Meet Our TeamGreen Leaf

StoneGate's registered representatives are fully licensed and qualified as defined, supervised and regulated by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority and the Securities Exchange Commission.

  • Tamara N. Chomin, President Ms. Chomin joined StoneGate in 2005. Since that time, Ms. Chomin has played a key role in StoneGate's day-to-day operational activities. As Vice President of Operations, Ms. Chomin is currently the acting CFO for the Company and fulfills various investment banking and administrative functions. She also serves as a principal point of contact for legal, accounting, banking and investor relationships. Prior to joining StoneGate, Ms. Chomin worked on the Research and Development team of Late Night Writer, LLC, an Internet writing company. Ms. Chomin also spent five years in an administrative capacity for a Syracuse, New York law firm. A graduate of the State University of New York at Plattsburgh, Ms. Chomin earned her B.A., magna cum laude, in English Literature and Writing.
  • Maureen Marsella, Chief Compliance Officer & Treasurer Ms. Marsella joined StoneGate in 2007. She is currently responsible for monitoring the firm's policies and procedures and ensuring compliance with FINRA rules. Prior to joining StoneGate, Ms. Marsella was the Chief Compliance Officer at a small investment advisor in Western Massachusetts. She was responsible for every aspect of monitoring the firm's compliance policies and procedures as well as all regulatory filings for the investment advisor and their affiliated limited partnership. Ms. Marsella has also worked for Putnam Investments and State Street Research and Management. She received her law degree in 1998 from Suffolk University Law School and her B.S. in Communications from Bentley College.
  • Brian W. Bernier, Founder Mr. Bernier brings StoneGate the foundation of its member investor network, which he has built during his successful 20 year career in private placement activities. Prior to founding StoneGate Partners, LLC in 1997, Mr. Bernier co-founded a regional boutique private equity investment firm, where he managed distribution and investor relations for multiple private placement candidates. Mr. Bernier placed over U.S. $35 million for his investors in multiple early stage companies, including FreeMarkets.com, which went public in 1999 at a U.S. $10 billion market cap, and the Boston Duck Tours, which continues to provide investors with significant annual cash flow. Previously, Mr. Bernier was Vice President of the Investment Securities Group at Winthrop Financial Associates and an integral member of the equity placement team. Winthrop Financial Associates was the largest private sponsor of private equity in the U.S. for two decades. Mr. Bernier is a graduate of the Boston University School of Management with degrees in Finance and Marketing.
  • John F. Mara, Principal Mr. Mara joined StoneGate in 2001 with 15 years of experience in private placements for real estate equity financing transactions. Prior to StoneGate, Mr. Mara served as Director of Real Estate for Galaxy Theatres, LLC where he attracted investor equity for new stadium-seating multiplex movie theatres. Previously, Mr. Mara was a Founding Partner of Brookwood Securities, an investment banking company established in 1993. At Brookwood, Mr. Mara was responsible for attracting investment equity for properties including downtown and suburban commercial office properties, community retail centers and residential apartment properties. From 1987 to 1993, Mr. Mara was the Vice President of the Investment Securities Group at Winthrop Financial Associates. During that time, Mr. Mara led investment offerings including Nantucket Island's downtown retail properties, hotels and boat basin as well as real estate acquired from the Resolution Trust Corporation in the early 1990's. Prior to joining Winthrop, Mr. Mara had a 17 year career in marketing at IBM Corporation. Mr. Mara is a graduate of the Boston University School of Management with degrees in Finance and Marketing.
  • John A. Doane, Vice President Mr. Doane joined StoneGate's equity distribution team in 1999 and has been responsible for aggregating equity placements in the technology, real estate, and energy sectors. Prior to joining StoneGate, Mr. Doane spent over 15 years in executive placements, including 12 years as Vice President at Resource Objectives, where he was responsible for the financial services practice. During that period, Mr. Doane developed relationships in the private equity and investment banking space with clients such as Harvest Capital Partners, BancBoston Capital and Sentinel Partners. Mr. Doane received his BS in Computer Science from Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts.
  • Joe Stroffolino, Jr., Vice President Mr. Stroffolino joined StoneGate in 1997. After a brief departure, Mr. Stroffolino rejoined StoneGate's equity distribution team in 2007. In 1993, Mr. Stroffolino was introduced to private equity as a sales associate at Winthrop Financial Associates. Winthrop Financial Associates was the largest private sponsor of private equity real estate limited partnerships in the US for two decades. Prior to joining StoneGate in 1997, Mr. Stroffolino worked with Mr. Bernier at a regional boutique private equity investment firm. Mr. Stroffolino is a graduate of the University of Rhode Island with a Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Management.