Mentor Profiles

David V. Brueggenreceived a B.B.A degree from the University of Notre Dame in 1968. After serving in the U.S. Army from 1969-1971, he earned an M.B.A. from the University of Chicago in 1975. Mr. Brueggen worked for Arthur Andersen & Co until 1982, when he joined Anson Industries Inc., as Secretary-Treasurer. In 2008, he retired from Anson Industries as Senior Vice-President Finance and CFO.  He currently serves on the Board of Anson Industries and is Chairman of the Board of American Insurance.  He is a CPA in the state of Illinois.

Harold S. Dahlstrand has over 30 years of experience in corporate management, human resource management and consulting. He spent over 20 years with Spiegel, Inc., most recently as Vice Chairman of the Board and CEO. For the last 5 years, he has focused on management consulting and executive coaching. He earned his BA from Luther College and his Masters in Human Resources from Loyola University.

Patricia DeAnda is an undergraduate and MBA alumna of the Center for Business and Economics at Elmhurst College. As the Deputy Director and Vice President of Finance and Operations for the Resurrection Project, she has acquired an extensive background in operations, finance, and human resources as well as their interface with compliance and accounting systems. She was formerly the Corporate Payroll Manager of Packaging Corporation of America.

David DeGroot is the Regional President of Providence Bank, a $200 million regional community bank with five branches in the Chicago area.  He has been with the bank since 2007, and is responsible for investments, asset and liability management, real estate, and finance. Prior to 2007, he worked as Executive Vice President and CFO of Suburban Bank and Trust Company for fifteen years. He graduated from Calvin College in Business and earned an MBA from the University of Illinois at Chicago. Mr. DeGroot has also published a thesis on managing new banks.

Brad Peterson is Executive Director in the Food and Agribusiness Group of Rabobank International. His responsibilities include managing a portfolio of loans to corporate food and agribusiness companies as well as generating new business through active marketing efforts. Mr. Peterson is a graduate of the University of Texas, Austin, and has received an MBA from Texas Christian University.

Wilson Ray began his career with Kellogg’s in 1994 in sales. Over the last 14 years, he has continually increased his responsibilities with moves into different markets across the country with larger spans of management. He has managed food service brokers, district sales representatives and specialty sales. In 2008, Wilson was given an opportunity to broaden his knowledge of the Kellogg’s Company and became the Director of Logistics for Kellogg’s Specialty Channels. In this position, he leads the customer service and demand planning teams for this division of Kellogg’s. He earned his BBA from the University of Memphis and his MBA from Elmhurst College.

Catherine Ruffing is the grants manager at The Resurrection Project, a community development nonprofit located in Chicago’s Pilsen neighborhood. She composes, submits, and tracks all foundation and corporate grants, manages the website, and coordinates management of special events and marketing materials. Prior to joining The Resurrection Project, Catherine worked as a community organizer in the inland deserts of Coachella, California with the Holy Cross Associates, a post-undergraduate volunteer program; she also managed programs and services at Rancho Housing Alliance, a community development corporation also located in Coachella, CA. Catherine holds a BA in English and Spanish from Indiana University and is a current graduate student at Loyola University Chicago pursuing her MA in Pastoral Counseling.

Russell Wilson is a Partner at Porte, Brown LLC, a Mid-Sized DuPage County CPA firm. He is a graduate of Elmhurst College and is the 1992 recipient of the Outstanding Senior Award from the Center for Business and Economics. Mr. Wilson is a registered CPA in the state of Illinois and is active with the Illinois CPA Society and American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA). Please feel free to visit Porte Brown’s website (www.portebrown.com) to learn more about the firm.