Board of Directors

Mr. Abraham is a founding director of Hanover Community Bank. Mr. Abraham is the principal owner and Chief Executive Officer of the Eric’s shoe stores chain in the United States, Abraham and Sons Leather Company and VA Smith Shoe Company International. Further, Mr. Abraham is a real estate investor and serves as Chairman of the Pravasi television channel. Mr. Abraham is the former two-term President of the Indo-American Malayalee Chamber of Commerce and also served as a Sabha Council Member for Saint Thomas Mar Thoma Church. Mr. Abraham was born in Kerala, India and is well known in the South Indian Community.

Mr. Golden is the Company's lead independent director. Mr. Golden’s family is the legacy co-founder of the Snapple Beverage Corporation which produced one of the nation's leading flavored beverages. By the time the Company was purchased by the Quaker Oats Company in 1994, it produced annual sales revenue of $700 million. Today, Mr. Golden is the Founder and CEO of TREO Brands, an innovative beverage company focused on plant-based hydration. Mr. Golden is President of Golden Properties Group LLC which is an active investor in commercial office buildings and retail and residential properties in New York City and the surrounding areas, as well as throughout the Midwest. Prior to forming Golden Properties Group LLC, Mr. Golden was the owner of one of the largest cleaning and security companies in New York (Golden Mark). His company serviced mainly large office buildings and financial institutions. Mr. Golden is a contributor to many charitable organizations and is currently on the Nassau County Police Department Foundation Advisory Board. Mr. Golden attended the University of Bridgeport.

Mr. Haspel is an active investor and an attorney and CPA specialized in the tax area. He retired from Jones Day in January 2011 where he served as a partner specializing in the corporate tax and mergers acquisitions area. Prior to joining Jones Day in February 2005, Mr. Haspel was a partner at KPMG and served on its Board of Directors and in a number of leadership positions. While on the Board of KPMG, Mr. Haspel served on the firm's Audit, Compensation and Strategic Planning Committees. Mr. Haspel was the lead tax partner on some of KPMG’s most prestigious accounts, including Pfizer, Icahn Holdings and Norwest Financial (Wells Fargo). Mr. Haspel has written and lectured extensively on mergers and acquisitions, and partnership transactions. Mr. Haspel serves as a member of the Board and Trustee of North European Oil Royalty Trust (NRT) a New York stock exchange listed company and serves as Chairman of NRT’s Audit and Compensation Committees. Mr. Haspel is a qualified financial expert for SEC purposes. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from Long Island University, his Juris Doctor from Brooklyn Law School and his LLM degree in Taxation from New York University School of Law. He is a Certified Public Accountant and a member of the New York Bar. He is also a member of the Board of a number of philanthropic organizations.

Dr. Katz is an active financial institution investor and highly experienced and accomplished board-certified otolaryngologist and possesses extreme business development capabilities in the Long Island marketplace. Dr. Katz has been in practice with Ear, Nose, and Throat Associates of New York, P.C. since 1969. For over 35 years, he served as President of the group practice which is one of the largest multi-specialty practices of its kind with offices located throughout Queens, Nassau, Suffolk, and the Bronx. While serving as President, Dr. Katz oversaw a growing practice of over 200 employees in multiple locations including over 30 physicians and physician assistants/nurse practitioners, specializing in otolaryngology, allergy & immunology, facial plastic and reconstructive surgery, audiology, sleep disorders and speech and swallowing disorders. Dr. Katz earned his undergraduate degree from Columbia University and his medical degree from the State University of New York, Downstate. He went on to complete general surgery training at Kings County Hospital in New York and then did his residency in otolaryngology at Manhattan Eye, Ear and Throat Hospital. He is board certified by the American Board of Otolaryngology. Dr. Katz was Chief of Ear, Nose and Throat (“ENT”) at Flushing Hospital and was previously Chief of ENT at New York Hospital Medical Center of Queens. Apart from the medical field, Dr. Katz serves as Co-Chairman of the Fisher Island Condo Board #2, is highly active in the area of environmental issues and is a large contributor to the UJA-Federation of NY.

Mr. Negrin is the Founder and President of Lexin Capital, a private investment, development and management company that manages its own capital along with a global client base and makes direct investments in real estate www.lexincapital.com. The firm has real estate investments in New York City as well as Florida, Maryland, Arizona and Mexico and had also past investments in France. Mr. Negrin is also active making direct investments in the technology sector, including his investments in Tipalti and Houzz as well as in the banking sector with Savoy Bank. Prior to the sale to Hanover Bank, Mr. Negrin was the Chairman of the Board of Savoy Bank. In addition, Mr. Negrin is the President of the Board of the Allen-Stevenson School, a boys K-8 day school of 400 students on the Upper East Side and founded in 1883, as well as Treasurer and Executive Committee Board Member of the American Turkish Society. A graduate of Deutsche Schule High School in Istanbul, Mr. Negrin holds a BS in Economics and a MBA in Finance from NYU Stern School of Business.

Mr. Okun is a founding director of Hanover Community Bank. Additionally, he has been Chairman of the Loan Committee since the Bank’s inception. Mr. Okun has been in the commercial real estate industry for more than 30 years. As President of Polimeni International, Mr. Okun was responsible for the Company’s development program in Poland, having successfully completed numerous shopping centers throughout the country. As President of its affiliate company, Skyline Management Corp., he was responsible for the management of a 3,000,000 square foot portfolio of office buildings and shopping centers on Long Island and the east coast. Further, his experience includes redevelopment, leasing, financing, and brokerage. Mr. Okun is a founding partner of Realty Connect USA, LLC. Realty Connect currently has over 800 sales agents in 14 offices on Long Island and Queens. Mr. Okun is a licensed real estate broker in New York and Florida. He is author of the book “Make Money On Main Street” and a licensed sea captain. Mr. Okun earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in education from Fairleigh Dickinson University.

Mr. Puorro has over 30 years banking experience and over 25 years as a senior banking executive in all facets of developing successful financial institutions. Since 2012, Mr. Puorro has served as the Chairman & Chief Executive Officer of Hanover Community Bank, and its holding company since its inception in 2016. Mr. Puorro coordinated an effort to reorganize and recapitalize Hanover through a revamped Board of Directors and new management team. Since the Company’s recapitalization, the Bank’s equity position has increased by $120 million while producing a 307% increase in stock issuance. Further, during this time, Hanover has grown its asset base by approximately $1.5 billion and has consistently displayed a track record of record earnings and strong asset quality. Today, Hanover is one of New York’s fastest growing community banks and is class leading in many financial metrics. Prior to Hanover, Mr. Puorro was the Co-Chairman and President of Madison National Bancorp, Inc. and Madison National Bank where he was a leading member of Madison’s entrepreneurial group and executive management team that raised $32.5 million in capital from a private placement. Prior to this, Mr. Puorro served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of New York Community Bancorp, Inc. where he was directly responsible for managing the financial functions of the fourth largest thrift in the United States with over $24 billion in assets and $5 billion in market capitalization. Before his tenure with New York Community Bank, Mr. Puorro served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Roslyn Bancorp, Inc. where he coordinated Company growth from less than $1 billion to over $12 billion in assets, and from five to forty full service retail locations. Mr. Puorro was a former senior member in the Financial Services Group of KPMG LLP, specializing in financial institutions ranging in size from local community banks to super money center institutions. Mr. Puorro is a former Board member of the New York Banker’s Association which serves as the State’s preeminent provider of legislative and regulatory services to a unified banking industry. Mr. Puorro earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Accounting from Dowling College’s School of Professional Accountancy, and in addition to being a Certified Public Accountant, is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants. In May 2012, Mr. Puorro received an Honorary Doctorate Degree in Human Letters from Dowling College.

Ms. Sisti was the founder and chairperson emeritus of Savoy Bank, only the second New York bank established by a woman. Ms. Sisti founded Savoy Bank following a 25-year career at Citibank. Her vision for Savoy Bank was to empower New York City’s entrepreneurs and small business owners by providing the financial resources and capital for them to prosper and grow. The result was a successful, profitable New York City centric community bank dedicated to serving the City’s diverse entrepreneurial community. Since 2008, Savoy Bank provided over $1 billion in financing to New York City’s businesses and professionals. It helped over 2,000 firms by supplying over $330 million in PPP loans during the COVID pandemic. Savoy Bank was designated as a Community Development Financial Institution by the U.S. Treasury Department and as a preferred lender by the Small Business Administration. Today, Ms. Sisti sits on the Board of Directors of Hanover Bank as well as its Credit, ALCO/Investment/ERM, CRA & Fair Lending and Audit Committees. Ms. Sisti is the Managing Partner of a N.J. based real estate investment and management firm started by her family. She received a B.A. in Economics from Barnard College, Columbia University. Ms. Sisti immigrated to the United States in 1963 from Caracas, Venezuela. Her multicultural background is derived from a Greek-Romanian father, Spanish mother, and having lived on three continents. Ms. Sisti is married to neurosurgeon Dr. Michael B. Sisti and they have three children.

Mr. Sorrenti, FAIA, is Founder and President of JRS Architect, P.C., a full service architectural, interior design and preservation firm serving the greater New York City region. Since its inception in 1986, the firm has received numerous design awards under his leadership. Mr. Sorrenti has served on many committees both for American Institute of Architects (AIA) and National Council of Architectural Registration Board (NCARB) rising to the President of the New York State AIA, Vice President of the National AIA and Regional Director for the NCARB’s national board. Mr. Sorrenti chaired the AIA/College of Fellows’ Regional Representative Program nationally for six years and in 2016 was the Chancellor for the College of Fellows. He remains on the New York State Education Board of Architecture as an Extended Member, previously serving as Chair and is currently Chair of North Hempstead’s Landmarks Commission. In 1991, Mr. Sorrenti helped to form the guidelines for the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and in 1993 assisted with the New York City ADA Code. Mr. Sorrenti has served on the National Architectural Accrediting Board Committee for college accreditation and has performed reviews of his peers for the American Council of Engineering Companies. In 2008, Mr. Sorrenti was presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award from the AIA Long Island Chapter and in 2017 received their Community Service Honor Award. Mr. Sorrenti earned a Bachelor of Architecture degree from New York Institute of Technology (NYIT), a Masters in Architecture from Ohio University, and an MBA from NYIT.