CUs, Leagues Celebrate New Roles & Award Recipients

WEST

Redwood Credit Union ($6.9 billion, Santa Rosa, Calif.) promoted Deirdre Thompson to SVP of virtual service delivery. In her new role, Thompson is responsible for making sure members receive the same level of passionate service digitally as they do in person. She joined RCU in 2009 with more than 10 years of experience in finance and technology, having formerly worked as SVP and technology service delivery manager at Bank of America. Thompson was honored in 2021 with the North Bay Business Journal’s Women in Business award, is a graduate of the Western CUNA Management School, and holds Net Promoter and Six Sigma Greenbelt certifications.

The $3.8 billion, San Jose, Calif.-based Technology Credit Union hired Doug Stoveland as chief credit officer and EVP. In his new role, Stoveland will be responsible for managing the credit union’s commercial and retail credit risk in addition to overseeing all credit administration functions. He joins Tech CU with nearly 30 years of experience in the banking industry, with almost 20 years in risk management, focusing on holistic management of credit risk. He most recently served as chief credit officer and chief risk officer at California Bank of Commerce and interim chief credit officer at Sunwest Bank. He also held leadership positions at Mechanics Bank, Union Bank, Marcus and Millichap, Greater Bay Bank and Bank of America. He holds an MBA in finance from Notre Dame de Namur University in Belmont, Calif.

The $2.2 billion Hawaii State Federal Credit Union in Honolulu announced two new hires.

Warren Keone Altona was hired as regional manager for East Oahu and Maui. In his new role, Altona will oversee the daily operations of Hawaii State FCU branches in the two locations. Prior to joining Hawaii State FCU, Altona spent more than 15 years at Bank of Hawaii where he held several executive positions, including his most recent position as market manager, vice president, where he managed a market portfolio of more than $1.4 billion. He holds an MBA from the University of Hawaii at Manoa.

Reid Hinaga was hired as regional manager for the credit union’s in-store program. In this newly-created position for Hawaii State FCU, Hinaga will play a key role in launching the credit union’s newest retail channel, overseeing the daily operations and hiring for four new Safeway branch locations on Oahu and Maui. He previously held several manager positions throughout his 15-year career at Bank of Hawaii, most recently serving as the Metro Waikiki market manager. Hinaga currently serves as a volunteer board member on several boards, including the Waikiki Improvement Association and the University of Hawaii Alumni Association.

EAST

The $246 million The Atlantic Federal Credit Union in Kenilworth, N.J., announced two new hires.

Jason Reed was hired as COO. Reed most recently served at the CUSO Member Support Services in Cranbury, N.J. He is a credit union veteran of over 20 years and has held senior management positions in which he oversaw various departmental functions concerning operational matters of a diverse nature.

Adam Cadmus was hired to the newly-created executive position of chief experience officer.  Cadmus joins Atlantic most recently from Cross River Bank, where he was responsible for marketing operations, and oversaw client acquisition and retention across deposits, payments, banking-as-a-service, cryptocurrency services, capital markets, marketplace lending, commercial lending and SBA lending. Cadmus brings 15 years of experience in financial services, having also served in community banking, P&C insurance and public sector economic development organizations.

David Sprague, president/CEO for Hanscom Federal Credit Union in Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass., was inducted into the Defense Credit Union Council’s Hall of Honor at its annual conference this August in Naples, Fla. Sprague joined Hanscom in 1996, and under his  leadership for the last 25 years, Hanscom’s assets have grown to $1.7 billion and membership has more than quadrupled to over 90,000 members. He has developed a deep relationship between the credit union and Hanscom Air Force Base, with partnerships between military leadership and personnel, families and organizations on base. He also oversaw the establishment of the Hanscom FCU Charitable Foundation in 2013.

MIDWEST

Notre Dame Federal Credit Union ($893 million, Notre Dame, Ind.) promoted David Gryp to Arizona market president. Previously the director of Arizona market development, Gryp’s primary focus has been to educate Phoenix non-profits and businesses on the benefits of membership and the credit union’s disruptive suite of products and services. He has over 15 years of banking experience and has served in senior leadership roles in commercial and consumer lending, private banking, trusts and investment management. Gryp currently sits on the professional advisory board of the Catholic Community Foundation.

Corporate One Federal Credit Union’s board of directors named Devon Alexander, vice president of enterprise risk management at the $4 billion Keesler Federal Credit Union in Biloxi, Miss., to its enterprise risk management committee. Alexander has more than 20 years of credit union industry experience and joined Keesler in 2004, where she previously served as a senior internal auditor and vice president of internal audit. Her certifications include Certified Internal Auditor from the Institute of Internal Auditors, Credit Union Compliance Expert from CUNA and Credit Union Enterprise Risk Management Expert from CUNA. As a member of Corporate One’s ERM Committee, Alexander will help oversee the enterprise risk management practices of Corporate One and report on all significant and emerging enterprise risks to the board of directors.

SOUTH

Meg Grier, CUSO Financial Services (CFS) investment operations program manager at the $2.3 billion, North Charleston-based South Carolina Federal Credit Union, was selected by the Charleston Regional Business Journal for the 2021 Class of Forty Under 40. The program honors the top 40 business professionals across the Charleston region who have excelled in their chosen profession and service to their community. Grier has been part of the investment team since 2012. Under her leadership, South Carolina Federal Investment Solutions, through CFS, has experienced growth, as she incorporated financial education opportunities for members into the investment program and led the charge on introducing new products and services. Her work has helped the credit union earn three Impact Awards. She also serves on the board of directors for Girls on the Run Coastal South Carolina.

TDECU ($4.4 billion, Lake Jackson, Texas) hired Laura Whitley as vice president of communications. Whitley comes to TDECU following a wide-reaching public relations and journalism career, and most recently served the Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County (METRO) as a media specialist and spokesperson. During her tenure, she hosted The Next Stop podcast, which provides transit news and information. Whitley also founded the Houston-based communications firm Reel Media Solutions in 2009, which positioned her as a go-to field producer for network news programs including Good Morning America, World News Tonight and 20/20. In addition, she held reporter and producer roles for Texas news stations KTRK-TV ABC 13 (Houston), KTBC-TV Fox 7 (Austin) and KCEN-TV NBC 6 (Waco). She currently serves as community service co-chair for Jack and Jill of America Inc.’s Houston chapter and is the organization’s immediate past programming director, second vice president.

Patrick D. Eagan, board chairman for Ascend Federal Credit Union ($3.4 billion, Tullahoma, Tenn.) was inducted into the Tennessee Credit Union League’s Hall of Fame at the league’s convention and expo held Aug. 18-21 in Chattanooga. A 30-year veteran of the U.S. Air Force who has held squadron and group commander assignments, Eagan has been an Ascend member since 2000 and first became involved as a volunteer with the credit union in 2003 when he joined the board’s development committee, which is tasked with finding and developing future members of the board of directors. During his 18-year volunteer association with Ascend, Eagan has served as chairman (2020-present), vice chairman (2019-2020), treasurer (2018-2019), secretary (2017-2018), member of the supervisory committee (2008-2010) and chairman of the supervisory committee (2010-2014).

CUSOS

The Irvine, Calif.-based lending technology CUSO CU Direct made two new appointments to its board of directors.

Thayne Shaffer, president/CEO of America First Credit Union ($15.8 billion, Riverdale, Utah) was appointed as a director. Shaffer has 36 years of experience in the credit union industry, serving as president/CEO of America First since April 2021.

Bill Cheney, president/CEO of SchoolsFirst Federal Credit Union ($25.8 billion, Santa Ana, Calif.) has joined the board as associate director. Cheney has more than 35 years of experience in the credit union and financial services industry, including as president/CEO of CUNA and president/CEO of the California and Nevada Credit Union Leagues. He has served as SchoolsFirst’s president/CEO since 2014.

LEAGUES

The Dakota Credit Union Association (DakCU) hired Lindsey Hefta as director of marketing. In her new role, Hefta will primarily be responsible for performing both external and internal marketing strategies for DakCU. She will focus on developing promotional and membership strategies, collateral resources for DakCU events, educational conferences and seminars, and social and political functions. She will also assist with the creative development and implementation of all visual and video assets, including creative design and support for DakCU’s digital assets, website and social media platforms. Prior to joining DakCU, Hefta worked as the marketing director for a regional community bank in Bismarck, N.D. Her graphic design has been recognized with an ADDY Award and she recently received the 2021 AMA 4 Under 40 Emerging Marketing Leaders Award.

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