic hit, Levitsis guided SaviBank through processing over 650 PPP loans which has been a huge contribution to SaviBank’s local small business community. There are hundreds of small businesses that are better off due to Levitsis’ expertise and knowledge
“Stepping into a management role is challenging. It is especially challenging for a woman,” adds Hamlin. “Marisa has proven to have the strength and expertise to thrive in a leadership role and it’s been proven by how well she has the SaviBank SBA Department running.”
Natalie Falatek
Throughout the pandemic, Natalie Falatek led the SBA and Government Guaranteed Lending team at Mid Penn Bank through the PPP lending and PPP forgiveness process. During the first round of PPP funding alone, Falatek’s team processed more than $470 million in PPP loans, securing loans for 2,184 businesses that employ over 50,000 workers.
According to the S&P Global Market Intelligence, through April 20, 2020, Mid Penn Bank was the third-ranked bank in the country when looking at the amount of PPP loan funds lent as compared to a percentage of the loan portfolio. “This shows how ahead of the curve the bank was under Natalie’s leadership,” says Christyan DeVan, a Commercial Loan Officer at Mid Penn Bank. “She built a process and a team that was ready to go and ran very efficiently.”
Eric Flick
“Eric got involved early with understanding the quickly implemented and ever-changing PPP program,” says Michael Gillespie, Vice President of Commercial Lending at Marine Bank. “He monitored changes, updated bank customers, and made himself available to discuss all facets of this program with management and customers.”
Eric Flick is the Vice President of Commercial Lending at Marine Bank in Springfield, Illinois. During the pandemic, Flick worked late into the night and over many weekends to get bank customers approved for PPP loans.
Outside of work, Flick is active in the March of Dimes and the Greater Springfield Chamber of Commerce. As a chamber ambassador, Flick gets to know local businesses so that he can serve them better.
Coleman Mission-Based Small Business Lender of the Year
Kurt Chilcott
Congratulations to Coleman’s 2020 Mission-Based Small Business Lender of the Year, Kurt Chilcott!
“Kurt Chilcott successfully led his organization through an unprecedented time and through multiple pivots with the Paycheck Protection Program loan,” says Penina Goodman, Senior Vice President of Brand Marketing at CDC Small Business Finance. “Through perseverance, expertise, strategy and critical partnerships, Kurt and his executive team, positioned CDC Small Business Finance to be able to help as many small business owners as possible, especially the underserved.”
Under Chilcott’s leadership, CDC Small Business Finance approved 4,269 PPP loans for $196 million. As a mission-based lender, the organization was able to help all businesses, regardless of size. CDC Small Business Finance’s average PPP loan size was $46,000 and many of their loans were much smaller. Those small loans made a huge difference for local small business owners.
Emerging SBA Lender of the Year (Under 40)
Wesley Reece Sanford
Congratulations to Coleman’s 2020 Emerging SBA Lender the Year, Wesley Reece Sanford!
Reece Sanford is an SBA Manager at Community Bank of Pickens County in Jasper Georgia. Sanford has been active in SBA 7(a) lending for roughly 6 and a half years and recently closed his first SBA 504 loan. Since Sanford entered the industry, he has closed nearly 40 traditional SBA loans worth $39 million. Recently, he aided bank executives in overseeing the closing of 464 PPP loans amounting to $30.2 million in funding, which supported approximately 3,473 jobs.
Since Stanford started managing Community Bank of Pickens’s SBA department, he has been able to obtain a PLP license for the Bank, as well as SBA Express authority. In addition to his work with the SBA department, Sanford has also served on the Bank’s strategic planning committee and has prepared economic forecast presentations for the Bank’s C-Suite.