6 CU Professionals Accept New Positions & Awards

WEST

The $910 million Valley First Credit Union in Modesto, Calif., promoted Joe Ledesma to director of loss prevention and security. Ledesma joined the credit union three years ago as the loss prevention security manager. While serving at Valley First, his accomplishments have included managing nine major security upgrades for the credit union including alarm upgrades, a headquarters access control upgrade, and bringing facilities up to current fire, health and safety standards; ensuring intrusion and video surveillance systems meet the highest technical and quality standards; and in 2021, leading a team that worked 21,904 fraud alerts, which correlated to 340 cases and prevented more than $1.1 million in losses to the credit union.

MIDWEST

Lucy Burmeister, education coordinator for the $227 million, Fremont, Mich.-based Gerber Federal Credit Union, received an honorable mention for the Training Professional of the Year Award at the 2022 CUNA ELLy Awards. The awards were presented at the CUNA Experience Learning Live! Conference, held Oct. 2-4 in San Diego, Calif. Winners of these awards represent top achievers in the field of credit union training, and are selected by a team of industry judges based on the vision, development and results of their original training programs throughout 2022.

SOUTH

The $3.8 billion, Tullahoma, Tenn.-based Ascend Federal Credit Union hired Rik Reitmaier as SVP and chief information officer. In his new role, Reitmaier is responsible for leading information security and system development, technology strategy and support objectives at the credit union. Reitmaier brings more than 25 years of experience and most recently served as chief information officer for Genesco, a global footwear company based in Nashville, Tenn. Before that, he was SVP and chief information officer for Gaylord Entertainment and director of project management for Harrah’s Entertainment. In 2017, Reitmaier was named a finalist for chief information officer of the year by the Nashville Technology Council and Retail Information Technology News, and in addition, he received a Hotel Technology Magazine Innovation Award – Mobile Employee and an InformationWeek 500 Award – Leisure Market CRM. Reitmaier has been a member of the board of directors for Junior Achievement since 2011 and served as a member of the CIO Council for the National Retail Federation.

The $2.1 billion, Winston-Salem, N.C.-based Allegacy Federal Credit Union’s financial planning group, Allegacy Investment Group, promoted of Merrill (Shaw) Stewart to program manager. In her new role, she is responsible for the strategic growth and development of the credit union’s financial planning program. Stewart began her career at Allegacy in 2003 in customer service, retail lending and as a sales and service team leader, later becoming a financial center manager. In 2008, she transitioned from retail to serve as financial assistant with Allegacy Investment Group, and later became a financial advisor after obtaining several Financial Industry Regulatory Authority licenses. By 2016, she was named associate program manager. Stewart was recognized by Bank Insurance Securities Association (BISA) in 2019 as a BISA Rising Star in the industry for demonstrating outstanding promise and commitment in diversity and inclusion in the financial industry.

Washima Huq, executive director of the $1.9 billion, Arlington, Texas-based Texas Trust Credit Union’s Texas Trust Gives Foundation, was named to the Greater Arlington Chamber of Commerce’s inaugural 40 Under 40 class. In addition to overseeing charitable giving for Texas Trust, Huq serves on advisory boards and committees for the Asian Business Council, Greater Arlington Chamber of Commerce, Cooper Street YMCA, Arlington Women’s Alliance, Mansfield ISD Superintendent’s Advisory Council and Cornerstone League’s Young Professionals Group. Earlier this year, she was named the 2022 Rising Star by the Greater Arlington Chamber’s Women’s Alliance, and has received a number of other professional awards including being named the Cornerstone League’s Young Professional of the Year in 2021. The recipients of this year’s 40 Under 40 class will be honored at an event on Nov. 17 and featured in the November issue of Arlington Today.

Zachary Churchill, vice president of finance for USF Federal Credit Union ($1 billion, Tampa, Fla.), was named 2022 Emerging Leader by CUES. Churchill was selected to participate in the CUES Emerge program earlier this year, ultimately competing against other young credit union leaders for the award. Churchill’s winning business case was titled “The Case for a Data Analytics Team.” Churchill has 16 years of experience in the credit union industry and has held various leadership positions including manager of internal audit, manager of consumer lending, manager of performance excellence and vice president of lending for USF FCU. Churchill was selected as the Florida Sterling Rookie of the Year in 2017 and served as a national examiner for the Baldrige Performance Program. He is also a certified Credit Union Development Educator, certified Six Sigma Black Belt through the American Society for Quality and a Certified Management Accountant. Churchill holds an MBA from the University of Tampa.

LEAGUES

Plexcity, an organization formed by the California and Nevada Credit Union Leagues, Maryland & District of Columbia Credit Union Association and New Jersey Credit Union Association to help credit union leagues and other professional organizations aggregate their back-office operations, named Juan Fernández Ceballos, Carol Marx and Anthony Hernandez to its board of directors.

Fernández Ceballos is president/CEO of the Credit Union Association of New Mexico and has worked in the financial services industry for nearly two decades. He started his career in the credit union industry as a sales and service representative with the $5.5 billion Visions Federal Credit Union in Endwell, N.Y., then worked as a legislative aide in the New York Assembly and as community development coordinator for the New York Credit Union Association before joining the CUANM in 2007 as vice president. In 2020, he joined the $207 million Canopy Credit Union in Spokane, Wash., as its community development officer before returning to CUANM in June as president/CEO.

Marx is president/CEO of the Hawaii Credit Union League. Prior to taking the reins at the HCUL, she served as SVP and retail sales manager for the Mortgage Banking Division at Bank of Hawaii. Marx previously worked in leadership roles for Bank of America, First Hawaiian Bank and Pioneer Federal Savings Bank. She has served as president of the Hawaii HomeOwnership Center, president of the Mortgage Bankers Association of Hawaii and president of Soroptimists International of Waikiki.

Hernandez is president/CEO of the Defense Credit Union Council and served 25 years on active duty in the United States Air Force. He joined DCUC as COO in 2016 before being named CEO in 2017. Prior to joining DCUC, Hernandez served in various senior leadership and command positions within the USAF, including CFO of an Air Force Major Command and commander of the 319th Mission Support Group at Grand Forks AFB in North Dakota. As part of the latter position, he concurrently served as the installation’s mayor, chief magistrate, city manager and director of emergency management operations supporting the Global Hawk mission and its 3,900 personnel and family members.

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