10 Credit Unions, CUSO Prodigy Appoint & Promote Talent

WEST

The $338 million Industrial Credit Union in Bellingham, Wash., hired Dean Lewis as director of mortgage. Lewis brings over 30 years of experience in financial services and comes to Industrial from the $4.6 billion Gesa Credit Union in Richland, Wash., where he was regional vice president of mortgage lending, branches and call centers since 2015. Before entering the credit union world, he worked for Wells Fargo as a call center manager and real estate loan servicer, where he oversaw six different departments and over 350 agents. Lewis has over two decades of experience in mortgage lending.

The $4.4 billion, Vacaville, Calif.-based Travis Credit Union elected Deborah Aspling board chair, effective at the Annual Meeting of Shareholders in April 2021. First elected to the board of directors in 2008, Aspling now marks her 13th year in her leadership position on the board. She replaces Patricia (Pat) Moreno, who served as chair for the past seven years and has been a board member since 2004. Serving alongside Aspling is newly-elected Vice Chairman Kevin Burke. Doug Beaumont, who has been a member of Travis’s board of directors for four years and served on the supervisory committee from 2013-2017, will serve as treasurer. Board Secretary Mary Coburn, who was appointed to the supervisory committee in 1995 and served as chair until she was elected to the board of directors in 2007, was re-elected to a second term.

UNCLE Credit Union ($599 million, Livermore, Calif.) re-elected Chung Bothwell as board chairman for the 2021-2022 term. Bothwell has overseen the financial institution in a principal role for more than two decades. Employed at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, she has extensive experience in financial management, strategic planning and business administration. A recipient of the J. Alvin George Outstanding Volunteer Award, Bothwell has also led local initiatives to promote financial education and advocated on behalf of credit unions to members of Congress. In addition, the board named John Stein, Ph.D. vice chairman, Mila Shapovalov treasurer and Clay Smith board secretary. Smith succeeds Bob Corey, who remains a member of the board. Neda Gray and Lee Neely also retained their board seats for the new term.

The $4.5 billion Mission Federal Credit Union hired Courtney Pendleton as public relations and community manager. Pendleton’s responsibilities include overseeing the organization’s PR strategy, managing press and community-related content, building relationships with new and existing nonprofits and local businesses, serving as part of the organization’s team of media spokespeople and building thought leadership programming. She brings more than 18 years of experience and comes to Mission Fed from the YMCA of San Diego County, where she spent nearly five years developing and directing PR and communications strategy and reputation initiatives. Prior to the YMCA, Pendleton was the communications director for the American Red Cross of San Diego/Imperial Counties. Additionally, she served as a public information officer volunteer with the Red Cross and an Advanced Public Affairs Team member. Before that, she spent nearly eight years at the public relations agency FleishmanHillard.

EAST

The $975 million, Marlborough, Mass.-based St. Mary’s Credit Union promoted Eileen Potter to vice president, controller. Potter joined SMCU in 2012 as assistant vice president, accounting and was promoted to vice president, accounting in 2020. Potter’s new responsibilities as vice president, controller will include preparing monthly audit committee and board financial reporting packages, working with the senior management team to coordinate and prepare an annual budget, and managing the facilities vendor relationship. Potter has spent over 30 years employed at various New England financial institutions within their accounting and finance departments, and participates in the Read to a Child Program at the Richer Elementary School in Marlborough.

The $550 million Financial Resources Federal Credit Union in Bridgewater, N.J., promoted Beth Molinaro to vice president, people and talent. In her new role, Molinaro will be focusing the department’s efforts to drive cultural initiatives, performance management, talent acquisition, learning and development, and employee engagement and retention. She joined the credit union in 2018 as the corporate trainer, has served on various committees and currently serves as a director on the board for Financial Resources FCU Foundation.

The $305 million, Fairhaven, Mass.-based Alltrust Credit Union hired Robert Dos Reis as a branch manager. Dos Reis has over seven years of retail banking management experience. His most recent role was as a branch manager at the $2.7 billion, Pawtucket, R.I.-based Pawtucket Credit Union.

MIDWEST

Community First Financial Advisors hired Kyle Mann as a registered financial advisor serving members of the $4.6 billion, Neenah, Wis.-based Community First Credit Union through CUSO Financial Services, LP (CFS), a registered broker-dealer and contractor of CFCU. In his new role, Mann will provide comprehensive financial planning, IRA solutions, 401(k) rollover options and retirement income planning in the greater Green Bay, Wis., area and the Lakeshore (Manitowoc and Two Rivers, Wis.). He has over 15 years of financial industry experience, including roles as a licensed banker, private client mortgage banker and vice president/senior premier banker.

Fremont Federal Credit Union ($308 million, Fremont, Ohio) hired Paul Apodaca as CFO. He succeeds Paul Howard, who has been CFO for several years and announced his retirement effective July 2021. Apodaca comes to Fremont from First Financial Credit Union, where he has been the vice president of finance and data analytics since 2013. Before entering the credit union space, he worked as director of finance for Futures of Children, and prior to that as finance manager for WONIK Quartz International Corporation. He holds a master’s of accountancy from New Mexico State University and has taught as adjunct faculty for several community colleges and universities.

The $1.1 billion, Papillion, Neb.-based Cobalt Credit Union hired Jim Brickner and Nick Liston as mortgage loan officers. In their new roles, they will serve the mortgage financing needs of members and potential members.

Brickner has extensive experience in sales and interacting with the military community through his 20 years of service as an officer in the United States Air Force. He holds an MBA from Trident University of Cypress, Calif.

Liston has over 20 years of previous experience as a licensed mortgage lender and real estate professional, and currently holds his real estate license and mortgage lending license.

CUSOS

Prodigy, a core data processing and cloud infrastructure CUSO based in Salt Lake City, Utah, hired Karey Neal into the newly-created role of COO. Neal began her credit union career in 2003 as director of operations at Statesman Federal Credit Union in Boise, Idaho, which at the time was running Prodigy Core. Two and a half years later, she was named the credit union’s CEO, making her the youngest credit union CEO in the state by 17 years and the youngest female credit union CEO in the state. From 2007-2009, she also served on the Prodigy board of directors.

TRADES

Carla Decker, president/CEO for the $78.8 million DC Credit Union in Washington, D.C., and CUNA COO Jill Tomalin were elected to serve on the board of directors of the National Cooperative Business Association CLUSA International (NCBA CLUSA).

Decker will serve as the new board chair and Tomalin will serve as board secretary, effective June 16. Decker has been a member of NCBA CLUSA’s board of directors since 2015.

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