There are few better feelings in this work than watching a story move from possibility to reality. Before we dive in, we'd also like to welcome our August Presented By sponsor, Nexus Energy Group. At a time when many businesses are unknowingly overpaying for energy, Nexus helps organizations uncover hidden savings through smarter energy contracts, utility tax reviews, and demand management, often reducing total energy costs by 20% to 50%.

We are still riding the high from last week’s Fallen Timbers coverage; not simply because the property is changing hands, but because the people involved appear to have a genuine vision for transforming the mall and the surrounding space. For a property that has spent years waiting for its next chapter, this may be one of the most rewarding outcomes that could have unfolded.

Of course, as we were making connections, confirming details and speaking with the people closest to the deal, I was also driving my family north for a long weekend in Traverse City. It seems almost inevitable in business: the moment you make disconnecting the priority, everything begins taking off.

The trip was also another reminder of just how much northern and western Michigan have to offer. The small towns, family experiences and stunning Great Lakes shoreline are all within reach of Northwest Ohio. That accessibility is another piece of Toledo’s value proposition; not only as a place to build a business, but as a place where talented professionals can build a full and rewarding life.

This week, we turn our attention to Big Brothers Big Sisters of NWO and our first look at the organization is none less than Dr. Marvin Whitfield, CEO of this impactful organization. We hope you enjoy Dr. Whitfield’s story as much as we did and we hope it leaves as great of an impression as it did on us.

For the first time, this week’s Toledo Money Shoutout goes to two people: Vince Croci (VC the MC) and Michael Vanderpool.

Vince and Michael recently welcomed Kaden and I onto their podcast, giving Toledo Money its first opportunity to step behind the microphones and tell more of our own story. We spend most weeks highlighting the businesses, leaders and ideas shaping Northwest Ohio, but this conversation allowed people to learn more about the individuals behind the brand; why we started Toledo Money, what we are working to build and where we hope to take it next.

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Communities often begin paying attention to young people after the outcome becomes visible. A student stops attending school. A teenager encounters the juvenile justice system. A young person becomes involved in violence. An employer struggles to find workers prepared to enter the workforce.

Dr. Marvin Whitfield’s work begins before that point.

As CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northwestern Ohio, Whitfield believes the trajectory of a young person can be changed by altering the environment around them. Introduce structure before instability becomes a pattern. Provide opportunity before someone decides it is unavailable. Establish a trusted relationship before a child is forced to navigate every difficult decision alone.

It is a philosophy shaped by Whitfield’s life and deeply connected to the origins of the organization he now leads.

Big Brothers Big Sisters began nationally in 1904 as an alternative to the juvenile justice system. Ernest Coulter, a New York City court clerk, saw young boys repeatedly appearing before the court and concluded that many needed the guidance of a caring adult. He recruited 39 volunteers to become the first Big Brothers. Around the same period, women associated with the Ladies of Charity began mentoring girls entering New York’s Children’s Court.

The model was built around a straightforward idea: One consistent relationship can change a life before a difficult circumstance becomes a permanent direction.

More than 120 years later, Whitfield is applying that idea to a current Northwest Ohio challenge. The region is searching for ways to improve student engagement, strengthen its workforce pipeline, reduce youth violence and give more young people a reason to believe their futures can be built here. Whitfield sees those issues as connected and his life has prepared him to understand why.

Whitfield was born in White Plains, New York. His father was killed while serving in the military when Whitfield was two years old, leaving his mother as the central influence in his life. Whitfield credits her with teaching him survival, resilience and how to continue progressing regardless of circumstance.

“My mother understood me before anyone else did,” he told Toledo Money.

Her career advanced quickly and eventually moved the family south. Her success provided upward mobility and placed Whitfield in affluent communities that looked very different from where his life began. The opportunity did not shield him from adversity.

Whitfield often found himself in neighborhoods and schools where few people looked like him. He experienced racism directly, including during his time at Lake Howell High School in Florida. He had to learn how to navigate environments that offered opportunity while also making it clear that acceptance could not be assumed. His mother remained the constant.

She provided expectations, structure and the confidence to keep moving forward. Whitfield also grew up as a latchkey child, which required him to become adaptable and independent earlier than many of his peers.

Football gave Whitfield structure, accountability and adults willing to provide both solicited and unsolicited feedback. They challenged him, corrected him and helped him operate in difficult social environments.

Those relationships shaped how Whitfield defines mentorship today.

A mentor does more than encourage. The right mentor provides honesty, perspective, consistency and accountability. They recognize a young person’s potential while expecting that person to participate in developing it.

Whitfield benefited from adults who could see beyond his immediate circumstances. He has spent much of his career trying to create that experience for others.

Whitfield’s first career ambition was actually in the kitchen. At just 12 years old, he began working part-time at Morrison’s through a weekend work permit program and considered becoming a chef.

That direction changed quickly. At approximately 12½, Whitfield joined the Volunteer Police Explorer Program, an experience he says immediately reshaped his aspirations. While he continued working at Morrison’s; and still loves to cook today; the Explorer Program ignited a much stronger interest in law enforcement and public service.

That early exposure ultimately set Whitfield on the path to a 27-year law-enforcement career in Alabama. He eventually served as a police commander and held key assignments across multiple units, including extensive work in forensic investigations.

Whitfield told Toledo Money that he was among the early officers in his department trained to use digital photography for forensic work. He was decorated for his service and became an important contributor across several specialized police functions.

The career required precision, discipline and accountability. It also exposed him to people during some of the most difficult moments of their lives. Whitfield learned that behavior has consequences. He also learned that behavior develops within a broader context.

Family structure matters. Neighborhood conditions matter. Educational opportunities matter. Relationships matter. So does the presence or absence; of adults willing to establish expectations and remain involved.

That combination of experience now defines how Whitfield approaches youth development.

His law-enforcement background allows him to speak credibly about discipline, personal responsibility and decision-making. His childhood gives him empathy for young people attempting to navigate environments they did not create.

Whitfield does not treat discipline and empathy as opposing concepts.

Young people need clear expectations. They also need adults willing to understand what they are carrying, recognize what may be influencing their behavior and remain present long enough to help them make a better decision.

That balance may be one of Whitfield’s greatest strengths as CEO. He can hold young people accountable without defining them by their mistakes. He can recognize difficult circumstances without allowing those circumstances to become permanent excuses.

Where someone begins may help explain the path. It does not have to determine the destination.

Whitfield’s entry into policing at 17 also shapes how he thinks about workforce development. An institution identified him early, invested in his abilities and provided a path into a profession. Whitfield returned nearly three decades of service.

Northwest Ohio employers frequently discuss talent shortages, workforce readiness and the number of students who complete their education locally before leaving for opportunities elsewhere.

Whitfield believes businesses must begin participating sooner. Companies cannot wait until someone has completed a degree, built a résumé and started applying for jobs before taking an interest in that person’s development.

Employers can introduce students to careers, host workplace experiences, provide mentors and help young people understand what professional opportunities exist close to home.

Whitfield sees his career as evidence of the potential return.

That opportunity became a career of public service, leadership, entrepreneurship and community impact. What could happen if more Northwest Ohio institutions made similar investments?

Law enforcement also helped reveal Whitfield’s entrepreneurial instincts. As his forensic photography skills developed, people began asking him to take pictures outside of work. The requests continued until he reached a practical conclusion.

“I realized I was taking too many pictures for free,” he said.

Whitfield began attending Chamber of Commerce business classes and launched a photography company on the side. The decision reflected a recurring theme in his career. He was never afraid of additional work and remained alert to opportunities to turn a skill into something valuable.

He also made himself a promise: he would leave law enforcement when he no longer loved the work.

Whitfield went on to establish Blue Force Mobile Training Team, focusing on leadership, workforce development and organizational culture. Instead of relying on generic training, his approach begins with assessing an organization and building programs around its people, challenges and specific environment.

That work was informed by Whitfield’s own experience after law enforcement. Following his retirement, he was stopped by a police officer outside his predominantly white community in Virginia. Whitfield later described the experience as racial profiling and said it caused him to reflect on the young men he had stopped during his own career. The encounter influenced his doctoral research into implicit-bias training and cultural competency within law enforcement.

Whitfield has since written publicly about the need for ongoing, honest engagement between law enforcement and communities of color. His view is informed by experience on both sides: as a former police commander and as a Black man who has personally experienced bias. That perspective allows him to enter complicated conversations with unusual credibility.

He understands institutions and the people who may struggle to trust them.

The mentoring movement Whitfield now leads has been present in Toledo for generations. Big Brothers and Big Sisters programs began operating independently in the city in 1937. The two organizations merged locally in 1961 and formally became Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northwestern Ohio in January 1980.

The local chapter has since expanded beyond traditional one-to-one mentoring. It now provides school-based, community-based and after-school programming that includes leadership development, STEM education, social-emotional learning, youth voice initiatives and substance-misuse prevention. The organization says it serves thousands of young people annually across Lucas and Wood counties.

Whitfield became CEO on January 1, 2020.

He entered the role shortly before the pandemic disrupted schools, activities, mentorship relationships and many of the institutions that traditionally provide young people with consistency. At the same time, communities across the country were confronting questions surrounding race, policing, violence and access to opportunity.

Whitfield was taking responsibility for a relationship organization at the exact moment relationships were becoming harder to maintain.

The challenge required him to do more than preserve an established nonprofit.

He had to consider how a nearly 90-year-old Toledo institution could remain relevant, financially sustainable and responsive to the conditions facing young people now.

Whitfield describes Big Brothers Big Sisters as a relationship organization. Programs provide activities, schedules and measurable outputs. Relationships create trust and lasting influence.

A single career event may introduce a student to an industry. A consistent mentor can help that student believe the opportunity is attainable and continue encouraging them through the years required to reach it. Whitfield wants to build a connected development pipeline beginning as early as third grade and continuing through high school. His vision extends beyond completing a mentoring program.

He wants young people to develop stronger relationships, remain engaged in their education, avoid misconduct, encounter local employers and prepare for adulthood. He wants them to understand that Northwest Ohio contains opportunities worth pursuing.

The organization’s Empowering Future Leaders initiative reflects that broader approach. The program focuses on four primary areas: life skills, leadership development, cultural competence and career development. Participants interact with business leaders, community members and government officials while developing the tools needed to make decisions, pursue education and enter the workforce.

The organization continues to receive requests from area schools seeking access to the program. Expanding it, however, requires additional funding and staff. That demand illustrates both the opportunity and the pressure facing Whitfield.

Whitfield does not believe youth violence or misconduct can be solved by a single organization. Young people exist within a complicated network of families, schools, neighborhoods, friendships, faith communities and economic circumstances. A serious response must be equally connected.

Schools hold part of the solution and Employers hold part of the solution.

Nonprofits, families, law enforcement agencies, faith-based organizations and local government each influence the environment surrounding a child.

“Programs shouldn’t compete—they should connect,” he told Toledo Money.

Keeping young people continuously engaged does not guarantee a perfect outcome. It reduces the amount of time they must navigate difficult environments without support. It also increases the likelihood that an adult will notice when a student is struggling, intervene before a bad decision compounds or introduce an opportunity the student did not know existed.

One of Whitfield’s earliest initiatives after arriving in Toledo demonstrated that philosophy.

Bigs with Badges partnered public-safety personnel with local young people through mentoring relationships. Whitfield described the initiative as a way to help law enforcement officers and youth see one another differently while building trust outside traditional enforcement encounters.

The program brought together two parts of Whitfield’s life: the discipline of law enforcement and the power of mentorship. It also reflected the original purpose of Big Brothers Big Sisters: Reach the young person before the courtroom does.

Mentorship is often discussed as charity or community service, Whitfield sees an economic-development argument too.

The children entering youth-development programs today will become Northwest Ohio’s future workforce, customers, parents, taxpayers and community leaders.

Investing in them early strengthens the region’s future talent pipeline. That investment requires more than writing a check. Businesses can provide mentors, introduce students to careers, host experiences and help young people develop professional networks before they enter the workforce.

Whitfield is reinvigorating Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northwestern Ohio while managing the financial reality facing many local nonprofits. He must think month by month about maintaining staff, preserving programming and continuing to serve the young people and families who depend on the organization.

Every mentoring match, leadership session and career-development program requires resources. Mission and cash flow cannot be separated.

Whitfield believes philanthropists invest in organizations and leaders they know and trust. That trust must be earned through relationships, demonstrated impact and confidence that resources will reach the people they are intended to support.

The same principles driving mentorship also drive sustainability. Consistency matters, trust matters, relationships matter.

The pressure has not prevented progress. Whitfield told Toledo Money that the organization is preparing to celebrate the largest graduating class in the local chapter’s history. The milestone carries weight beyond the number itself.

Each graduate represents years of programming, mentorship, family engagement and adults continuing to show up. For an organization operating under financial pressure, the class also illustrates the return on community investment. The impact of mentoring is difficult to capture in a single moment and its value accumulates over time.

One conversation may not change a life, but hundreds of conversations can.

One afternoon with a mentor may not transform a student’s behavior. However years of expectations, encouragement and honest feedback can reshape what that student believes is possible. Whitfield describes success in similar terms.

“Take each day as its own,” he said. “Those days stack into success.”

Corner Office profiles typically focus on the people leading Northwest Ohio’s most consequential institutions. Whitfield fits that description because the future of the region’s institutions depends partly on the young people his organization is developing today.

His background positions him uniquely for the work and he has experienced hardship and upward mobility. He benefited from his mother’s resilience and the structure provided by coaches. He endured racism while learning how to operate in affluent environments.

He entered law enforcement at 17, became a decorated commander and spent 27 years serving communities.

He has enforced consequences, studied organizational behavior, built businesses and examined how bias influences decision-making. Those experiences allow him to bring both discipline and empathy into the room.

Whitfield can understand why a young person may be struggling while remaining clear about the standards required to move forward. He can communicate with law enforcement, business executives, educators, families and students because he has occupied many of those environments himself.

Northwest Ohio is discussing public safety, workforce development, student engagement and talent retention as though they are separate challenges.

Whitfield sees one connected system. A student who receives structure, mentorship and career exposure today is more likely to become the prepared employee, engaged citizen and community leader the region will need tomorrow. Big Brothers Big Sisters was created more than 120 years ago because one court clerk believed intervention should begin before another child returned to the courtroom.

Toledo adopted that idea nearly 90 years ago, Whitfield is now responsible for carrying the legacy forward. The conditions surrounding young people have changed. The need for trusted adults has not. Northwest Ohio spends considerable energy discussing how to attract talent.

Whitfield’s message begins earlier: Develop it.

Reach young people before their paths appear fixed. Surround them with adults who will encourage them, correct them and hold them accountable. Introduce them to the careers and institutions shaping Northwest Ohio.

Then give them the relationships and opportunities to believe they can shape it too.

First Solar reported $1.06 billion in second-quarter revenue, down 4% from last year. But underneath that headline, the company’s financial foundation became considerably stronger.

Net income increased 24% to $423 million, while earnings per share climbed to $3.92. Adjusted EBITDA reached $644 million—essentially the company’s operating horsepower before interest, taxes and other accounting mechanics are added to the load.

The revenue decline also needs context. First Solar recognized less revenue from customer-contract terminations than it did last year, while the actual volume of modules sold increased. The company delivered record second-quarter and first-half sales volume and surpassed 100 gigawatts of cumulative module sales.

Margins were the real story.

First Solar’s gross margin reached 57%, helped by domestic-manufacturing tax credits, anticipated tariff refunds and lower logistics expenses. Section 45X credits reduced the cost of producing modules, functioning as a financial tailwind behind First Solar’s expanding American manufacturing footprint.

Those incentives are meaningful. First Solar expects between $2.10 billion and $2.19 billion of Section 45X credits in 2026. They do not tell the entire story, but they are putting more wind behind the company’s sails as it invests in new facilities, technology and production capacity.

First Solar has spent several earnings calls repeating the same playbook: secure orders years in advance, expand domestic manufacturing, invest in differentiated technology and maintain a balance sheet capable of absorbing policy and market changes.

That playbook remains intact.

The company ended June with 45.1 gigawatts of contracted backlog stretching through 2030. Backlog has declined from previous quarters, but much of that movement reflects First Solar delivering modules and converting signed contracts into revenue.

Think of the backlog as a runway. First Solar already knows where much of its production is headed for the next several years, giving the company visibility that many manufacturers lack.

The most important local development continues to come from First Solar’s Perrysburg operation.

The company recently completed its first commercial CuRe module on a converted Perrysburg production line. The technology is designed to reduce degradation and allow solar modules to generate more electricity over their operating lives.

Approximately 23.4 gigawatts of First Solar’s backlog includes potential price adjustments tied to CuRe and other technological improvements. Meeting those milestones could unlock as much as $600 million in additional revenue, primarily during 2027 and 2028.

In other words, Perrysburg is not simply another link in First Solar’s manufacturing chain. It is part of the laboratory where future revenue is being engineered.

First Solar’s net cash balance declined from $2.4 billion at the end of 2025 to $1.7 billion in June.

That decline is not necessarily a warning light. The company is deploying cash into working capital, new manufacturing capacity and its South Carolina finishing facility while also repaying debt.

First Solar still maintains substantial liquidity, almost no debt relative to equity and an unused $1.5 billion revolving credit facility. The fuel tank is lower because the company is accelerating; not because the engine is sputtering.

First Solar reaffirmed its full-year outlook of $4.9 billion to $5.2 billion in revenue and $2.6 billion to $2.8 billion in adjusted EBITDA.

That consistency matters in an industry shaped by tariffs, federal incentives, permitting delays and rapidly shifting trade policies.

First Solar’s strategy remains straightforward: build in America, sell production years in advance and continue developing technology its global competitors cannot easily replicate.

Increasingly, the blueprint for that strategy is being drawn in Perrysburg.

For Northwest Ohio, First Solar demonstrates what can happen when advanced manufacturing, research and public policy converge. The region is not merely supplying labor or factory space. It is helping build the technology, and the financial engine, behind one of America’s most important solar manufacturers.

Here are a few headlines we are snacking on

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