Four consumer credit industry executives were honored with the 2018 American Financial Services Association (AFSA) Distinguished Service Award (DSA) during AFSA’s 102nd Annual Meeting this week in Marina del Rey, Calif.

The association’s highest honor, the DSA is awarded to individuals who have contributed significantly to the industry and association’s growth on a national level, advancing the association’s mission and objectives, and elevating its image.

Franc Lee

Franc Lee is the President and CEO of First Tower, LLC, based in Flowood, Miss. He has been involved in AFSA since 1995 serving on the Marketing and Operations committees. He served on the Independents Advisory Board and as the AFSAPAC Chair in 2000. Lee currently serves on the AFSA Executive Committee and Board of Directors. He served as Chairman of the Board in 2016-2017. Lee was awarded the Outstanding Independent Award during the 2010 Independents Conference.

Lee received a B.B.A in Banking and Finance from Mississippi State University, where he also served as Chairman of Mississippi College Republican Federation and Director of Governmental Affairs for the Student Association. He is a founding member of the National Installment Lenders Association and served as the group’s original chair. Lee also serves on the Boards of the Mississippi Consumer Finance Association and Missouri Financial Services Association. Lee gives much of his time to JDRF-Mississippi, Wesley Biblical Seminary, Breakthrough Ministries, Palmer Home for Children, the Institute for Market Studies at Mississippi State University, Americans for Prosperity-Mississippi, and Empower Mississippi.

April O. Park

April O. Park is the Executive Vice President and General Counsel at OneMain Financial, based in Baltimore, where she is responsible for overseeing the legal, compliance and government relations departments. Park has been actively involved in AFSA for 18 years and serves on the AFSA Executive Committee and Board of Directors. Previously, she served as the first female Chair of Law Committee, Chair of the Law Personal Loan Subcommittee and Chair of the Law Mortgage Loan Subcommittee. She is also a member of the AFSA Women’s Leadership Council. Additionally she served on the AFSA Education Foundation Strategic Planning Committee.

She serves as the Chair of the Korean Bar Committee in the Maryland State Bar Association and is chair and member of the Leadership Academy, established by the Bar over 20 years ago to develop future leaders. She served as a board member of the Baltimore Urban Debate League from 2009 to 2014. She was appointed to the Judicial Nominating Commission for Baltimore County by former Maryland Governor Robert Ehrlich and served from 2003 to 2007. She was again appointed to the committee in 2015 by current Governor Larry Hogan and was appointed Chair this year.

Park holds a B.A. in Political Science, Magna cum laude, from McDaniel College, and a J.D., with Honors from the University of Maryland’s School of Law.

Frank Salinger

Frank Salinger is the Principal and Founder of Florida-based Public Policy Law Practice. Frank has supported AFSA, its members, and its mission for decades. His institutional knowledge of financial services law and regulation is second to none. He served as AFSA’s Vice President, General Counsel and Director of Government Affairs from 1980-1992.

From 1992-2009 he served as Vice President, Government Relations, for Advanta Corporation and was a member of the AFSA Board of Directors from 1992-2001. Salinger is a longtime supporter of industrial loan companies at the state and federal levels. Currently, he advises AFSA and the Law Committee. He is also an event sponsor and speaker at AFSA conferences.

Salinger is a longtime production sponsor of Washington DC’s Folger Shakespeare Theatre and supports the arts and organizations working for economic liberty through the Frank & Susan Salinger Cultural Initiative. He also previously chaired the Miami Shakespeare Festival and is a former member of the Board of Governors of Washington, DC’s famous Ford’s Theatre.

Salinger holds an undergraduate degree from the Washington Adventist University in Maryland, and a J.D. from the University of Baltimore School of Law.

Sheilah Harrison

Sheilah Harrison has been involved in association management for 35 years. She joined American Financial Services Association (AFSA) in 1983 as the Director of Programs and Conferences. In 1999, she was promoted to her current position, where she is responsible for planning and directing the activities of the Member Services Department, including recruitment and retention of AFSA’s Active, Commercial, Business Partners, Affiliate and International Members. She also serves as the staff liaison to the Vehicle Finance Division Board, the Vehicle Commercial Credit Committee, the Human Resources Committee, and the Women's Leadership Council which she started in 2015.

Harrison works closely with members of the AFSA Independents Section Board and training directors from AFSA member companies to provide web-based training on Branch Operations Basics (BOB) for employees in the consumer finance industry.

In 1996, she earned recognition from the American Society of Association Executives by being designated Certified Association Executive (CAE). In 1997, she was selected as the Meeting Partner of the Year by the National Speakers Association.

Prior to joining AFSA, Harrison was a program director for Executive Enterprise Institute, a New York City-based private seminar company providing professional education in the accounting, banking and financial services compliance areas. Sheilah began her professional career as a teacher of special education in Alexandria, Va. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Education from Kent State University.

Harrison will retire from AFSA at the end of 2018.