"When Car Ownership No Longer Equals Adulting" (Jan. 16): While we often run features on overall market trends in auto, mortgage and other types of lending, this article specifically spoke to how cultural generational differences are impacting consumer financial decision-making, which in turn impacts credit unions' lending business. The article discussed how car ownership is no longer the desired symbol of independence that it once was, with ridesharing apps, energy-efficient vehicles and autonomous vehicle technology capturing the interest of more consumers. It represents just one business area that credit unions must keep an eye on and adjust to accordingly.

"Tyndall FCU Weathers a Storm" (April 10): With natural disasters occurring more frequently, many credit union leaders are taking their disaster planning efforts more seriously. This story went beyond the practical "how-tos" of disaster preparation and offered an inside look at how the employees of one Florida credit union reacted to the impacts of Hurricane Michael in October 2018, stepped up to help members who were in crisis, and coped with the storm's lingering effects in the months that followed.

"CUs Tackle Anti-Harassment Policies" (April 17): After this year's GAC, Maps Credit Union Chief Risk Officer Rachel Pross published a LinkedIn post describing how she and other female attendees were belittled and harassed by some men at the conference. The post soon went viral in the credit union community, sparking important conversations about inappropriate and sexist behavior in the workplace. Our article discussed how credit union conference organizers are working to improve their codes of conduct to promote a respectful environment at events going forward.

"Why Bank Deals Are on the Rise" (June 12): Mergers have been commonplace in the industry for a long time, but one M&A trend that has been taking hold lately is the rise of bank purchases by credit unions. This piece dissected why the move has become favorable and offered good advice to credit unions that might be looking to expand their footprint through a bank buy.

"APGFCU Highlights Three Keys to Choosing Causes to Support" (June 26) and "Credit Union Offers Effective Giving Advice" (Nov. 20): Charitable giving is a popular way for credit unions to live out their "people helping people" philosophy, but we tend to hear about the same types of giving activities year after year, like donations to food banks and other nonprofits. In these articles, two credit unions shared how they pursued unique community partnerships to address rather heavy societal issues: Opioid addiction and a lack of mental health treatment for children.

"Using Tech to Improve Rural Financial Health" (June 26) and "Rio Grande Credit Union Reaches Out" (Nov. 13): Our Roy Urrico keeps us informed through his constant flow of stories on industry technology developments, but what stood out about these two features was their focus on how technology enables credit unions to better serve the underserved. One highlighted the benefits of e-signing tools to members in rural communities; the other discussed technology's role in ITIN lending.

"CU Leaders Unveil Hidden Talents" (July 17): Probably the most entertaining story to put together in 2019, this piece showcased what industry professionals are good at besides their jobs, from performing in live bands to choreographing musicals to renovating homes. We hope it reminded readers that having a full life outside of work can help prevent burnout and even improve on-the-job performance.

"Taxi Fallout Tests CUs' Reputation" (July 24): The taxi medallion saga, which included the failure of several credit unions with a high concentration of taxi medallion loans and the indictment of the former CEO of one of those credit unions for bribery, caught the industry's attention from the start. In May, it came to light that some taxi drivers who were in crippling debt had obtained credit union loans they did not understand the terms of; this article addressed reputation management for credit unions dealing with the fallout.

"Financial Anxiety Lives Inside Credit Unions" (Aug. 28): Credit union leaders know financial strife is prevalent across the U.S., with about half of Americans living paycheck to paycheck, and have designed programs to help their members improve their financial standing. This article took the concept further by revealing just how big of a problem money management is for not only credit union members but employees, and explained why leaders need to tackle the problem from the inside out.

What many of our 2019 stories demonstrated is that change is ongoing – in the areas of consumer behavior, technology developments, regulation and more – and the credit unions that respond well to those changes through creativity and open-mindedness are more likely to succeed. 2020 will no doubt bring more changes that will be felt industry-wide, and we look forward to continuing to do our job of helping you navigate them with confidence.

Natasha Chilingerian

Natasha Chilingerian is executive editor for CU Times. She can be reached at [email protected].