Meet the Mentors

Pete Glerum

Partner & Chief Investment Strategist- Castlelake

Mr. Glerum joined Castlelake in 2005 and is its Chief Investment Strategist, responsible for supporting its global strategic partnership and fundraising strategy, as well as leading capital formation efforts in the Asia-Pacific region. Mr. Glerum is also a member of Castlelake’s Investment Review Committee. During his tenure with Castlelake, he has held additional roles, including leading capital formation for its Asset-Backed Direct Lending strategy, overseeing its Investor Relations, Investor Communications and Corporate Communications functions, and serving as President of the firm with responsibility for Legal & Compliance, Finance & Operations and Risk Management. Mr. Glerum’s experience in finance and alternative investments began in 1990. Prior to joining Castlelake, he was head credit trader at Deephaven Capital Management, an alternative investment firm. Prior to joining Deephaven, Mr. Glerum served in various roles at American Express Financial Advisors, Piper Jaffray, Wells Fargo Bank and Cargill Financial Services Corp. Mr. Glerum received his M.B.A. with honors from the Carlson School at the University of Minnesota and a B.B.A. from the University of Wisconsin – Whitewater in management information systems and economics. He is a member of the Alumni Advisory Board of the University of Wisconsin – Whitewater, College of Finance and Business Law.

Emily Miller

Associate Director – Capital Formation - Castlelake

Ms. Miller joined Castlelake in 2018 and is part of its Capital Formation team, primarily focused on supporting its strategic partnership and fundraising strategy. Prior to Castlelake, Ms. Miller was with William Blair’s investment banking group, where she focused on executing sell-side M&A transactions across a wide variety of technology segments. Ms. Miller received her B.B.A. from the University of Iowa in finance, with distinction.

Greg Wait

Partner at Riverwater Partners

Greg Wait joined Riverwater Partners in 2019 following over thirty years of experience working with individual and institutional investors. In 2003, Greg founded Falcons Rock Investment Counsel, LLC, an independent and fee-based investment advisor and grew it into one of the leading responsible investment firms in Wisconsin. Prior to founding Falcons Rock, Greg had advisory and management positions with Strong Capital Management, Salomon Smith Barney, Charing Company, and Principal Financial Group.

Greg earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater in 1982. In 1994, he was conferred as a Certified Employee Benefit Specialist by the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans and the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He was granted Fellowship status with the International Society of Certified Employee Benefit Specialists in 2002.

Dave Adam

Consultant, Former Treasurer at Johnson Financial Group

Dave Adam is a mostly retired senior financial executive with experience in banking and venture capital. Most recently, he was Treasurer of Johnson Financial Group in Racine, Wisconsin prior to shifting to a consulting role in the fall of 2021 to allow more time for travel, hobbies, and philanthropic pursuits. His oversight had included the investment portfolio; asset/liability, liquidity/funding and capital management; the corporate insurance function, and assisting with budgeting and special financial projects for the $6 billion institution.

Dave’s educational background includes a BBA in Accounting from UW-Whitewater and master’s degrees in Finance from UW-Milwaukee and in Archaeology from the University of Leicester (England) where his dissertation was on Financial Intermediation in the Roman Empire in the 3rd and 4th Centuries. He is a Certified Public Accountant.

Melissa Torres

VP-Loan Operations at Oak Bank

Melissa is currently the VP of Loan Operations at Oak Bank. She has been at Oak Bank for over two years but in banking for over 27 years. Her background has mostly been with community banks in Wisconsin and a short stint with the FDIC during the banking crisis of 2008-2012. Melissa has held positions as a Teller, commercial documentation specialist, credit analyst, credit department supervisor, and loan review officer. Additionally, she has managed a credit risk team that consisted of special assets, appraisal review, loss mitigation, and loan review. Her current position involves working with software for preparing loan documents, creating a paperless loan environment, managing our core system as it pertains to loans, and working with her team, lenders, and their clients. Melissa has two kids – one is in his 2nd year at Platteville in Mechanical Engineering and one is in her sophomore year of high school, playing volleyball. She also has two golden retrievers that are 15 months old and she really enjoys classic cars. Melissa just completed the Graduate School of Banking at UW-Madison and is passionate about introducing students to the banking industry and all that it can provide.