heard on the street A True Neighborhood Hero “I remember waking up to news that the World Trade Center Twin Towers were attacked and watching in horror as the first, then second Tower plunged to the ground. News coverage continued and I was shocked to learn that America was attacked by terrorists. I found my American flag, went out to my mailbox and attached it so that it flew freely. Shortly after, a veteran walking down the road stopped by my flag, stood at attention and saluted it, then continued down the street. I knew at that time my life would change. I had been a mortgage loan officer for more than 11 years, but wanted to do more to serve my country as our soldiers were lining up by the hundreds to enlist in the defense of our country. Most of my family had served throughout the years and I wanted to help where I could.” —Rachel Donovan, Legacy Mortgage, Albuquerque N.M.
MAY 2011 IDAHO
MORTGAGE PROFESSIONAL MAGAZINE
NationalMortgageProfessional.com
22
From mortgages to budget training and credit counseling, Rachel Donovan from Legacy Mortgage in Albuquerque, N.M. has since helped about 3,000 servicemen and servicewomen over a 22-year lending career. Working at Kirtland Air Force Base, she has helped military borrowers all over the world. One of her most gratifying loans was for a woman who had missed some house payments and was afraid to tell her husband. “After a few months passed,” said Rachel, “she became afraid to open her mail so she didn’t. One night during dinner, their doorbell rang. It was a man who told the husband that he was the new owner of the house and they had 30 days to buy the house from him or they would have to get out.” The husband was shocked. Desperately needing to refinance, they started calling lenders and Realtors for help. One of them advised calling Rachel, saying, “If she cannot do it, it can’t be done.” Rachel called the man who had purchased the house from the bank. “I was disgusted with what he was charging them to buy it back,” she said, “making in excess of $10,000 for holding the loan for 30 days.” Not sure she’d be able to refinance, Rachel was eventually able to build a profile and loan package that made sense for the lender and allowed them to approve the loan. “That lady was so grateful, she sent me a Christmas card with pictures of her little girls and wrote, ‘These are the girls that didn’t lose their home because of you, I will always be thankful.’” Volunteering with the JROTC at the local high schools led Rachel to join the local chapter of the Blue Star Moms, an organization that provides support for moms and their children serving in the military. Helping one family at a time is what it’s all about.
Rachel Donovan, NMLS #368845 Mortgage Loan Consultant Certified USA Cares Lender 6725 Academy Road NE Albuquerque, NM 87109 Direct: 505-858-3825 Mobile: 505-328-4792 • Fax: 505-938-5892 E-mail: rdonovan@legacymortgagenm.com Apply online: www.legacymortgagenm.com/rdonovan
Are you a “Mortgage Hero” or know of anyone who might be? We want to hear from you if you’ve completed the FREE Military Family Housing Education Course as Mortgage Heroes deserve to be recognized for their outstanding service to America’s servicemen and servicewomen. Please send a short bio to MFHE Program Manager Beverly Frase at Beverly.Frase@USACares.org.
continued from page 14
REO Allegiance has announced the hiring of Brian Daily as vice president of business development. New Millennium Title Group has announced the appointment of David Wilson as senior vice president of national sales. Stephen M. Renna has been named chief executive officer of the CRE Finance Council. Scott Chase has been named a partner with Absolute Mortgage Banking. Jim Gross has been promoted to the position of vice president of financial accounting and public policy for the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). MBA has also announced the hiring of Thomas T. Kim as vice president of commercial regulatory policy.
lykken on leadership to me when I was a young man by my father who passed away last year. He was very successful and a great role model and mentor. He read the following poem in his wallet and read it to himself almost every day … You Can, If You Think You Can! If you think you are beaten, you are, If you think you dare not, you don’t. If you like to win, but you think you can’t, It is almost certain you won’t. If you think you’ll lose, you’re lost, For out in the world we find, Success begins with a fellow’s will. It’s all in the state of mind. If you think you are outclassed, you are, You’ve got to think high to rise, You’ve got to be sure of yourself before You can ever win a prize. Life’s battles don’t always go To the stronger or faster man. But soon or late the man who wins, Is the man who thinks he can. The “confidence” we see in great leaders is birthed in a strong belief that comes from a deep-in-the-heart knowing that they can and will succeed, and know how to inspire the same in others! Today, more than ever, you want to make sure that you are following a leader or leaders that operate in this
Your turn National Mortgage Professional Magazine invites its readers to submit any information, events, passages, promotions, personal or professional occurrences that seem appropriate and/or other pertinent data to the attention of:
Heard on the Street/Mortgage Professionals to Watch column Phone #: (516) 409-5555 E-mail: newsroom@nmpmediacorp.com Note: Submissions sent via e-mail are preferred. The deadline for submissions is the 1st of the month prior to the target issue.
continued from page 21
kind of confidence, and then, hopefully, you yourself will aspire to become a strong leader. I hope this month’s article is helpful. Next month, I’ll be writing about the fourth characteristic of leadership … strong leaders are charismatic. I welcome your thoughts and feedback via e-mail or a message post on a new LinkedIn discussion “Group” that I created called “Mortgage Leaders.” I would be honored if you would join this group and share your thoughts on leadership. David Lykken is president of mortgage strategies and managing partner with Mortgage Banking Solutions. He has more than 35 years of industry experience and has garnered a national reputation, and has become a frequent guest on FOX Business News with Neil Cavuto, Stuart Varney, Liz Claman and Dave Asman with additional guest appearances on the CBS Evening News, Bloomberg TV and radio. He may be reached by phone at (512) 977-9900, ext. 101 or e-mail dlykken@mortgagebankingsolutions.com. To listen to author David Lykken’s online radio show, “Lykken on Lending,” log on to www.lykkenonlending.com.
SAVE THE DATE 2011 Mortgage Leader Cruise Sets Sail Oct 13th-17th Visit MortgageLeaderCruise.com for details.