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WISCONSIN NATIVE LOAN FUND, INC.

Board of Directors 

Board of Directors group photo
Randy Cadotte.jpg

Randy
Cadotte

Chairman/Director

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A Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe Tribal member.  Currently, Mr. Cadotte is the Executive Director of Operations for the Sevenwinds Casino, and has extensive experience in Marketing, and Media Operations.  Mr. Cadotte has served on the Board of Directors for LCO Financial Services, Native American Tourism of Wisconsin as well as several local Hayward, WI area community service agencies.  He has bachelor's degrees in business administration and management.

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Casey
Fitzpatrick

Vice Chairman/Director

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A Ho-Chunk Nation Tribal member and the Senior Marketing Director of the Ho-Chunk Nation Department of Business.  Mr. Fitzpatrick has over 36 years of service for the Ho-Chunk Nation.  Much of his experience is in Class II & III Indian Gaming, which 25 of those years have been in a supervisory & management capacity.  His experience includes working at the following properties: Ho-Chunk Gaming - Baraboo, Black River Falls, Madison, Nekoosa, and Wittenberg.  He has held positions in Table Operations, Casino Operations, and Executive Management.

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Fern
Orie

Treasurer/Director

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Founding Chief Executive Officer.  Ms. Orie is an Oneida Nation of Wisconsin Tribal member with over 20 years of experience working in Native communities in housing, community development, and lending, including tribal land management and operating a tribal housing authority.  She has a bachelor's degree in business administration.  She is the founding Chair of the Wisconsin Indian Business Alliance, the Vice-Chair of the Native CDFI Network and serves on the Forward Community Investments New Market Tax Credits Advisory Board.  She has recently been appointed by Governor Evers to the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation's Entrepreneurship & Innovation Committee and the Governor's Council on Financial Literacy.  Also, she was appointed to the Wisconsin Economic Development Association's Board of Directors.

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Jeff
Bowman

Secretary/Director

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A Stockbridge-Munsee Band of Mohican Indians of Wisconsin Tribal member.  Mr. Bowman has been the President of a tribally owned bank since 2013.  Mr. Bowman has worked in the banking industry 26 years, 16 of those years in President/Vice-President capacities.  Mr. Bowman has also been the President and Board member of a certified Native Wisconsin CDFI, First American Capital Corporation, for the past 14 years as well as a Board member of the American Indian Chamber of Commerce for the past 18 years.

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Jeff
Ackley, Jr.

Director

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Jeff Ackley, Jr. is a Sokaogon Band of Lake Superior Ojibwe Tribal member and the Executive Director of the Lac du Flambeau Chippewa Housing Authority.  Through his leadership, the Housing Authority secured diverse funding through Low Income Housing Tax Credits, the American Rescue Plan Act, and other sources to develop the Tree Haven subdivision, a community center, and other housing-related projects in Lac du Flambeau.

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Brittany
Allen

Director

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A member of the Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa.  Ms. Allen received her post-secondary education at Michigan State University, concentrating on a bachelor's degree in hospitality business management and minoring in casino industry management.  She also studied at Nicolet Area Technical College, receiving a technical diploma in tribal business management.  She currently works as the Director of Lending for LDF Holdings, the lending arm of the Lac du Flambeau Tribe.  In her role, she oversees all online lending practices for 15 online lending businesses across the nation.  She has been with LDF Holdings for 5 years.  Also, she served on the Lac du Flambeau Tribal Council, Lac du Flambeau Education Board, Native American Financial Services Association Board of Directors as Secretary, LDF Business Development Board of Directors, and Lac du Flambeau Tribal Election Board.

Michael Berlin.jpg

Michael F.
Berlin

Director

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A member of the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians.  Mr. Berlin served multiple terms as Vice Chairman of the Bad River Tribe.  He retired from the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Roads Engineering department after working there for 28 years.  Mr. Berlin currently serves on the Ashland County Board of Supervisors, including being Chairman of the Finance Committee and Vice Chairman of the Economic Development Committee.  Also, he owns his own business called Big Thunder Fireworks for 25-plus years on the Bad River Reservation. 

Sean Harte

Sean
Harte

Director

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A Menominee Tribal member and Founder and CEO of Keshena Group, LLC based on the Menominee Indian Reservation.  Mr. Harte has an MBA degree from Tuck School at Dartmouth College and bachelor’s degree in economics from Northwestern University.  Mr. Harte has served multiple terms on the Menominee Indian Tribe’s Legislative Budget & Finance and Investment Committee.

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Michael
Moe

Director

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A member of the Forest County Potawatomi Community. Currently part of the Business Development team at Greenfire Management Services, a pure construction management firm owned by the Potawatomi Business Development Corporation, the economic development and diversification arm of the Forest County Potawatomi.  Michael assists in the development and implementation of strategies to identify, pursue and secure new construction opportunities across diverse market sectors, helping the team develop promotional materials, update and manage website content and build and refine the company’s proposal process.  He has a bachelor’s degree in business administration – marketing and supply chain management.

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Joseph
Montano, Sr.

Director

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A member of the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians. Mr. Montano, Sr. owns and operates his business, Legendary Solutions LLC a HubZone certified business through the Small Business Administration that specializes in marketing and small business consulting.  Joseph is the President of Red Cliff Business Development Corporation, the business arm of the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, and a founding member of the Tribal Business League.  He is currently attending college to finish his higher education, double majoring in sustainable community development and psychology, with a minor in philosophy.

Russell Swagger

Dr. Russell
Swagger, Ph.D.

Director

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A St. Croix Band Ojibwe Tribal member and the President of the Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe University.  Dr. Swagger’s Great Grandmother’s Family (Sarah Winters) were enrolled members of the Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe Tribe.  Dr. Swagger has worked in the field of tribal higher education for 30 years with a primary focus on student services and senior administration.  He earned his doctorate from Capella University, a master’s degree in management from University of Mary in Bismarck, N.D., a bachelor’s degree from Minot State University, and an associate degree from United Tribes Technical College.  With accumulated experiences from two other tribal colleges, he also served as a CEO of a homeless shelter for a year and a half.  Dr. Swagger strongly believes in lifelong education because it improves and saves lives, especially of Native American people.

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