Benny Shendo, Jr., is a member of the Jemez Pueblo Tribe. He was elected Chairman of the Board of First Nations Development Institute in June 2016 after serving many years as a Board member. Over the years, Mr. Shendo has served in various capacities of management and leadership in business, tribal, university, and state government. Currently, he serves as a New Mexico State Senator and as Tribal Administrator for the Jemez Pueblo Tribe. He is a former New Mexico Cabinet Secretary for the Department of Indian Affairs; 1st and 2nd Lieutenant Governor, Pueblo of Jemez; and assistant dean of students at Stanford University. Mr. Shendo was selected as a Fellow by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation’s National Leadership Program from 1997-2000. In 2004, he received the Mary G. Ross Award from the Council of Energy Resource Tribes for professional achievements. In 2007, Mr. Shendo received the First American Public Advocate Award in recognition of Outstanding Leadership and Contributions made to American Indian economic and business development by The National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development. He started the first charter school in Jemez Pueblo (K-8) in 1999. Mr. Shendo is a graduate of the University of Colorado at Boulder, College of Business.

Evan Williams joined Capital One in 2017 and serves as a Senior Vice President for Capital One Agency Lending. Evan has more than 17 years of experience in financing affordable housing and has closed over $2.5B in Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, FHA loans, and proprietary loans since joining Capital One. He is based in Capital One’s New York office and specializes in all types of affordable housing (9%, 4%, Section 8, RAD). He is passionate about applying electrification and decarbonization strategies to housing, supporting resident services, and utilizing capital markets for positive impacts in existing affordable housing. He is a member of the ULI Affordable/Workforce Housing Council, a CFA Charterholder, a Member of the MBA DUS Mission Driven Sub-Committee and the Freddie Mac TAH Advisory Council. Evan graduated from Georgetown University with a BA in Economics.

Kamal serves as the Regional President of PNC in New Mexico after their acquisition of BBVA in 2021. Prior to his current position, he served as CEO of BBVA for 6 years. His banking career began with BBVA in 1995 in Birmingham, AL before transferring to Albuquerque in 2000. Kamal received his Masters of Business Administration from Jacksonville State University in 1992. He also received two Bachelor's degrees in Finance and Economics in 1990 from the Jacksonville State University, Jacksonville, AL. Kamal serves as a board member on many not-for-profit organizations.

Kenneth Kirwin joined the Colorado Gives Foundation in December 2008 after serving as Controller/CFO for the Tennyson Center for Children. He has served in a financial capacity in the nonprofit sector since 1991 at organizations such as Denver Rescue Mission and New Ventures of Regis University. Ken was raised in Colorado and received a Bachelor of Science in Professional Accounting and Business Administration/ Finance from Regis University. He received an M.B.A. in Finance at Loyola University in Chicago. He is a certified public accountant. Community Participation: Jefferson County Economic Development Corporation, past board member Knights of Columbus, member Leadership Jefferson County, class of 2010 Ken previously served as board member and treasurer for Smart Energy Living Alliance.

Michael Martinez works as VP, Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) Officer and Head of the Center for Community Development for American Express. Michael came to American Express in 2017 with over 30 years of experience in CRA and Community Development work. Michael is responsible for CRA examination management conducted by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). Michael previously served as a District Community Affairs Officer for the OCC, where he was responsible for consulting with OCC regulated banks and federal thrifts regarding CRA, assisting with OCC regulated CRA exams, and conducting interagency CRA outreach and training along with the FDIC and Federal Reserve Banks benefitting both banks and nonprofit organizations. Prior to joining the OCC, Michael was the Community Development Director for Vectra Bank Colorado (VBC) where he developed and managed their Community Development Department for nine years earning consecutive Outstanding CRA ratings. Before VBC, Michael served as a management consultant with Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation (dba NeighborWorks America) for nine years, where he provided technical assistance on neighborhood revitalization, community development, and organizational issues for non-profit agencies. In addition, Michael has served in a number of volunteer leadership roles, including The Denver Community Foundation’s Executive Committee, the Federal Reserve Bank’s Tenth District Community Development Advisory Committee, founding Board Member and past Board Chairman of a statewide affordable housing nonprofit organization and Board Chairman for a number of nonprofit organizations including Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs). Michael holds a BA in Political Science and a Masters degree in Urban and Regional Planning, both from the University of Colorado. Michael has been married to his wife Maria over 35 years, and they have two children – LaLonnie, a practicing attorney, and Michael John, a second-year law school student. One interesting note, Michael previously served as the Assistant Administrative Dean, for Semester at Sea, and in that capacity he and his family traveled the world together.

Nim Patel is the Chief Strategy Officer for Colorado Enterprise Fund (CEF), where he guides the operations of CEF through strategic direction and support with an emphasis on leveraging technology for scale and efficiency. Nim has 20+ years of experience in all facets of early stage and high growth business including C-Level positions in finance, operations and technology. Nim earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Accounting from the University of Georgia and a Master of Business Administration degree in Marketing from Emory University. Non-practicing CPA. Active in the non-profit community holding multiple Board roles, Nim has been in the startup world for over 20 years and enjoys every minute of it. He knows firsthand how hard it is to start a business as well as the effort it takes to help support businesses on their journey. Nim feels his collective experiences not only help CEF in their growth but ultimately helps them better support their amazing borrower partners. Nim feels Coloradans are the best at embracing the “work hard, play hard” mentality. He explores Colorado any way he can from camping in a tent or a camper to staying with friends or checking into a hotel. Two of his favorite Colorado destinations are Red Rocks, especially with out-of-town guests, and Telluride.

Ravi is an experienced engineer and social entrepreneur who has established a variety of enterprises in India, Africa and the US with an emphasis on sustainable technologies. He is currently focused on finding financially sustainable models to solve the U.S. affordable housing crisis while tackling climate change through the efforts of ICAST and TBL Fund. Ravi holds a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology and Master’s degrees in both Engineering and Business Administration from the University of Texas at Austin.