Leadership

Robert Story, Senior
Robert "Bob" Story is Chairman of Seattle Financial Group. He joined the company in December of 1955 following in the foot steps of his father-in-law, Ben Smith, Sr., who founded Seattle Mortgage Company in 1944. After Ben Sr.'s retirement, he shared the management with his brother-in-law, Ben Smith, Jr., and succeeded him as President upon his retirement.

The company exhibited steady growth under his leadership, and in 1999, the holding company was formed with Seattle Bank as its primary subsidiary. Seattle Mortgage became a subsidiary of the Bank. Today, Bob maintains his involvement in the company as Chairman of the holding company and of the major subsidiary, Seattle Bank.

Bob has been involved in a variety of business and community activities. A partial list includes serving as President of the Seattle Mortgage Bankers Association, Washington Mortgage Bankers Association, and the Board of Governors of the Mortgage Bankers Association of America. He is currently a Board Member of the Northwest Parkinsons Foundation.

He served on the Board of Trustees of the University of Washington Alumni Association and also as the organization’s President. He also heads the Washington Alumni Advocates, a group that provides financial backing for the legislative interests of the University of Washington.

He is a member of the Appraisal Institute (MAI) and a Certified Mortgage Banker (CMB) and Lambda Alpha, an International Real Estate honorary.

Robert E. Story, Junior
Robert E. Story, Jr. is president and chief executive officer of Seattle Financial Group, the holding company for Seattle Mortgage, Seattle Bank and Seattle Escrow. He oversees the management of these business units to ensure strategic alignment with the company's overall goals. The company, originally founded in 1944 as Seattle Mortgage, is a family owned and operated business now in its third generation of serving the home finance and banking needs of the greater Puget Sound area, as well as other western states.

A graduate of the University of Washington, Rob joined Seattle Mortgage in 1982 after serving as construction manager for a real estate development firm in Seattle. He has managed all aspects of residential loan production, construction lending and commercial loan brokerage and was instrumental in Seattle Financial Group's diversification over the last decade, which included the formation of a savings bank and a capital investment company. Rob currently serves on the board of directors of Seattle Financial Group and Seattle Bank.

Story is active in industry trade associations and earned the Certified Mortgage Banker designation from the Mortgage Bankers Association. He has held a variety of offices in local, state and national mortgage associations and is currently chairman-elect of the national Mortgage Bankers Association, the nation's leading advocacy organization for the mortgage industry.

Gary Carlson
Gary Carlson is Senior Vice President for Seattle Financial Group and Senior Vice President/Credit Officer of Seattle Bank. Gary has 30 years of experience in commercial and real estate banking with large national and international banks. He joined Seattle Bank in 2003 and is responsible for commercial lending activity and is a member of the executive management team. Gary holds a bachelor's degree in finance and accounting from the University of Washington and is a graduate of Pacific Coast Banking School.

Stephanie Yates
Stephanie Yates is Senior Vice President/General Counsel and Corporate Secretary for Seattle Financial Group. Stephanie manages the legal affairs for the company and its subsidiaries. She joined the company in 2005, bringing more than 20 years of legal experience in the financial services sector. Stephanie received her bachelor's degree from Scripps College and her law degree from the University of Washington.

Derin Bluhm
Derin Bluhm is Senior Vice President/Chief Information Officer of Seattle Financial Group. Derin joined the company in 2006 and manages enterprise-wide technology strategy and implementation. Prior to Seattle Financial Group, Derin worked at FiServ, Pfizer, Boeing and was a technology consultant. He holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology.

Mary Grace Roske
Mary Grace Roske is Vice President/Director of Marketing and Community Relations for Seattle Financial Group. She joined the company in 2006 after 18 years with the Federal Home Loan Bank of Seattle, where she served as Vice President/Director of Corporate Relations. She is responsible for external communications and community relations for Seattle Financial Group companies, including marketing communications, media relations and community investment activities. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Washington State University and a master’s degree from Syracuse University.