William Henry Verhelle

Billis the Chief Executive Officer of First American Equipment Finance inFairport, New York. Before founding First American, Bill was VicePresident and Western Division Manager of the Tokai FinancialServices’ middle-market leasing company (now, De Lage LandenFinancial Services).  Bill has a Bachelor of GeneralStudies Degree (BGS 1988) from the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor,a Master in Business Administration (MBA 1992) from the Anderson Schoolat UCLA and a Doctor of Laws (JD 1998) from Cornell Law School. He is amember of the New York Bar.  Bill is Chairman of the EquipmentLeasing and Finance Association (ELFA). Previously, he was Chairman ofthe ELFA Government Affairs Council, a member of the ELFA ExecutiveCommittee and the ELFA Board of Directors, and chaired the ELFAMiddle-Market Independent Business Council Steering Committee.  First American specializes inleasing high-technology equipment to large corporate borrowers. Thereare about 4,600 companies offering equipment financing services in theUnited States. For the fifth consecutive year, First American wasrecognized as one of the 100 largest equipment finance companies in . in Monitor, Inc.'s annual industry analysis. In 2008, FirstAmerican's managed portfolio was about one quarter of a billiondollars.  Bill resides in upstate New York with his wife Cyndee and their four sons: Mitchell, Bradley, Trey and Luke.