Andrew A. Brown, Lincoln, R.I., has been named chief financial officer at Abington Bank. He will provide financial analysis of current and future bank activities, oversee the accounting department, and devise financial strategy.
Kingston, Mass., resident Brian S. Kehoe has been appointed director of Reliable Respiratory in Norwood, Mass.
DTZ FHO Partners, a Greater Boston commercial real estate advisory firm, has
announced the promotion of Deanne Pace, Natick, Mass., to senior vice president. She specializes in lease audit services.
Deanne Pace
DolmatConnell & Partners Inc. has promoted Elizabeth Spada, Middleton, Mass., to managing director. Spada
manages client relationships and consulting staff at the independent executive compensation consulting firm.
Aldo M. Zeffiro,
Birmingham, Mich., has
joined TriMas Corporation
as chief financial officer.
The alumnus has leadership
experience in mergers
and acquisitions, business
process improvement,
audit, and financial plan-
ning and analysis.
Diana M. Franchitto ’97 MBA, Foxborough, Mass., has been named president and CEO of Home & Hospice Care of
Rhode Island. She joined the organization in January 2007 as vice president for marketing and philanthropy.
DiCicco, Gulman & Company, which specializes in accounting and financial matters for private firms, has promoted James M. Lemay ’00 MST, Wilmington, Mass., to the post of principal.
Carol C. Zierhoffer ’MSCIS, Arnold, Md., has joined ITT Corporation as chief information officer. She is responsible for strategic planning, alignment, governance and delivery of all technology products and services.
Carla (Matias) Rosa ’98 has staked a place on the frontline of the home mortgage crisis. In early 2008, she and her twin sister, Claudia M. Camara, founded a company to assist immigrants in buying — and keeping — affordable homes.
Herself an emigrant from Portugal at age 10, Rosa remembers her earliest real estate experience: the purchase of the family’s first home. Her parents, who speak only Portuguese, worked with an English-speaking lender and didn’t fully understand the process.
“They were taken advantage of,” says the first-generation college graduate. “The lender put them into an adjustable rate, and it was horrible.”
Most of the 2,500 clients at New Bedford, Mass.-based Marina Home Mortgage Corp. have limited English language skills. They can receive services in Spanish, Portuguese, or French.
“We want our clients to know they can communicate in their own language and get all the information they need,” says Rosa, who earned a BA in International Culture and Economy and has spent most of her career in real estate.
The volatile mortgage market has of course affected the small company. For starters, it took eight months longer than expected to open Marina’s doors because of new, stricter regulations.
“It’s more difficult to put a loan together now, but we knew that was coming and we’re glad that it did,“ explains Rosa. “The kind of lending that was happening in the last few years was insane. Anyone could get a loan.”
In addition to arranging mortgages, the company provides document translation and notarizing. Marina has a web site, but Rosa relies on word-of-mouth rather than advertising to build the business.
“Clients come here for everything,” she says. “Just about every day, someone comes in with a letter that we help them translate. They’ve become like family to us.”
Taking that relationship to heart, Rosa sponsors regular food and clothing drives to benefit the neighborhood. She lives in nearby Dartmouth, Mass., with her husband, Helio, and their children, Noah and Hannah.
“Even though we’re a business, our priority is the community,” says the 31-year-old. “God is above all things, then family and community. That’s our philosophy.” Jennifer A. Spira
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