Guild Mortgage, a leading national independent mortgage lender, recently completed an Expedition to Verde Sumaco, Ecuador to help villagers in creating a cistern system to provide additional clean, drinkable water. A team of 29 Guild team members made the more than 3,000-mile trek where they spent four days deep in the Amazon jungle.

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When Academy Mortgage joined Guild Mortgage earlier this year, the mortgage company embraced Academy’s program coordinating employee-led expeditions to the Ecuadorian village. The most recent Expedition team included Guild Mortgage President and COO, David Neylan, and former Academy Chief Executive, Adam Kessler.

“This is an incredible program, and we are so pleased to continue this tradition,” said Neylan. “To be welcomed by Verde Sumaco and to see the gratitude and appreciation on the villagers’ faces is an incredible experience and one that truly changes the way you view the world.”

Each trip focuses on one main service project. This year’s laborious effort included transporting thousands of pounds of sand and cement uphill to the cistern site. In past trips, crews have built bathrooms for the local school, dug ditches to help with drainage, painted buildings and added canoe ramps and stairs for easy access to the river.

“Each of these trips is an opportunity to connect with someone new and see the world from a different perspective,” said Kessler. “It’s such a departure from what we do and see on a daily basis, but at its root, we’re just extending our reach and our focus of making lives better for the people we serve.”

Guild plans another expedition in September and two additional trips in the first half of 2025. The trips, which are organized by Guild and paid for by the participants, are open to all employees and a family member guest.

About Guild Mortgage

Guild Mortgage Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of Guild Holdings Company (NYSE: GHLD), was founded in 1960 and is a nationally recognized independent mortgage lender providing residential mortgage products and local in-house origination and servicing. Guild employs a relationship-based loan sourcing strategy to execute on its mission of delivering the promise of home ownership in neighborhoods and communities across 49 states and the District of Columbia. Guild’s highly trained loan professionals are experienced in government-sponsored programs such as FHA, VA, USDA, down payment assistance programs and other specialized loan programs. For more information visit GuildMortgage.com.

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