Embrace Employee Spotlight: Frank O’Donnell and Caitlin Donovan

There’s a lot to love about Embrace Home Loans, but one of our strongest assets has always been our employees. We have teammates who have been with us for 10, 20, even 30+ years. And we’ve also been hiring new employees at a furious pace recently.

In this Employee Spotlight, we’ll be featuring two Embrace teammates — one new employee, and one employee who has already been with us for a while. Each will give different perspectives on the Embrace experience and a little more personal info so you’ll be able to get to know them better.

Want to nominate someone to feature in a future spotlight? Email Mary Mack at mMack@embracehomeloans.com

CAITLIN DONOVAN, Government Insurance Specialist

What is your official title and what do you do at Embrace?

Government Insurance Specialist — I review and insure FHA and VA loans, and submit FHA and VA audit packages.

How long have you worked for Embrace?

Almost five years; I started in May 2017.

What made you want to work at Embrace? 

I heard about the job through my brother, who also worked at Embrace at that time.

What’s one of your favorite Embrace memories?

One of my favorite Embrace memories is volunteering with my department at The Confetti Foundation. They provide birthday parties to children who are hospitalized.

How has it been working from home? Has Embrace made it easier for you in any way? Are you back in the office now?

I am back in the office three days a week now. It has been nice to be able to work from home, but I am glad to be back in the office with my department part-time.

We’d love to get to know you better! Tell us about yourself.

I grew up in Newport, RI but now live in Saunderstown, RI with my boyfriend Kyle and our dog Molly, our cat Adele, our bunny Gemma, and our Chinese water dragon Mushu.

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FRANK O’DONNELL, Compliance Officer/VP

What is your official title and what do you do at Embrace?

I am a Compliance Officer and Vice President. Our department has overall oversight of the loan process. We make sure that fees are set correctly, that the proper documents are in place, that individual state and federal requirements are met, and more. We maintain a variety of help desks that are utilized daily by loan production personnel. We also publish and maintain the Master Fee Table and the many compliance-related handbooks in our library.

How long have you worked for Embrace?

I started in February 1995 as a loan officer. Back then, I think we had five teams, and maybe 75 employees. We were all in a couple of adjoining storefronts on Amaral Street in East Providence. I’ve had a few different jobs since then — including a brief stint in Marketing — but the bulk of my time with EHL has been spent in Compliance.

What made you want to work at Embrace?

I had heard good things about the company from my brother Jim (the one at Equity Title). I had been selling other things in the years prior to my arrival, including radio air time and pagers, so I’d be trying to sell something new. Turns out sales was not my forte, but I’ve been happily able to develop a strong skillset in Compliance.

What’s one of your favorite Embrace memories?

It’s a good memory based on a very bad memory. When my daughter Keri was killed in a car accident in the summer of 2010, my teammates — some of whom I’d never even met — donated time off to me. When it was all added up, it amounted to something like 18 months. I didn’t take it all, but I was very grateful for and touched by everyone’s generosity and caring.

How has it been working from home? Has Embrace made it easier for you in any way? Are you back in the office now?

When I first started with Embrace (then Advanced Financial Services), I had perhaps a 15-minute commute from North Providence to East Providence. Then we moved to Middletown, making my commute an hour each way. I made that drive daily until 2020, when we moved to Jamestown. We made that move mid-March 2020, and there was this thing called a pandemic that came to a head and shut everything down — literally, the week that we moved. So now I have about a ten-minute commute and haven’t really driven in much. Meanwhile, I have found working from home to be very productive. I’m often on early in the morning — I know, most people don’t consider 8AM early, but work with me here — and on late into the evening. And I frequently check in very late at night, just to be sure there are no fires that need to be put out.

We’d love to get to know you better! Tell us about yourself.

My wife Karen and I will celebrate our 42nd anniversary on March 22. We have four children — Elyse, Kayla, Patrick, and Keri. I am president of the Keri Anne O’Donnell Memorial Fund, established in Keri’s honor. We use the money raised to help young performers who have the passion for performance that Keri did. Kayla and Patrick both got married in 2021, after postponing their weddings several times from 2020. Patrick and his wife Kayla-Rose (I know, how many Kaylas can the O’Donnells handle?) are expecting our first grandchild next month.

In addition to working at Embrace, I have several side jobs — avocations, really. I’ve been performing as a stand-up comic for 40 years, and I’ve been inducted into the Rhode Island Comedy Hall of Fame. I’ve written jokes for other comics like Bob Hope, Jay Leno, and Joe Piscopo. I’ve been the opening act for people like Michael Bolton, Chicago, and The Judds. I write entertainment pieces for The Valley Breeze and What’s Up Newport. And I’m an actor, with quite a few community theater productions under my belt, and three professional shows as well.

I went to Classical High School in Providence — where Karen and I met, in Advanced Math Class. And I have a degree in Accounting (don’t tell Tim Davin!) from Providence College. I won’t tell you what year I graduated, but Carli Gallagher could have been our flower girl. She likes to remind me of that.