April 2018 Newsletter

April 6, 2018

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Friday, April 6, 2018 | TMA New Jersey | turnaround.org/newjersey

MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT

I was honored to be sworn in on January 11 at the Annual Meeting by The Honorable Rosemary Gambardella, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge for the District of New Jersey, and honorary NJTMA board member. My sincere thanks to outgoing president Jane W. Mitnick for all her efforts and hard work. I appreciate being able to count on her as a resource for advice and guidance.

Congratulations to the following directors who were sworn in at the same time for the 2018-2019 term. They include Anthony R. Calascibetta of EisnerAmper LLP; Richard S. Hauer of H3 Consulting Group; Jane W. Mitnick of SM Financial Services Corporation; Anne M. Roslin; Joseph L. Schwartz, Esq. of Riker Danzig Scherer Hyland Perretti LLP; Robert A. Schnitzer of Rosenthal & Rosenthal Inc.; Lisa Stern; Harvey Topitz of Rivers Insurance Group; Leonard C. Walczyk, Esq. of Wasserman Jurista & Stolz PC; and Keara Waldron, Esq. of Lowenstein Sandler LLP.

NJTMA's 25th anniversary makes this an exciting time to be president. The NJTMA 25^th Anniversary Party Planning Committee includes board members Sharon J. Bender of Provident Bank; Sydney J. Darling, Esq. of Walsh Pizzi O'Reilly Falanga LLP; Oren Klein of AuctionAdvisors; Stephen B. Ravin, Esq., of Saul Ewing Arnstein & Lehr LLP; Anne M. Roslin; and member Jeanine A. Krattiger of Carl Marks Advisors, all whom are working hard to ensure a party to end all others.

As president, my focus is to increase membership and encourage participation from all professionals involved in corporate restructuring and renewal, including underrepresented groups such as workout lenders, portfolio managers, investors and private equity firms. My goals are to continue our high quality educational and networking events throughout New Jersey including continuing to co-host events with other trade associations; increase awareness and involvement in the next generation of turnaround professionals through events, mentoring, scholarship programs and partnering with New Jersey-based business and law schools; plus find ways to promote our members, sponsors and be the voice of the corporate restructuring and turnaround industry in the state of New Jersey.

I will have a busy year ahead and it's off to a strong start. Six events have occurred to date, including the Holiday Party and Annual Meeting, Joint Super Networking Party with dozens of other organizations, NJTMA/George Mehm Scholarship presentation at the Seton Hall/Villanova Basketball game, NJTMA NOW Fireside Dinner, Joint NJTMA NextGen and New Jersey Network of IWIRC for a Beer and Food Pairing, and power networking breakfasts in Morristown and West Orange.

In February, we announced the launch of the 2018 NJTMA College Scholarship Program and the deadline to apply is April 30, 2018. The NJTMA's exclusive scholarship program is a tremendous member benefit. In keeping with our educational mission, we award scholarships annually to graduating high school seniors and undergraduate students attending an accredited college or university. This year, NJTMA will award three one-time $1,000 scholarships for the fall 2018 semester, and the Scholarship Committee is currently accepting applications. Special thanks to Scholarship Chair and Board Member William V. Giovanniello of BDO USA, LLP - Transaction Advisory Services; Member Anthony R. Calascibetta of EisnerAmper LLP; Board Member Richard S. Hauer of H3 Consulting Group; Board Member Paul Rome of Paul Rome and Associates LLC; and Board Member Leonard C. Walczyk, Esq. of Wasserman Jurista & Stolz PC.

You can quickly see upcoming events on the right sidebar, including several marquis events such as the Joint Breakfast Meeting with ACG on April 17^th. It will feature an educational panel called "The Evolution of the Retail Industry," for which I am proud to serve as moderator. I will be joined by panelists Richard S. Hauer of H3 Consulting Group, David H. Stein, Esq. of Wilentz Goldman & Spitzer PA, and Amy Valentine, CFO of SFERRA. In addition, mark your calendars for the 25th Anniversary Celebration on May 14^th; the Joint NJTMA and NJCFA Golf and Tennis Outing on May 29^th; and the TMA Mid-Atlantic Regional Symposium on June 6-7^th which is moving to Harrah's Atlantic City Resort for the 2018 conference.

I look forward to seeing you at an upcoming event and encourage you to get more involved in NJTMA by serving on a committee or the board of directors. Please reach out to me anytime to get more involved.

Respectfully submitted,

Steven F. Agran, CTP, MBA

Carl Marks Advisors

Let me shine a spotlight on our generous sponsors!

Being a sponsoring company means you play an integral role in the types of programs we provide. NJTMA is grateful to the following businesses for your 2018 financial sponsorship. Your contributions help underwrite the cost of our events and other Chapter programs, and highlight the importance of being involved. If you see colleagues from these firms at an upcoming event, please thank them for their support of NJTMA.

Gold

Carl Marks Advisors

Connell Foley LLP

LeClair Ryan

Porzio, Bromberg & Newman P.C.

Provident Bank

SM Financial Services Corporation

SM Law, PC

Walsh Pizzi O'Reilly Falanga LLP

Wilentz, Goldman & Spitzer, P.A.

Silver

A.J. Willner Auctions

Archer & Greiner, P.C.

AuctionAdvisors

Bederson LLP

Crum & Forster Group of Insurance Companies

EisnerAmper LLP

Forman Holt

Fox Rothschild LLP

Gibbons P.C.

Lowenstein Sandler LLP

Mandelbaum Salsburg

Meyner & Landis, LLP

MorrisAnderson

Norris McLaughlin & Marcus PA

Phoenix Management Services

Riker Danzig Scherer Hyland Perretti LLP

Saul Ewing Arnstein & Lehr LLP

Stark & Stark

Sterling National Bank

Trenk, DiPasquale, Della Fera & Sodono, P.C.

WithumSmith+Brown PC

Bronze

50 Words LLC

Cambridge Financial Services, LLC

CBIZ Corporate Recovery Services

Corporate Turnaround

GreenbergTraurig

Lakeland Bank

Law Office of Kenneth L. Baum LLC

Law Offices of Mitchell J. Malzberg, LLC

Law Offices of Steve Kalebic

Longview Results

Management Services Consultants, LLC

mRm & Associates LLC

North Mill Capital LLC

Paul Rome & Associates, LLC

Princeton Financial Group, LLC

Rivers Insurance/RI Risk Management

RSG Biz Consulting

The Law Offices of Marc D Miceli LLC

Wasserman Jurista & Stolz PC

Harvey Topitz

Rivers Insurance Group

Membership Update

One of the most important news items relating to membership is our new goal - 250 members by the end of 2019! I encourage everyone to bring prospective members to upcoming events and/or direct them to my attention. As a current member, you're our best ambassador. You know firsthand how much TMA membership helps you expand your network, develop your practice and advance your career at the local, national and international levels. Through TMA, members acquire access to new opportunities that lead to new business and gain the knowledge and expertise they need to succeed. In fact, 85% of TMA Global members report having done business with another member as a result of their involvement in the association.

Membership offers many advantages. To see a full list of member benefits, click here .

New Members

Please join me in offering a warm welcome to the following new members. You can connect with them through the TMA Member Directory or introduce yourself at an upcoming event.

Joseph S. Aboyoun, Esq., Attorney, Aboyoun & Heller, LLC

Pirooz Abir, MSE, Consultant/Practitioner, LiquidInvoice LLC

Sahar Berlinerblaw, Associate, Auction Advisors

Melissa Dardani, CPA, Forensic Accountant in Bankruptcy, EisnerAmper LLP

Ankit Duggal, Executive Vice President, Capodagli Property Company

Joseph Heer, Independent Insurance Agent, Frenkel & Company

Catherine Lawler, President/CEO, White Eagle Group

Patrick Lee, Senior Asset Based Lending Underwriting Manager, SVP, People's United Bank

Joseph H. Lemkin, Shareholder, Stark & Stark

Robert Lineburg, Director of Sales, Aurous Financial Services

Joseph Lineburg, Sales Manager, Aurous Financial Services

Gabriel L. Olivera, Associate, Lowenstein Sandler LLP

Alison Moody, Student, Rutgers School of Law Newark

Tito G. Nurudeen, Jr, Student, Rutgers School of Law Newark

Bill Oppenheim, Student, Rutgers School of Law Newark

Anthony M. Osbourne, Esq., Associate, Wilentz Goldman & Spitzer PA

Ben Rutkevitz, Vice President, Business Development, Alleon Capital Partners LLC

Jeff Sirchio, Director, Aurous Financial Services

Frank P. Turner, CTP, Managing Director, Interpeak Consulting, LLC

Bekir Yilmaz, Analyst, Liquidity Solutions, Inc.

Gokce Yurekli, Student, Rutgers School of Law Newark

Share your firm news!

When you have news about yourself or your firm, please share it with your fellow NJTMA members. To include news in the newsletter, please email news to Betty Mantz, NJTMA Chapter Administrator at MantzSupportServices@verizon.net. Also, please share your news on our Chapter's LinkedIn page. Our Chapter has two LinkedIn groups, Turnaround Management Association New Jersey Group (NJTMA) and Turnaround Management Association New Jersey NextGen (NJTMA NextGen) with over 300 members. If you haven't joined our LinkedIn group, please do so today!

Joseph L. Schwartz, Esq., Partner

Riker Danzig Scherer Hyland Perretti LLP

4^th Annual NJTMA & George Mehm Scholarship and Seton Hall Basketball Game

On February 28th, NJTMA hosted a sold-out networking event and scholarship presentation at the Seton Hall Pirates versus Villanova Wildcats basketball game at the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ. Seton Hall student Christian Milano was the recipient of the 2018 NJTMA & George Mehm Scholarship, which we presented court-side.

Christian is a sophomore in the Stillman School of Business, majoring in both Finance and Information Technology and his goal is to work in the investment banking industry as a financial analyst. In his short time at Seton Hall, Christian already has had some impressive accomplishments. He is currently the President of Alpha Sigma Phi fraternity, a Peer Adviser in the Freshmen Studies Department, and an active member of KNOWMORE, a campus club that raises awareness for sexual assault and substance abuse. Please join me on congratulating Christian.

"I appreciate this scholarship so that I can continue my studies. It's especially meaningful coming from the NJTMA as I hope to work in the finance industry," Christian said. "In addition, it allows me to spend my time being a positive influence on campus, whether that's leading my fraternity, helping freshman as an advisor, or being a voice for victims of assault/abuse."

George J, Mehm, CTP, President of MEHMCO Financial Services, Inc., generously co-sponsored the scholarship for the fourth year, and NJTMA presented him with a Seton Hall Pirates autographed basketball as a token of our thanks. George earned his undergraduate and Master of Business Administration degrees at Seton Hall University and is a Seton Hall Pirates Basketball season ticket holder. In addition, NJTMA members, friends and guests enjoyed an exciting basketball game as the Villanova Wildcats defeated the Seton Hall Pirates 69 to 68 in overtime. What a game!

Thanks to all who assisted in the event including the NJTMA board of directors, the NJTMA Scholarship Committee, NJTMA Chapter Administrator Betty Mantz, George Mehm and Susan Scherreik, Founding Director of the Center of Entrepreneurial Studies at the Stillman School of Business at Seton Hall University.