Today's guest is Gretchen Gilmore, General Manager of RAVE - Rockford Area Venues & Entertainment Authority.

After working in private-sector accounting, Gretchen started with RAVE as the Director of Finance. She became interim GM during the pandemic and secured well over $20 million in grant funds to keep the BMO Center and the Coronado afloat. Gretchen is employed by ASM Global Management, which has a management agreement with the RAVE board. Rockford has been Gretchen's home for over 20 years. She has an accounting degree from Western Illinois University. Among her accomplishments, RAVE generated a surplus in operations for the first time in the building's history in 2023. Please enjoy some great background on the workings of downtown Rockford's economic driving force - RAVE.