How does Salli relieve the usual daily stress? "Walk with my very sweet dog, Marley," says Salli.
 

Dennis Johnson, vice president-advisory services
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FCI resident Ironman, Dennis Johnson, applies the wisdom he has gained from athletic competition to his work at FCI: "The key to building a successful community enterprise lies in finding your strengths (as an individual and as an organization) and leveraging those strengths to grow your capacity. By so doing, you help create a healthy community."

Dennis joined FCI in 2010 as vice president of advisory services, after spending the last twenty years in the financial services industry.  He began his career with US Bank & has spent time in increasingly responsible roles with several other financial institutions, including: Wells Fargo, Harris and Associated Banks.  Having a reputation as an advocate who anticipates issues before others, Dennis has significant experience in leadership development, engagement, individual and organizational learning, team building, negotiation and conflict management, presentation skills, communication techniques, workforce development and managing diversity. Dennis is a professional coach and uses these skills with nonprofit executives, board leaders and management staff, to strengthen their skills and guide their organizations to excellence.

Active in the community, Dennis has served on the Board of Directors of Out Professional and Executive Network, Gay Straight Alliance for Safe Schools, New Harvest Foundation and Friends of UW Hospital and Clinics' Junior Council. He is a member of the American Society of Training and Development South Central Wisconsin Chapter and serves on the steering committee of Consultants for Organizational Reflection and Effectiveness. Dennis holds his MBA from the University of Nebraska’s Gallup Leadership Institute, received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin, Madison and was named one of Madison's "40 under 40" in 2009.

What is Dennis' personal mantra? "'Anything is possible.' Too often, we hear people, including ourselves, say I could never do that. With determination & perseverance, I really do believe anything is possible."

Tracy Hubbard, vice president - operations
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Tracy assists Forward Community Investments with day-to-day functions and long-term strategic development. She loves the challenge and involvement of working with nonprofits. She brings with her a variety of skills and disciplines from her experience as the Director of Finance and Operations at the Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce (GMCC) for seven years. At the Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce, Tracy’s main role was supervising all functions of internal accounting and operations planning for the GMCC and all of its related entities. Tracy has also been the publisher of The Business Beat, the GMCC membership magazine, and overseen events including the production of the GMCC annual dinner with 1,200 attendees. Tracy is currently working on her business degree from Edgewood College.

William W. Sayles, chief financial officer

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Bill Sayles' expertise in lending and financial services comes not just from 30 years experience in the credit union industry, he is also an avid researcher and maintains an enduring curiosity about how the industry works and how it can serve its constituents and clients. "At its core, community is people helping people," says Bill when asked what the key to success is at FCI.

Bill has 30 years experience in the credit union industry. He was formerly Vice President Finance at Corporate Central Credit Union where he was responsible for the investment and finance functions of CCCU. CCCU is a $2.0 billion wholesale financial institution serving credit unions in Wisconsin and the upper Midwest. Previously, Bill was the Managing Director of the Center for Credit Union Innovation in Madison, Wisconsin. He is the author of “Small Business: The New Frontier,” “Serving Members Around the Globe: United Nations Federal Credit Union Expands Operations to Foreign Shores,” and “Small Credit Union Data Processors: Survey Results”.

He has been a frequent speaker to credit union groups on business lending, check cashing and strategic planning. Bill is a Chartered Financial Analyst and member of the CFA Institute and the Madison Investment Management Society. He is a securities broker and has received Series 7, 24, 27 and 63 licenses.

What is Bill's favorite vacation memory? "My wife and I experiencing Northern Italy."

 
Andrew Turner, vice president - lending services
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Andrew joined FCI in 2010 after spending three years practicing law with a focus on corporate transactions, general business law, health care regulation, and international trade. Andrew came to FCI to reconnect with a sense of mission in his work. "Though I enjoyed my time as an attorney in private practice, I was very excited to return to my nonprofit roots and spend my days working to improve the lives of people in our Wisconsin communities."

Andrew's diverse life and work experience helps him bring a broad range of skills and insight to his work. Before returning to the University of Wisconsin to earn a law degree and Master's in Public Affairs, Andrew spent nearly a decade living and working in South America.  For 11 years, he served as Director of Community Training and Organizational Support program for the Center for Regional Studies in Tarija, Bolivia where he developed and oversaw projects that helped indigenous Guarani communities navigate legal and political reforms. A graduate of the Microfinance Training Programme in Boulder, Colorado, Andrew also has experience working with international microfinance and credit unions. He has experience serving as faculty and advisory board member in the commercial engineering department at San Bernardo University in Tarija, Bolivia and as an instructor at Blackhawk Technical College. 

As part of his lifelong interest in technology, Andrew served for nearly ten years as an independent web programmer and internet strategy consultant to numerous small businesses.  Andrew also served as a legal and policy intern in the Office of the Governor of Wisconsin.

Andrew earned his Bachelor’s degree in anthropology from the University of Wisconsin - Madison in 1993, his Master’s degree in public affairs from the La Follette School of Public Affairs in 2008 and his J.D. from the University of Wisconsin Law School in 2008. He is currently the President of the Board of Directors of Madison Youth Choirs and a member of the Executive Committee of Centro Hispano. Andrew is fluent in Spanish, thanks in part to his Bolivian wife; they share a home outside of Madison with their two sons.  

Of all your volunteer activities, which has given you the most pleasure? My first volunteer activity was helping load hay onto a semi-truck for farmers in a drought stricken part of the U.S.  It was special because it was very local, spontaneous, and “organic” – farmers would just pull up to a vacant lot with portions of their harvest and we’d load it up.  It created a real sense of camaraderie.

Carrie Vanderford, vice president-lending services
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Carrie Vanderford has a deep commitment to helping organizations and communities to achieve individual and financial goals. "I absolutely love closing a loan and knowing that FCI provided a little slice of help on the financial end of the project so that the nonprofit can continue to grow its positive impact in our community," says Carrie.
Carrie joined FCI in 2010 as vice president of lending services.  Prior to joining the FCI team, Carrie worked as a senior consultant for Baker Tilly Virchow Krause, LLP. In her position, she gained experience with a national base of clients engaged in community development in low income communities. While at Baker Tilly, Carrie assisted CDFIs, non-profit organizations, and community development entities with raising and deploying of a variety of economic development and affordable housing financing tools including low income housing tax credits, new markets tax credits, tax incremental financing, historic tax credits, and CDFI grants and loans.

 Prior to her position with Baker Tilly, Carrie worked at the City of Kansas City, Missouri as part of the City’s development finance division where she was an integral part of a team responsible for conducting front end financial analysis of economic development projects seeking public subsidy. While at the City of Kansas City, Carrie developed the City’s NMTC program and led the City’s efforts to apply for and win its first allocation. Carrie’s career also includes experience in public housing program evaluation, affordable housing development, and social and economic impact analysis. She received her master’s degree in City Planning from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a bachelor’s degree from William Jewell College.

What is Carrie's idea of perfect happiness? "Being surrounded by and surrounding those whom love me and whom I love."

 
Ben Williams, program coordinator
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Ben Williams brings a passion for realizing on-the-ground change to his work at FCI. "During my volunteer time I have had the opportunity to work with community groups building or renovating houses and community centers. Being able to do the work with those that will be using the end product, and feeling how excited they are to see the work complete is wonderfully uplifting," says Ben.

Ben Williams joined Forward Community Investments after spending several years in Chicago as a management consultant working on strategy, marketing and operations management projects with a focus on organizational growth and change. Prior to working in Chicago, Ben graduated from the University of Wisconsin – Madison with degrees in marketing, management human resources, and psychology. Ben is returning to graduate school to pursue a master’s degree at the La Follette School of Public Affairs within the University of Wisconsin.

If Ben could go anywhere and do anything he chose, what would it be? "I would go on a backpacking trip throughout New Zealand, hopefully including some kayaking, biking, and rock climbing."

Jennifer Wendtland, loan portfolio manager
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Jennifer joined FCI in late 2011.  At the time, Jen was working as a teller while making her way through school.  After long days and evenings, Jen graduated from Lakeland College in 2011 with a degree in Accounting.  She wasted no time in putting her degree to work as a bookkeeper at Wegner CPAs and Consultants.  While at Wegner, Jen worked with many nonprofits, including those that focused their services on housing and social welfare.  Today, Jennifer is excited about being a part of Forward Community Investments because she can continue working with nonprofits and experience, firsthand, just how our loans help nonprofits make a difference in people’s lives across Wisconsin. She replaces Mary Jo Norgaren who left FCI to spend time in Hawaii with her daughter, son in-law and two grandchildren.  She was handpicked by Mary Jo who worked with Jen when both were employed at Community Business Bank.

When she’s not working at FCI, Jennifer enjoys regional travel, is an avid reader and likes to spend as much time as possible playing sports outside with her small son. 

If Jennifer has some extra time on her hands what would she do? “I would get back into karate. It was something I did when I was younger and I miss it.”