Thomas E. Spitz
Founder & CEO, Settlers bank
Office Phone: 608.842.5011
Mr. Spitz is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Company and Chief Executive Officer of Settlers bank. Prior to serving in these capacities, Mr. Spitz was the President and Chief Executive of another Dane County community bank. Mr. Spitz has over 35 years of experience in the banking industry with a range spanning community banking and corporate commercial lending.
Mr. Spitz is a gubernatorial appointee as Vice-Chair to the Banking Review Board and is the Consumer Lending Committee Chair for the Community Bank Advisory Council to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in Washington D.C. He has served on the Executive and Legislative Committees of the Community Bankers of Wisconsin and has been a panelist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago and the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.
Mr. Spitz earned a bachelor’s degree in business and administration from the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee and his Master’s Degree in business administration from Marquette University.
David M. Fink
Founder & President, Settlers bank
Office Phone: 608.842.5012
Email: dfink@SettlersWI.com
Mr. Fink is an entrepreneurial banker, is one of the founders of the bank and several other businesses. Mr. Fink currently serves as the President of the Company as well as President and Senior Lending Officer of Settlers bank, the wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company. He has held both positions since inception. Mr. Fink is an experienced bank president with over 32 years of industry experience. Previously, Mr. Fink was an executive for the largest financial institution in the Dane County market place. Mr. Fink has extensive experience in commercial, agricultural and corporate commercial lending. Mr. Fink also has extensive experience with private banking and community banking. Mr. Fink’s broad background in banking includes branch operations, management, data processing, automated services sales, and commercial credit underwriting and analysis.
Mr. Fink has a passion for the water. He and he family are active members of the 10-Time-National-Champion Mad-City Ski team where he is Vice President of the board of directors and is one of their tow boat drivers.
Mr. Fink earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Finance from the University of Wisconsin – La Crosse and a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from Edgewood College. Finally, Mr. Fink is active in many banking industry specific organizations.
John Stoneman
President, Heartland Properties
John Stoneman is President of Heartland Properties, Inc., which is dedicated to providing quality, affordable multi-family housing throughout Wisconsin and the upper Midwest. Heartland’s properties are a mix of family and older adult, new construction and historic rehabilitation properties, and primarily serve residents earning no more than sixty percent of the median income for their area. Heartland is keenly focused on the quality of its properties and on the quality of life for the residents of its properties, and has won numerous awards for quality and innovation.
Mr. Stoneman is a Founding Director of SB Bancorp, Inc. and Settlers bank. He is a long-time member of the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee of EAGLE School of Madison, Inc., a private-non-profit school serving the needs of gifted and talented children in the Madison area, and is very interested in education and education policy. He is also a Trustee of the Bethel Lutheran Church Endowment Foundation, a member of its Investment Committee, and past president of the Bethel Lutheran Church congregation. Mr. Stoneman was raised on a dairy farm in the Madison area, and continues to maintain an active interest in agriculture.
Mr. Stoneman received his undergraduate degree in mathematics and computer science from Luther College in Decorah, Iowa, after which he worked for IBM in various capacities, including as a systems performance analyst and as a marketing representative. He left IBM to return to graduate school, and received his M.B.A. and J.D. degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Prior to joining Heartland, Mr. Stoneman practiced law at the firm of DeWitt Ross & Stevens in Madison, where he specialized in real estate and structured financial transactions.
Laura Douglass
President & CEO, Next Generation Clinical Research President & CEO, Eufaeria Biosciences
Laura L. Douglass has over 25 years of management experience of increasing responsibility in the biopharmaceutical industry across multiple disciplines including research & development and operations. In 1999, Ms. Douglass founded and currently serves as President & CEO of Next Generation Clinical Research, an international contract research organization (CRO) providing clinical trial management services for products in development including pharmaceuticals, biologics, medical devices and diagnostics. Additionally, Ms. Douglass serves as the President & CEO for Eufaeria Biosciences, a development biotech company specializing in products for emergency and military field medicine, she founded in 2016.
Ms. Douglass served as an Organizer, and is a Founding Director of Sb Bancorp, Inc. and Settlers bank. Her career includes positions as Director of Clinical Affairs at Bone Care International (now Genzyme) and Director of Clinical Research Operations at Hazleton Laboratories (now Covance). She has served as board member and advisor for a variety of organizations including biopharma companies, Land’s End Business Outfitters, and the Oregon School District. In 2008 and 2010, she was honored as a biotech entrepreneur by the national organization, Women in Bio, and in 2008 received the Rising Star Award by the Wisconsin Biotech and Medical Device Association. Her company, Next Generation Clinical Research, was the recipient of the 2009 Dane County Small Business Award.
Ms. Douglass holds a nursing degree from the University of New York with additional training in pharmacology and business from the University of Wisconsin. She also obtained certification in adult education from University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and is a licensed education provider of the California Board of Registered Nursing.
Eric Schwartz
CEO, Sara Investment Real Estate, LLC
In 1978, Eric Schwartz opened his first Upstairs Downstairs Deli on State Street in Madison, Wisconsin. A number of other successful ventures in the restaurant industry soon followed and led Mr. Schwartz into his first commercial real estate purchase, a restaurant he bought in 1988. A true entrepreneur, Mr. Schwartz discovered the challenges and rewards of real estate ownership and management as he forged a new path for himself in the competitive and evolving real estate market.
In 1997, Mr. Schwartz had a vision of a property company that would provide a premium, responsive service to his expanding portfolio. Initially formed as Sara Properties, LLC, the company's continual growth and expanded service base gave way to Sara Investment Real Estate, LLC in 2002.
Mr. Schwartz brings an innovative and dedicated approach to maintaining a diverse portfolio of commercial real estate properties. It is this innovation and a dedication to integrity that has taken Sara Investment Real Estate successfully into the realm of real estate investment and development. His skill in creating opportunities has led to the completion of new retail, commercial and industrial centers in Madison and surrounding communities. Guided by his
entrepreneurial spirit, Eric Schwartz has comfortably positioned Sara
Investment Real Estate with a select list of contractors, architects and
real estate professionals to establish an innovative team that provides the best real estate solutions for each client's specific needs.
Marilyn Holt-Smith
CFA
Marilyn Holt-Smith is the Founder and Senior Consultant for Heatherstone Venture, LLC started in 2015. The firm provides a variety of consulting services to small to medium size businesses seeking to raise additional capital, develop strategic partners or sell.
Marilyn retired from Boston Private Wealth, a subsidiary of Boston Private Financial Holdings, in 2015 after 36 years in the investment management business. Marilyn was the former CEO of Holt-Smith Advisors, Inc., a Wisconsin-based registered investment advisor acquired by Banyan Partners in 2013. Boston Private Wealth acquired Banyan Partners in 2014. Marilyn began her career with Madison Investment Advisors in 1979 as a Vice President and Portfolio Manager. She founded Holt-Smith in 1987, leading the firm’s investment team as Senior Portfolio Manager.
Marilyn earned a bachelor’s degree and MBA from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. She became a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) charter holder in 1985. She is a founder member of the Madison Chapter of the Milwaukee Investment Analysts Society (MCMIAS), which is now known as the CFA Society of Madison and is affiliated with the CFA Institute. In 2016, Marilyn became a Board Member of the Whole Trees LLC, a Wisconsin based firm that designs, engineers and manufactures innovative round timber structural systems for commercial and residential construction.
Mark Weaver
Founder & CEO, Weaver Auto Parts
Mark Weaver has served as CEO of Weaver Auto Parts since co-founding the company in 1972. Over the past 40 years Mr. Weaver has grown the company to include 17 locations with three machine shops and, in 1992, opened an 18,000 square foot distribution center in Sauk City, Wisconsin to house product distribution, operations and IT. This distribution center has since expanded to 53,000 square feet. Weaver Auto Parts currently provides employment opportunities for 145 people.
Mr. Weaver served on the board of directors of the Wisconsin Auto Parts Association for ten years, and is a past president. In addition to his auto industry experience, Mr. Weaver has also developed multiple retail properties throughout Southern Wisconsin. He is a graduate of Antigo High School, and served in the United States Coast Guard for four years.
