6 Credit Unions, Leagues, WOCCU Reveal Career Moves

EAST

James H. Norris III, president/CEO for the $213 million, Germantown, Md.-based SkyPoint Federal Credit Union, announced his plans to retire after 42 years serving the credit union industry and 12 years as SkyPoint’s CEO. Norris began his career as manager/CEO of Mercy Hospital Employees Federal Credit Union in Pennsylvania at the age of 22. From there, he was hired as the College Park Branch manager/branch operations manager of SECU of Maryland ($5.2 billion, Linthicum), and later as vice president of delivery systems at NIHFCU ($838 million, Rockville, Md.) and CEO of AFL-CIO Employees Federal Credit Union ($52.7 million, Washington, D.C.).

Freedom First Credit Union ($1 billion, Roanoke, Va.) hired Brad Butler as vice president of private banking for the Lynchburg, Va., market. Freedom First’s private banking team provides concierge-level service and personalized products to financially savvy members looking to grow their wealth for the future. Butler brings more than three decades of relational and business experience, having served at Facility Partners, Wiley|Wilson, The American Red Cross, Williams Lighting and Liberty University, all located in the Lynchburg and Forest, Va., communities.

MIDWEST

The $134 million Telco Triad Community Credit Union in Sioux City, Iowa announced two new hires.

Delsy Maldonado was hired as manager of the Riverside Branch in Sioux City and loan officer. Maldonado is bilingual and brings over 17 years of lending experience.

Andrew Kronaizl was hired as manager of the Morningside Branch in Sioux City and loan officer. He worked in credit unions for the last seven years in the Midwest, holds an MBA from the University of South Dakota and received a Certified Credit Union Financial Counselor designation from CUNA.

SOUTH

Jama Campbell, executive director of State Employees’ Credit Union’s ($50.9 billion, Raleigh, N.C.) SECU Foundation, was announced as a winner of the Triangle Business Journal’s 2023 Women in Business Awards. Campbell earned the recognition for her 2022 contributions to SECU Foundation’s success, overall organizational growth, community involvement and other awards and achievements. Campbell oversees SECU Foundation’s mission to promote local and community development through the funding of large-scale statewide initiatives in the core areas of education, housing, health care and human services. She has also been influential in building alliances with like-minded philanthropic groups in associated industries and mentorships with other credit unions looking to establish foundations.

The $970 million Alabama ONE Credit Union in Tuscaloosa, Ala., hired Kelley Miller as director of agricultural lending effective March 3. He joins from First South Farm Credit in Northport, Ala., where he worked in various positions from loan officer to his most recent role of vice president branch manager, which he served in for 12 out of his 21 years with the company. Miller has served as a mentor for Farm Credit University’s commercial ag lending degree program, where he also continued his education in commercial ag lending and mastering sales magnetism. In his new role, he will help Alabama ONE continue expand agricultural lending products, lead the direction of agricultural lending, and provide coaching and oversight.

The $1.9 billion, Indian Land, S.C.-based Sharonview Federal Credit Union promoted Patrice Biggins to vice president of credit administration. In her new role, Biggins is responsible for supporting Sharonview’s loan underwriting, processing, closing and funding teams. Her additional responsibilities include overseeing internal control structures for lending, mitigating the organization’s credit risk and ensuring regulatory compliance in lending. Biggins has numerous years of experience in consumer lending, having held positions at Fifth Third Bank, Equifirst Mortgage and SunTrust Mortgage. Since joining Sharonview in 2014, she has served as a mortgage operations manager in real estate and most recently as assistant vice president of loan operations.

LEAGUES

Credit Union House, a special events venue on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., that is owned by every statewide credit union association/league and the American Association of Credit Union Leagues (AACUL), inducted four Minnesota credit union industry CEOs into the 2023 Credit Union House Hall of Leaders: Dave Boden, Mark Cummins, Mary Hansen and Tom Smith. The honor recognizes credit union professionals and volunteers whose commitment to service has inspired others in the credit union movement.

Boden has been with Hiway Credit Union ($1.7 billion, St. Paul) for over 19 years, serving as the credit union’s president/CEO since 2013. He serves on the Minnesota Credit Union Network’s (MnCUN) board of directors and previously served as chair of the MnCUN’s Political Involvement Committee.

Cummins has served as president/CEO of MnCUN for the past 16 years. Cummins has also served the AACUL as board chair and on the CUNA Executive Committee, as well as on the board of directors for CUNA Strategic Services and the National Advocacy Committee. He has also served on CUNA’s World Affairs Committee and was honored with the 2022 Farley Leadership Award.

Hansen has been CEO of Mayo Employees Federal Credit Union ($1.3 billion, Rochester) since 2001. She serves on the MnCUN board as chair and previously served on the Minnesota Credit Union Foundation board of directors. She received the Minnesota ICON Award from Finance & Commerce as one of 20 Minnesotans honored for “distinctive excellence” in their careers, as well as the Circle of Excellence Award and Top Woman in Finance honor from Finance & Commerce. Hansen was named the 2017 Professional of the Year by MnCUN, in addition to receiving a Distinguished Service Award from Luther College in 2016.

Smith joined TopLine Financial Credit Union ($737 million, Maple Grove) as chief lending officer in 2008 and was selected as president/CEO in January 2014. Smith serves on the MnCUN board, the Minnesota Credit Union Network Foundation board and MnCUN’s Political Involvement Committee.

The Michigan Credit Union League (MCUL) named Brad Bergmooser, president/CEO for the $1.2 billion, Flint, Mich.-based Financial Plus Credit Union, its 2023 Professional of the Year award recipient. The Credit Union Professional of the Year award recognizes an individual whose leadership and accomplishments have bettered their individual credit union, district/chapter and relationships within the statewide movement. Bergmooser will be honored alongside the 2023 MCUL and Michigan Credit Union Foundation award winners this June during the MCUL’s 2023 Annual Convention & Exposition in Grand Rapids, Mich.

TRADES

The World Council of Credit Unions announced two new hires and one promotion.

Angelina Tracy was hired as vice president of strategic growth and partnerships. In her new role, Tracy will work to grow WOCCU International Projects’ relationship with USAID and other institutional donors and partners to build on current development strategies, and promote innovations to expand the work globally. She brings nearly 20 years of experience in providing strategic guidance to achieve business development goals, most recently serving in the cooperative sector at Land O’Lakes Venture37.

Ari Farrell was hired as the Worldwide Foundation for Credit Unions’ WYCUP manager. Farrell spent the past eight years working in several key roles for Northwest Community Credit Union ($1.8 billion, Eugene, Ore.). She is involved in many networks across the credit union industry and beyond as a volunteer and advocate, including the African-American Credit Union Coalition (AACUC), AACUC West Coast Chapter, CU Pride, CU Pride Leadership Conference, Habitat for Humanity and Team Depot.

Thomas Belekevich, who most recently served as director of the Worldwide Foundation for Credit Unions’ WYCUP program, was promoted to WOCCU’s director of member services. In his new role, Belekevich serves as the main liaison to WOCCU’s member national and regional credit union associations that represent more than 75,000 credit unions with 280 million members in more than 80 countries.

VENDORS

SRM, an independent advisory firm serving credit unions and other financial institutions, announced two new hires.

Jeff Ostheimer was hired as director of fintech advisory services. Ostheimer joins SRM after 17 years at Finastra. His experience includes helping banks and credit unions on their digital transformation journeys, with a focus on core banking, digital banking platforms and ancillary services.

Mike Langenkamp was hired as director, community financial institutions. Langenkamp previously worked for Fiserv. In his new role, he will deliver core banking and digital transformation projects.

Rochdale, an Overland Park, Kan.-based professional advisory services and software firm serving credit unions, announced two new hires.

David Seibert was hired as strategy, risk and assurance partner. Seibert is president and owner of David Seibert Consulting and RGS Business Advisors, which join Rochdale as a new resource along with Seibert’s hiring. Seibert brings almost 25 years of risk management and information security experience, having spent the early part of his career working in risk-focused information security roles including senior group manager for Target Corporation, vice president of enterprise risk management and strategy execution and chief risk officer at a $4 billion credit union, and as a member of the enterprise risk management committee for a large corporate credit union. He spent the last several years consulting within the credit union industry as president, owner and chief risk officer for David Seibert Consulting.

Jason Shalton was hired to Rochdale’s apogee iQ development team as a software application developer. Shalton brings 10 years of software development experience, having previously served at a large industry technology company. Prior to his time in software development, Shalton spent many years in the U.S. and abroad teaching and leading students through guitar lessons, recitals and events.

Newzip, a Boston-based customer experience platform provider serving credit unions and banks, hired Jeff Martin as national partnerships executive. In his new role, Martin will help advance Newzip’s mission to modernize the lending industry through the combination of technology and human empathy in order to help people make informed real estate decisions through every phase of their real estate journey. Martin has been in the financial services industry since 2000, having spent the past 10 years at HomeAdvantage/CU Realty Services. He began as a regional sales director, rising through the ranks to the position of director of account management and national account executive. Martin has also held lending and business development officer positions in both the banking and credit union sectors, including at several CUSOs.

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