The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) honored
Susan Stewart, chief executive officer of SWBC Mortgage Corporation, with its
Lowrie-Woodward Distinguished Service Award. The award recognizes the
dedication and prominent service to MBA and the mortgage lending industry in a
variety of capacities involving both legislative and regulatory activities,
according to an MBA press release. Stewart was presented with the award in a
ceremony during MBA’s 2023 Annual Convention & Expo in
Philadelphia.
“Susan is a remarkable person and real estate
finance champion who has for years made a positive difference through effective
leadership, strategic thinking, and a ‘can do’ attitude,” said Mark Jones, 2024
MBA Chairman and President of Union Home Mortgage, in a press release. “I am
honored to present Susan with the Lowrie-Woodward Distinguished Service Award
and cannot think of a more deserving person to receive it.”
During her tenure as 2021 MBA Chairman, Stewart’s
defining goal was promoting policies and programs to help reduce the racial
homeownership gap, the release states. She led MBA’s Building Generational Wealth through Homeownership Initiative,
a policy and advocacy campaign to help more Black and Hispanic families become
homeowners. The initiative increased awareness on both the gaps and
homeownership opportunities for minority borrowers, secured policy and program
changes to spur the development of Special Purpose Credit Programs (SPCPs),
expanded homeownership readiness, and assisted current homeowners with
maintaining and maximizing the benefits of homeownership.
Stewart currently serves as the Chief Executive
Officer of SWBC Mortgage Corporation, where she started her career in 1989.
Under Stewart’s leadership, SWBC grew from a local regional broker with three
employees to a national branch with hundreds of employees. Stewart has been a
champion of MBA through her various leadership roles. Since her term as
Chairman, she has remained active in all facets of the association. Stewart
sits on the MBA Board of Directors and the MBA Open Doors Foundation (Opens
Doors) and is as a former Vice Chair of the MBA’s Residential Board of
Governors (RESBOG), according to the release. She also serves on MBA’s
Independent Mortgage Bankers Executive Council. Additionally, both Stewart and
SWBC Mortgage have been recognized personally and corporately as Guardian-level
donors to Opens Doors.
The Lowrie-Woodward Distinguished Service Award
is the highest honor an individual can receive from his or her fellow MBA
members. Nominees for the annual award must meet the following criteria:
·
Be associated with an
MBA member firm;
·
Compile a record of
long, sustained, and extraordinary service to MBA and the mortgage industry;
and
·
Have a strong reputation
for ethical and professional conduct.
MBA’s Distinguished Service Award was renamed in
the early 2000s in memory of Andy Woodward, who had served as MBA Chairman and
set an extraordinary example for his leadership abilities. In 2023, MBA added
the name of the late Regina Lowrie, CMB, MBA’s first female chair, and a
longtime industry executive and advocate.