Meet Your Dakota Credit Union Association Board!

​Order of business at DakCU Annual Meeting includes board of director elections.  We appreciate these credit union professionals stepping up as volunteers to work on your behalf. 

Fargo, ND – The Dakota Credit Union Association (DakCU) held their annual meeting on May 4, 2021 at the Delta Marriott Convention Center in Fargo, ND. As part of the order of business, elections for the DakCU board of directors were held. Two seats were up for election this year: Multi-State At Large and ND Division C; both were uncontested. 

The DakCU board is made up of seven members consisting of three North Dakota division members and three South Dakota division members, along with one multi-state at-large position. The board oversees the association as well as the Dakota League Service Corp (DLSC), the for-profit service corporation of DakCU. Following a reorganizational meeting, we are pleased to announce our 2021 board members and their roles. 

Lacey Fetsch – ND Division B.  Lacey began working at University FCU (Grand Forks, ND) in 2004 while attending the University of ND. After graduating from UND with a BA in Banking and Financial Economics, she became a full-time employee and held the titles of Loan Officer and Director of Operations before becoming CEO in 2016. She graduated with High Honors from CUNA Management School in 2018 and holds the Certified Credit Union Executive (CCUE) designation. She was elected to the DakCU board in 2019.

Jerry Peterson – SD Division C. Jerry is a current board member of Consumer’s FCU (Gregory, SD) where he has been a member since 1983. He previously served on the South Dakota Credit Union League Board and was on the association board when the two leagues first merged. Jerry is retired from the Gregory County Register of Deeds, where he worked for 36 years. He continues to be active in community development and local charities.

 Jarrod Reisner – SD Division A. Jarrod began working at Black Hills FCU (Rapid City, SD) in 2009. His current title is SVP/Chief Financial Officer. He graduated from SD State University with a BS in Management and holds a CPA license. He has been on the association board since 2016, is a member of the SD GAC, and is a current board member for Midwest Business Solutions, LLC dba Pactola.

Sean Rinkenberger – Multi State At Large. Sean has worked at First community Credit Union (Jamestown, ND) since 2015, starting as Controller, and taking on the CFO role in 2016. He holds a CPA license and got his start in public accounting where he worked with financial institutions ranging in size from $20 million to over $1 billion in total assets. He was elected to the association board in 2018.

Darla Schafer – ND Division C. Before becoming the Manager of Flasher Community CU (Flasher, ND), Darla served on the credit union’s board of directors. She holds an Associate’s Degree in Electronic Technology from Bismarck State College and an Associate’s Degree in Theology from Yankton College. Darla is a longtime member of the Dakota Credit Union Foundation Board and has been a member of the ND GAC for more than ten years.  

Melanie Stillwell – ND Division A. Melanie is the CEO of Western Cooperative CU (Williston, ND) and was first elected to the association Board in 2017. She has vast experience in the credit union industry, as a senior vice president of finance, as a former NCUA examiner, as an executive vice president, and as CEO. She holds degrees in both accounting and finance as well as a CPA Certificate.
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Dawn VanAsh – SD Division B. Dawn has been involved with credit unions for more than 30 years. Starting as a teller, she was promoted to several roles including loan officer and assistant manager, prior to becoming CEO of Oahe FCU (Pierre, SD). A South Dakota native, she is a graduate of CUNA management School and was elected to the DakCU board in 2020.
 
Photo L to R: Jeff Olson, DakCU President/CEO; Lacey Fetsch; Melanie Stillwell; Sean Rinkenberger; Jarrod Reisner;
​Dawn VanAsh; Jerry Peterson, and Darla Schafer.