9 CU Professionals Advance Their Careers; One CEO to Retire

EAST

AmeriCU ($2.6 billion, Rome, N.Y.) hired Chris Kelly as a mortgage executive. Kelly brings a background in real estate, construction and mortgage lending. He spent the last two and a half years as a mortgage loan officer, preceded by a career as a realtor and business owner in the construction industry. In his new role, Kelly will provide members with personalized solutions to navigate their homeownership journeys in the Syracuse, N.Y., area.

Francois Verleysen, CEO of Signal Financial Federal Credit Union ($411 million, Kensington, Md.), announced plans to retire after more than a decade of leadership. Verleysen has spent more than 42 years in the financial industry, beginning his career as a paying and receiving clerk in the International Division of Maryland National Bank. He also held positions within Perpetual Savings Bank, Mellon Bank, Riggs Bank, Provident Bank and most recently, Bank Fund Staff Federal Credit Union ($6.4 billion, Washington, D.C.), where he led the growth and service delivery of the credit union before joining Signal Financial as CEO in 2014. Signal Financial’s Board of Directors has engaged with Cowen Partners to conduct a comprehensive search for a new CEO.

MIDWEST

Cobalt Credit Union ($1.3 billion, Papillion, Neb.) promoted Carol Carr to vice president of marketing. She has over 12 years of experience in the financial services industry. In her new role, Carr joins Cobalt’s leadership team and will oversee all activities related to marketing strategies and achieving organizational goals. Carr will be managing a team of marketing professionals and working with all departments to meet marketing targets.

Katie Cortes, manager of the Chesterton and Valparaiso South branches for Everwise Credit Union ($5.1 billion, South Bend, Ind.), was selected as the winner of the 2024 David R. Sage Exemplary Leadership and Service Award. Presented annually, the award recognizes Everwise employees who demonstrate the leadership and values of former board chairman David R. Sage, who served in Everwise leadership for nearly four decades. Award winners are nominated by fellow employees and selected by the executive management team. Cortes joined Everwise in 2018 as a teller in northwest Indiana and was promoted to assistant manager for two Valparaiso locations in 2019. In 2021, she was promoted to her current position. She serves on the board of the Duneland Chamber of Commerce, is an active member of the Chamber’s finance committee and serves as the chair of its ambassador committee. In addition, Cortes was nominated for a Northwest Influential Women Association’s Influential Women Award in 2022 and 2024.

Credit Union 1 ($1.9 billion, Lombard, Ill.) promoted Sam Hamilton to vice president of community relations. Hamilton has been with CU1 for 25 years. In his new role, he will focus on expanding community outreach initiatives and fostering partnerships with collegiate athletic conferences and community partners in the areas surrounding CU1 branches. In the communities CU1 serves, he will oversee participation in community-focused events, financial literacy programming through the branches and charitable outreach. He will also spearhead the expansion of CU1’s charitable giving through an evolved vision of its community foundation, ensuring maximum community impact and member engagement.

Mid Minnesota Federal Credit Union ($755 million, Baxter, Minn.) promoted Joe Reed to chief revenue officer. In his new executive management role, Reed will enhance efficient communication among stakeholders, develop ownership responsibility at all levels and ensure swift, best decision making. Reed most recently served as vice president of business and mortgage services for the credit union.

Lake Michigan Credit Union ($14.3 billion, Caledonia, Mich.) hired Keanu Tabali as a mortgage loan officer for the credit union’s Southeast Michigan region. In his new role, Tabali will prioritize transparency, clarity and availability as he helps individuals, families and first-time homebuyers in particular achieve their homeownership dreams, connecting them with the right LMCU products to fit their specific needs.

Jackie Buchanan, president/CEO of Genisys Credit Union ($5.2 billion, Auburn Hills, Mich.), was named as a Notable Nonprofit Board Leader by Crain’s Detroit Business. The recognition highlights her leadership as Board Chair at Lighthouse, a nonprofit dedicated to alleviating poverty and homelessness. Crain’s recognizes individuals who are “titans of industry and community service.” Understanding the power of diverse backgrounds, these individuals bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to their board roles, leveraging passion and skill to provide strategic direction, secure funding and more to the nonprofits they serve.

Serve Credit Union ($97.9 million, Des Moines, Iowa) hired Jennifer Adkisson as COO.In her new role, Adkisson will assist CEO Jami Weems in the overall management and strategic direction of the credit union. She will work in all credit union operations, which include planning, recommending and implementing programs and policies, and providing general administrative direction. She brings 20 years of collective experience in the credit union and financial services industries. Adkisson most recently spent nearly 10 years at ViClarity, where she supported credit unions with regulatory compliance, and 10 years with various local financial institutions. She received a NAFCU Certified Compliance Officer certification from NAFCU (now America’s Credit Unions).

LEAGUES

Left to right: AACUL President Brad Miller and Scott Simpson

The American Association of Credit Union Leagues (AACUL) awarded Scott Simpson with its highest recognition, the Eagle Award. Simpson is president/CEO of the California and Nevada Credit Union Leagues and Utah’s Credit Unions. The Eagle Award recognizes a credit union league/association president who displays an outstanding record of achievement, demonstrates leadership beyond the league level, is willing to speak out and take a stand on important challenges and opportunities, and shows innovation in implementing new ideas.

Please send your People news items to Natasha Chilingerian at [email protected].

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Natasha Chilingerian has been immersed in the credit union industry for over a decade. She first joined CU Times in 2011 as a freelance writer, and following a two-year hiatus from 2013-2015, during which time she served as a communications specialist for Xceed Financial Credit Union (now Kinecta Federal Credit Union), she re-joined the CU Times team full-time as managing editor. She was promoted to executive editor in 2019. In the earlier days of her career, Chilingerian focused on news and lifestyle journalism, serving as a writer and editor for numerous regional publications in Oregon, Louisiana, South Carolina and the San Francisco Bay Area. In addition, she holds experience in marketing copywriting for companies in the finance and technology space. At CU Times, she covers People and Community news, cybersecurity, fintech partnerships, marketing, workplace culture, leadership, DEI, branch strategies, digital banking and more. She currently works remotely and splits her time between Southern California and Portland, Ore.