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EAST

Brian Gordon

Brian Gordon, collections manager for the $599 million, Alexandria, Va.-based Spectra Credit Union, was named the recipient of the 2025 Miriam Lieb Emerging Leader Award by the MD|DC Credit Union Association. This honor recognizes young professionals who demonstrate exceptional leadership and a deep commitment to the core values of the credit union movement, and pays tribute to the legacy of credit union advocate and leader Miriam Rivera Lieb. Each year, it is presented to an individual aged 40 or under who exemplifies Lieb’s vision, dedication and leadership within the industry.

MIDWEST

Halee Pullins

The $4.1 billion, St. Joseph, Mich.-based United Federal Credit Union promoted Halee Pullins to director of marketing. In her new role, she will lead United’s marketing, branding and media strategy. She will also serve as the subject matter expert on the credit union’s visual and verbal identity, ensuring all creative and messaging align with United’s brand standards across all markets. In addition, Pullins will oversee all marketing campaigns, including promotions and line of business support, and will manage the marketing team and budget. With over seven years of experience in credit union marketing and public relations, Pullins joined United in 2022 as a mortgage marketing coordinator. In 2025, she was promoted to product marketing strategist. Before joining United, Pullins held various marketing and public relations roles within the credit union industry.

SOUTH

The $539 million, Knoxville, Tenn.-based UT Federal Credit Union announced five promotions and one new hire.

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Ron Arms was promoted to assistant vice president, director of loss mitigation. Arms has over two decades of experience in credit union lending services, including seven years at UTFCU.

Ron Arms

Elizabeth DeBusk was promoted to assistant vice president, director of lending systems and risk management. DeBusk has been with UTFCU for 24 years, during which time she has gained experience in operations throughout the credit union.

Elizabeth DeBusk

Jennifer Shepherd was promoted to assistant vice president, director of indirect lending. Shepherd has over 25 years of experience in the financial services industry, including six years at UTFCU. She has an extensive background in loans, leadership and branch operations.

Jennifer Shepherd

Anne Hewitt was promoted to SVP, chief retail officer. Hewitt has been with UTFCU for nearly eight years, during which time she has gained experience in operations and sales management leadership.

Anne Hewitt

Michael Jones was promoted to SVP, chief risk and information officer. Jones joined UTFCU eight months ago, bringing expertise in risk, compliance and governance.

Michael Jones

Heath Dawson was hired as SVP, chief lending officer. Dawson brings 25 years of experience in financial services and executive management, as well as a deep understanding of consumer and business lending, mortgage and retail banking.

Heath Dawson

VENDORS

Ethan Silver

Investifi, an embedded digital investing platform provider serving credit unions and community banks, appointed Ethan Silver as a strategic advisor. In his new role, Silver will advise the Investifi leadership team on regulatory compliance, product development and scalable go-to-market strategies. Silver is currently chair of the fintech and broker-dealer practices and co-chair of the crypto practice at law firm Lowenstein Sandler LLP. In this role, he advises broker-dealers, robo-advisers and crypto-native firms on structuring operations and compliance, launching new products and navigating regulatory oversight.

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

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Natasha Chilingerian

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.