Michael J. Egan, Monroe Capital LLC
About 12 months ago I was in the starting blocks and preparing for the final steering committee meeting of the Chicago/Midwest Chapter of the TMA, the unofficial passing of the baton from Aaron Hammer of Sugar Felsenthal Grais & Hammer LLP to me as President. The year has gone by very quickly. We did in fact “Keep it Going” as my theme for 2016 suggested. Each one of our committees made their mark this year.
I have had the opportunity to work with some great officers, directors, co-chairs and committee members throughout the year. It really started with the help of Dan Wikel of Huron and the aforementioned Aaron Hammer who led the way for me and my 2016 team. That team was led by the following officers:
• John Kemp, Wolverine Partners, as President-Elect
• Mark Melickian, Sugar Felsenthal Grais & Hammer LLP, as
Vice President-Communications
• Barb Yong, Golan Christie Taglia LLP, as Vice President-Education
• Nick Miller, Neal, Gerber & Eisenberg LLP, as Vice President-Programs
• Ben Smith, Huron, as Treasurer and Director
• Candice Kline, Sidley Austin LLP, as Secretary
Our directors who served on the Chapter’s Board are Angela Allen of Jenner & Block LLP, Alex Boerema of AlixPartners, Michael Brandess of Sugar Felsenthal Grais & Hammer LLP, Melissa Dimitri of Grant Thornton LLP, Rebecca Fruchtman of Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Ryan Jaskiewicz of 12five Capital LLC, Lou Marosi of Linkage Capital Management LLC, and Brian Stewart of The Keystone Group.
I would like to thank all of them for a job well done.
As President of the TMA, you have the opportunity to interact with members you may not have otherwise had contact with were it not for the position. We have a very talented group of members in our Chapter and I would encourage everyone reading this letter to become more involved in events and activities sponsored by the TMA. You may find out what I have this year…some of the best turnaround professionals are right here in the Midwest and I hope you can develop some valuable working relationships through the TMA like I have.
John Kemp, your Chapter President for 2017, and the nominating committee have selected the team of officers and directors for 2017, and it will be a great team. I can't wait to see what they make happen so stay tuned for some great things. The 2017 team of officers and directors is:
Officers:
• President - John Kemp, Wolverine Partners
• President Elect - Nick Miller, Neal Gerber & Eisenberg LLP
• Secretary - Candice Kline, Sidley Austin LLP
• Treasurer - Ben Smith, Huron
• Vice President, Programs - Rob Meyers, Republic Business Credit LLC
• Vice President, Communications - Angela Allen, Jenner & Block LLP
• Vice President, Education - Lou Marosi, Linkage Capital Management LLC
Directors:
• Angela Allen, Jenner & Block LLP
• Alex Boerema, AlixPartners
• Michael Brandess, Sugar Felsenthal Grais & Hammer LLP
• Melissa Dimitri, Grant Thornton LLP
• Candice Kline, Sidley Austin LLP
• Dave Mack, Pathfinder Group LLC
• Lou Marosi, Linkage Capital Management LLC
• Kat Parker, HYPERAMS, LLC
• Ben Smith, Huron
Having just enjoyed the Thanksgiving holiday, I look forward to the many fall and winter networking events that we at Monroe Capital frequent this time of year. The TMA will feature its annual holiday party that I am sure will be a success. Bringing TMA members and prospective members together for networking opportunities is my favorite part of being President.
The Chapter had many outstanding networking opportunities this past quarter including breakfast with Mike Ditka to benefit the Miseracordia School. The breakfast was sponsored by Bank of America Merrill Lynch. Ira Kreft of Bank of America Merrill Lynch acted as moderator. As a sports fan, I really enjoyed the event, but it was more than sports...it was a unique life story of toughness and accomplishment. The team that worked on this event, led by Melissa Dimitri from Grant Thornton, consisted of Michael Brandess of Sugar Felsenthal Grais & Hammer LLP, Jonathan Weinberg of KPMG Corporate Finance LLC, Brian Stewart of The Keystone Group, and Nick Miller of Neal, Gerber & Eisenberg LLP.
They did a great job!
Our other marquis event was the Executive Speaker Forum featuring former Speaker of the House, John Boehner, and renowned international journalist, Lara Logan. This event was led by the team of Nick Miller of Neal Gerber & Eisenberg LLP, Angela Allen of Jenner & Block, Rob Meyers of Republic Business Credit LLC, Lisa Neimark of Neimark Capital Advisors, Peter Roberts of Shaw Fishman Glantz & Towbin LLC, Tom Horak of Wells Fargo Capital Finance, and Harold Israel of Goldstein & McClintock LLLP.
I have been to some fantastic TMA Executive Speaker Forums over the years but I can't remember one that was more entertaining than this year's event.
Make sure you mark your calendars and sign up early for breakfast with Chicago Cubs General Manager, Jed Hoyer. This event will be on January 13, 2017. The timing of this breakfast couldn’t be better. We’ll see you there!
This has been a fun and great year for me and the Chapter. Any track and field racer knows not to look back until you finish, but I can't help myself as I lean for the tape (that's old school track and field talk) to look back with pride on what the 2016 team has accomplished. They should be proud of themselves and the job they did last year...I know I am.