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Bethany Richards is a Loan and Investment Officer at Coastal Enterprises, Inc. (CEI), a Maine-based community development financial institution with a mission to build just, vibrant, and climate-resilient futures for people and communities in Maine and rural regions by integrating finance, business expertise and policy solutions in ways that make the economy work more equitably.

As one of CEI’s Loan and Investment Officers, Bethany is involved in all aspects of lending, from time of loan inquiry to post-loan closing portfolio management.  She primarily works with new loan applicants interested in obtaining a Wicked Fast Loan.  She enjoys helping qualified applicants obtain the business financing they need, quickly and efficiently.

Prior to joining CEI in 2014, Bethany was a loan processor at the First National Bank in Damariscotta (formerly known as The First) in its residential lending department.  She served as the liaison between loan officers and customers, ensuring files were properly documented before loans closed.  She also has fifteen years’ experience teaching at the elementary school level.  Of those fifteen years, time spent teaching fourth graders was her favorite; this was the year when students learned about the great State of Maine.

Bethany grew up in Phippsburg, Maine.  Sterning on her father’s lobster boat helped pay for college.  It also gave her a deep appreciation for the fisheries industry, using sustainable practices, and respecting how interconnected everything is, in, on, around, and below the ocean’s surface.

Education

• University of Maine, B.S.
• University of Mane, M.Ed.