September 2024

Julie Parker Celebrates 25 Years!



Julie began her CDC career in 1999 as a loan assistant at the Economic Development Foundation (EDF). In 2002, she moved to Lakeshore 504, another Michigan CDC located in Holland. She worked there for over 14 years, serving as Executive Director. She later returned to EDF in 2015, and this transition ended up being the driving force behind merger discussions between Lakeshore 504 and EDF. The merger was finalized in 2017, and EDF later rebranded to Great Lakes Commercial Finance (GLCF). 

Julie’s expertise and leadership have been crucial to GLCF’s success and advancing the 504 Loan Program and economic development across the state. Her dedication has elevated our organization to a leading CDC in the industry and made it an outstanding place to work.

Congratulations, Julie! We are incredibly fortunate to have you as our President & CEO and look forward to celebrating many more of your achievements as the leader of GLCF.

GLCF's Lenders Cup Tournament Winner

- ChoiceOne Bank -

(Pictured from left to right: Andy Jackson, Craig Oosterhouse, Nate VanderWoude, Ryan Wolthuis)

Congratulations to Our Lenders Cup Champion, ChoiceOne Bank!

We had a fantastic day on the course with perfect weather for this year’s golf outing! With a total of 88 participants, 11 teams competed in The Lenders Cup and 11 teams in the Traditional Golf Outing. We’re incredibly grateful to everyone who joined us and hope you had a great time.

A big round of applause to ChoiceOne Bank for their impressive victory, scoring 15 Under and winning The Lenders Cup against 10 other teams!

Also, congratulations to our Traditional Outing Winners: First Community Bank!

Save The Date: Next Year's Outing

Please mark your calendars for next year’s golf outing on September 18th, 2025, at Thornapple Point Golf Course. To qualify for The Lenders Cup, your lending institution MUST have at least one 504 loan approved through GLCF during FY 2025.

Act Now To Secure Your Spot!

Kickstart your project today by contacting one of our Loan Officers below.

Previous Lenders Cup Winners!

2023 - Greenstone Farm Credit Services

2022 - ChoiceOne Bank

2021 - Greenstone Farm Credit Services

2020 - Cancelled Due To COVID

2019 - West Michigan Community Bank

2018 - Traverse City State Bank

Thank you Sponsors!

We also wanted to give another shoutout to all of our sponsors this year! Thank you to Independence Business Consulting and Plunkett Cooney for being Eagle Sponsors, Transnation Title Agency for being the Bloody Mary Bar Sponsor, and a final thank you to all of our Hole Sponsors: Applied Environmental, CREW West Michigan, GRand Environmental, Transnation Title Agency, and Watermark Advisory Group.

Congratulations to Craig Oosterhouse, GLCF's Incoming Chairman, on His Recent Promotion!

Our Newest Team Members

Shannon Dwyer

Loan Officer

Shannon Dwyer graduated from WMU with a Bachelor of Business Administration

in Accounting. She brings over a decade of experience

in commercial banking, having worked as a commercial credit analyst before transitioning

into a commercial lending role. 

Katy Bosworth

Closing Specialist

Katy Bosworth studied business at Grand Valley State University, where she developed a solid foundation in business administration. She has accumulated over 7 years of experience working at a credit union, gaining a basic knowledge of commercial lending and banking.

Elise Rapeyko

Marketing & Communications Specialist

Elise Rapeyko graduated from Grand Valley State University in December 2023, earning a bachelor’s degree in Advertising and Public Relations. In the first half of 2024, Elise taught English abroad in Nyíregyháza, Hungary and explored all over Europe.

Schedule a Time to Learn More About

the Benefits of the SBA 504 Loan Program

If you're interested in learning more about the SBA 504 Loan Program and its benefits to both small businesses and our lending partners, please schedule a meeting with one of our loan officers.

Gary Witkowski

VP of Business Development & Underwriting

T: (616) 323-1275

E: Gary@glcf.org

Bradd Pierce

Senior Loan Officer

T: (616) 323-1277

M: (616) 304-8881

E: Bradd@glcf.org

Tom Sreckovic

Loan Officer

M: (586) 718-6045

E: Tom@glcf.org

Shannon Dwyer

Loan Officer

T: (616) 323-1280

E: Shannon@glcf.org

Our loan officers cover the entire state of Michigan and are available to meet with you via Teams or in person.

Lender Leader Board!

We want to thank all the lenders that have had loans authorized through GLCF by the SBA in FY 2024. At the end of our current fiscal year (09/30/2024), the lending institution with the most loan approvals will receive GLCF's Lender of the Year Award!