First Tech Names New General Counsel; Unitus Promotes 4

WEST

The $1.7 billion, Portland, Ore.-based Unitus Community Credit Union announced four promotions.

Michael Hansen was promoted to vice president of member services. In his new role, Hansen is responsible for overseeing branches, the call center and the virtual branch. Hansen joined Unitus in 2008 as a branch manager and worked his way up to the assistant vice president, regional branch manager role in 2013.

Ken Riedel was promoted to vice president of operations. In his new role, Riedel is responsible for deposit operations, card services, the deposit task force and improving operational practices across the credit union. Riedel joined Unitus in 2019 as assistant vice president, regional branch manager.

Wayne Matsumura was promoted to vice president, business lending. In his new role, he will be responsible for business lending, expansion and specialized services. Matsumara joined Unitus in 2007 and most recently served as assistant vice president of business lending.

Heather Bianchini was promoted to the newly-created role of assistant vice president of digital banking services. In this position, she will be responsible for the digital banking platform experience and ancillary digital experiences that enhance the member experience. Bianchini will also be an integral part of product and channel management initiatives at Unitus, working closely with others that own channels and product lines. She joined Unitus in 2019 and served as digital manager over the past five years.

The $16.9 billion, San Jose, Calif.-based First Tech Federal Credit Union promoted Holly McHugh to general counsel. She succeeds Phil Campbell, who retired on March 1 after 12 years of service. In her new role, she will lead the credit union’s Enterprise Governance & Legal Affairs (EGLA), Vendor Management and Compliance teams.

In addition, she will provide legal guidance to the credit union and its business and project teams to identify solutions that help First Tech serve its members, while also bringing a background and knowledge that will assist the credit union in continuing to develop its lending partner relationships. McHugh has over a decade of experience in commercial real estate finance, bond finance, asset-based finance and corporate governance, representing national and regional banks as well as lenders in commercial and multi-family lending, loan syndications and other commercial transactions.

MIDWEST

The $2.9 billion, Appleton, Wis.-based Fox Communities Credit Union promoted Joedy Thompson to vice president of business intelligence. In his new role, Thompson will continue to build on the foundational work of the enterprise analytics platform within Fox and provide increased support to the chief marketing officer, chief lending officer and chief experience officer to deploy meaningful strategies directly impacting member experience and growth of the credit union. Thompson joined Harbor Credit Union in 1999. In 2017, Harbor Credit Union merged with Fox Communities, where he served as director of marketing analytics and strategy. He holds 12 certifications from America’s Credit Unions (formerly CUNA) and was also part of the Trellance Analytics Collaboration Council.

SOUTH

Leigh Brady, president/CEO for State Employees’ Credit Union ($55.8 billion, Raleigh, N.C.), was named to the 2024 Power List by Business North Carolina. Brady was featured among the state’s most prominent individuals in the finance and insurance industry. The annual Power List celebrates top leaders who are making a significant impact in their organizations and communities across a wide spectrum of industries. Brady became president/CEO of the country’s second largest credit union in July 2023 after serving in a variety of leadership positions within the organization, most recently as COO. She is the first female to hold this position at SECU.

Caren Gabriel, former president/CEO for the $4.4 billion, Tullahoma, Tenn.-based Ascend Federal Credit Union, was inducted into the Tennessee Credit Union League Hall of Fame. The award recognizes Gabriel’s impact and leadership during her 38 years at Ascend, including 19 as CEO. The honor was announced at the Tennessee Credit Union League awards dinner, part of the 2024 Tennessee Credit Union League Convention and Expo held April 16-18 at the Gatlinburg Convention Center in Gatlinburg, Tenn. Gabriel became president/CEO of Ascend in 2004 and helped to grow the organization from $960.3 million in assets, 12 branches and 117,000 members 20 years ago to over $3.8 billion in assets, 27 branches and more than 255,000 members by 2023. The Tennessee Credit Union Hall of Fame was created to honor and recognize the commitment, leadership and dedication that deserving individuals have made to the credit union movement.

CUSOS

myCUmortgage, a wholly-owned mortgage services CUSO of the $8.5 billion Beavercreek, Ohio-based Wright-Patt Credit Union, named Ben Rempe president, effective May 20. He replaces Interim President Paul Sutor, who will continue his role as vice president of risk management for myCUmortgage. In his new role, Rempe will lead the myCUmortgage team of experts as they work on strategies that will enhance their services and help credit union partners grow their mortgage business. Rempe brings over 20 years of experience in credit unions and financial services, having most recently served as SVP of credit unions at the National Cooperative Bank. Prior to that, he worked for a fintech startup that grew to servicing over 300 credit unions. Additionally, he worked for TMG Financial Solutions, where he built solutions for credit unions around mortgage warehouse lending and credit card portfolios. Rempe holds an MBA from the University of Iowa.

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