Retirements & Appointments Revealed at 9 Credit Unions

WEST

Rogue Credit Union in Medford, Ore., announced that President/CEO Gene Pelham will retire in the spring of 2022 after more than 18 years of service. Pelham, who has over 40 years of experience in the financial services industry, joined the credit union in 2003 and became president/CEO in 2007. Under his leadership, Rogue grew from 39,400 members and $303 million in assets to over 166,000 members and $2.5 billion in assets. Pelham led Rogue through the Great Recession, the purchase and assumption of Chetco Federal Credit Union, a merger with Malheur Federal Credit Union and an expansion from seven branches to a network of 27 locations. Rogue’s board of directors named EVP & COO Matt Stephenson the new president. Pelham will retain the position of CEO until retirement. Stephenson joined the credit union in 2004, serving as the EVP for the last 10 years.

The $992.7 million, Seattle-based Salal Credit Union hired Dr. Judy Loveless-Morris as chief diversity and people officer. Loveless-Morris brings nearly 20 years’ experience in management, education, research and diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). In her new role, she will lead Salal’s HR and DEI strategies and efforts. Prior to joining Salal, Loveless-Morris served as vice president for equity, diversity and inclusion at Tacoma Community College in Tacoma, Wash. Before that, she spent time as the dean of academic instruction and interim chief diversity and equity officer at Clover Park Technical College in Lakewood, Wash. She holds a master’s in sociology and statistics and a doctor of philosophy in sociology from the University of Washington.

EAST

The $6.1 billion, Poughkeepsie, N.Y.-based Hudson Valley Credit Union hired Rob Brown as vice president of branch administration. He will be responsible for the credit union’s 20 branches. Brown brings a wealth of experience from leadership positions overseeing large branch networks for Key Bank and M&T, as well as eight years as a business banking regional manager for Westchester and Rockland Counties with both Citizens and Chase.

The $550 million, Martinsville, Va.-based ValleyStar Credit Union hired Karen DeSalvo as its first chief experience officer. DeSalvo will directly oversee the leadership of the financial centers, contact center, digital services and marketing functions. She has over 20 years of financial executive management experience working at several large credit unions and banks, and has spearheaded strategies to create strong brands, improve consumer experience and drive organizational growth. She has also led teams to integrate data and technology to further enhance consumer experiences while increasing product adoption.

Leominster Credit Union ($785 million, Leominster, Mass.) promoted two employees.

Ellen Coughlin was promoted to vice president, human resources and development. Coughlin has served as the assistant vice president of human resources for the past five years and has been with the credit union for 17 years. She will be responsible for all HR functions, development and training, and will become a member of the senior management team.

Mychelle Phillips was promoted to vice president, operations and information technology. Phillips has been with LCU for 17 years and served as vice president of operations for the last six years. Her new duties will include being responsible for the digital and member service center, operations and the IT division. She will also become a member of the senior management team.

The $950 million, Marlborough, Mass.-based St. Mary’s Credit Union promoted three employees to SVP positions.

Sarah A. Day was promoted to SVP, commercial loan officer. Day joined the credit union in 2005 as a marketing manager and transitioned to the commercial lending team in 2013, most recently serving as vice president and specializing in commercial mortgages, vehicle and equipment lending, and commercial lines of credit.

Armand A. Fernandez was promoted to SVP, senior small business lending officer. He joined SMCU in 2013 as vice president, small business lending, directing the credit union’s small business lending efforts. He is responsible for the credit union’s designation by the Small Business Administration as the Credit Union of the Year in Massachusetts for the past six years.

Christine G. Monteiro was promoted to SVP, branch administrator. Monteiro joined SMCU in 2004 as branch manager for the credit union’s Hudson branch and has served as vice president, retail services for the past two years, overseeing the Hudson, Northborough and Westborough branches. In her new role, she will be responsible for the organizational management of the day-to-day operations of SMCU’s branch network, and for expanding business services and the business development team.

MIDWEST

Eric Hardman, who served at the $223.7 million, St. Louis, Mo.-based Electro Savings Credit Union for 21 years, retired from his role of vice president of finance and lending and CFO on April 1.

Electro named Patti Poe as its new vice president of finance and lending and CFO. Poe previously worked at Electro from 2000 to 2003 as an accounting manager and mentored under Hardman.

SOUTH

The $2 billion, Austin, Texas-based A+ Federal Credit Union hired a new executive and promoted another.

David Cic was hired as CFO. Cic has over 20 years of experience in the financial industry and comes to A+FCU from the $1.8 billion Westerra Credit Union of Denver, where he served as vice president of finance. In that role, he oversaw the finance and accounting teams, and managed the credit union’s investment strategies and securities portfolio.

Tricia Lewis was promoted to SVP of human resources. Lewis has been with A+FCU since 2002, starting as the human resources assistant and working her way up through management positions. Her role includes overseeing the HR and training departments at the credit union.

The $3.95 billion Coastal Credit Union in Raleigh, N.C., hired Tina Clossick as vice president of corporate partnerships. In her new role, she will lead and develop the credit union’s community engagement team, build relationships and drive growth among business partners, and ensure Coastal has a strong presence and positive impact among its corporate partners and in the community. Clossick brings more than 15 years of experience to Coastal, most recently serving as the associate director of development at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business. Prior to that, she founded and spent more than 10 years managing the Chapel Hill, N.C.-based Kidzu Children’s Museum.

CUSOS

The Dallas-based CU Members Mortgage, a division of Colonial Savings, F.A., named Lisa Chavez and Kelton Robinson processing managers. In their new roles, Chavez and Robinson will be responsible for developing training resources, pipeline management, conducting file reviews and streamlining overall processing improvements to ensure on-time mortgage closings and continued member and credit union satisfaction.

Chavez has been with CU Members since March 2019, where she previously served as a loan officer assistant and loan processor. She has more than 18 years of experience in the mortgage industry as a processor, underwriter and mortgage closer.

Robinson joins CU Members with more than 12 years of experience in the mortgage finance industry including more than 10 years as a team leader. His past roles include senior mortgage processor, financial services officer, processing supervisor and escalations specialist.

Please send your People news items to Natasha Chilingerian at nchilingerian@cutimes.com.