Page 63 - BusinessWest April 27, 2026

Nicole Stevenson
Vice President, Consumer Lending,
PeoplesBank: Age 36
Nicole Stevenson’s career path didn’t arc toward bank-
ing at first; she majored in early childhood education,
but after an internship, she decided that might not
be the field for her.
“I was at a standstill, wondering, what’s my next
career move?” she recalled. Fortunately, she secured
a job with Hampden Bank as a teller, and something
clicked. “I loved the interaction with customers, and
every day was different — so I learned as much as
possible and stayed with it.”
Now, as vice president, Consumer Lending at
PeoplesBank, Stevenson still has a varied set of roles
that keep those days from getting stale, directing
consumer lending processing, internet origination,
compliance, and loan servicing. With 17 years
of banking experience under her belt, she has
risen through the ranks with a steady series of
promotions.
“I’m not seeing customers anymore, but I get
to help people in a different aspect — more
strategic, making sure they have the products
they need, making sure they’re getting
into their first home and have a seamless
experience and someone to support them,
making sure customers have the best
experience at PeoplesBank and know we’re
their partner along the way.”
Stevenson’s leadership extends well beyond the
workplace. She currently serves as second vice president
of the West Springfield Boys & Girls Club, where she
is also an active member of the fund committee and
co-chair of the emerging leaders committee.
She has also volunteered with Dress for Success
Western Massachusetts, the West Springfield St.
Patrick’s Committee, the Holyoke St. Patrick’s
Parade Committee, the Agawam St. Patrick’s
Committee, the Irish Cultural Center of Western
New England, and Credit for Life in Springfield,
where she served as a booth chair helping
educate young people about financial literacy.
“I’ve always worked for community banks,
and I’ve always tried to find institutions that
align with the same values as me. So I’m glad to
work at a bank that promotes time away from the
office to volunteer in the community,” she explained.
Having worked with area Colleens for a decade,
she said it’s been “so great to teach
someone about Irish heritage but also
support them as they navigate high
school and college. And with the Boys
& Girls Club, when I see how happy the
kids are to be with their friends, playing
basketball, doing arts and crafts, working in
the STEM lab ... it brings joy to my heart.”
—Joseph Bednar
Brandon Towle
Manager, Rolling Meadows
Country Club: Age 29
Brandon Towle says he’s never let his stutter get in
the way of anything he wanted to do, be it earn-
ing a degree in business administration at
Holyoke Community College or his current work
as manager of Rolling Hills Country Club in El-
lington, Conn., or his multiple passions, including
golf and collecting sports memorabilia.
“I started to stutter when I was 5, and
throughout my schooling, I worked with several
speech therapists to live with my stutter,” he said,
adding that, with help from those therapists and
others, he was able to gain the confidence and
courage (both are necessary) to move past his
stutter.
And today, he is helping others do the same
through a Pittsfield-based nonprofit he founded
called Camp Words Unspoken, the first facility
of its kind in New England — its name chosen
because, with stutterers, many of their words
indeed go unspoken.
There, attendees ages 7 to 17 stay for four
nights and, through speech therapy, recreational
activities, and interaction with others who
stutter, gain both self-confidence and self-
awareness.
“Many of them feel alone many months of the
year, but when they attend Camp Words Outspoken,
they feel like a star,” said Towle, adding that attendees
gather in ‘speech groups’ to talk about their stutter —
and their lives.
“We do so many different activities at camp that
make these children and teens feel welcome, but also
feel like a shining star, so when they do leave camp,
they gain more self-confidence, so they can now do
something they’ve never done before,” such as ordering
from a restaurant menu, he went on.
Inspired by a camp he attended in the Midwest for
teens who stutter, Camp Words Unspoken has become
a passion for Towle. Applying lessons learned in an
entrepreneurship class at HCC, he handles all aspects
of the operation, including marketing, fundraising,
recruitment, program and leadership development,
special events, and building donor relationships.
And to help families that cannot pay the full camp
tuition, he created a fundraising golf tournament. Now
approaching its seventh edition, the tournament draws
more than 100 players and 36 hole sponsors to support
this worthy cause.
As noted, the camp is a passion, but only one of many for
Towle, who puts golf in that category, as well as collecting
sports memorabilia (he counts a rare Tom Brady signed
helmet among his prized possessions) and rooting for
Boston’s sports teams.
It’s all part of a packed life — one unimpeded by his
stuttering.
—George O’Brien
Business W est 2026
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