The President’s Perspective

​CEO Town Hall this afternoon; a successful Small CU Roundtable; a chance to win $10K for our CMN Hospitals; and a free employment law webinar. 

Greetings and happy Tuesday! As a reminder, today is our quarterly CEO Town Hall Tuesday and we’ll be providing a system update for Dakota credit union leaders at 3:00 p.m. (CT). I look forward to connecting with many of you later today.

We are now just two weeks away from the November 5th general election, with early voting open in many areas across our region. Meanwhile, Congress is back home until after the election.

Here in the Dakotas, we will be wrapping up our final Pints & Politics event in Jamestown this evening at the Baymont Hotel. I have seen a lot, logging more than 3,300 miles so far! The Dakota fall season has not disappointed while out on our advocacy tour. I certainly enjoyed taking in the sights, sounds, and smells of the fall season across our two beautiful states, including the grain and sugar beet harvesting.

Each Pints & Politics event has provided an opportunity to educate community leaders and lawmakers how credit unions live our mission every day. We know that there are opponents of not-for-profit financial cooperatives who will claim we’re not meeting our intended purpose, which makes it even more important we share credit unions’ impactful stories.

As we prepare for the upcoming legislative sessions in our two state capitals as well as in Congress, we need to use our unified voice to share our collective impact. Dakota credit unions go above and beyond every day for members and advance the communities they serve. Credit unions exist to serve our members, to put people before profit, and that includes giving people the opportunity to achieve their best financial lives.
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Small CU Roundtable a great success!
Last week, DakCU once again hosted the Small Credit Union Roundtable for credit unions in the Dakotas at $150M or less in assets. We hosted the meeting in Watertown, SD, as 10 unique credit unions’ leaders from both states participated. I would like to thank Alloya Corporate for sponsoring our meeting. As always, Alloya shows staunch support for our association and members! If you missed out this year, be sure to watch our events calendar in 2025 for the next opportunity. 

Velera launching Miracle Momentum Awards!
Velera (formerly Co-op Solutions and PSCU before they merged) is launching a new campaign called “Miracle Momentum Awards!” All credit unions have the opportunity to participate by nominating their local children’s hospital for the chance to win one of fifteen $10,000 awards!

The nomination process is simple and takes mere seconds to complete – just complete the form found here. This campaign runs now through November 30, 2024. Winners will be announced on December 13, 2024.
In the Dakotas, we have three CMN Hospitals: Sanford Children’s in Fargo, ND; Sanford Children’s in Sioux Falls, SD; and Monument Health in Rapid City, SD. As you know, our Dakota credit unions have shown outstanding support for our regional hospitals! Let’s do our best to try to win one of these prizes for the kids!

On a positive note.
Perhaps you caught the recent Memo article about our South Dakota credit union volunteers who are making a difference through the Junior Achievement financial education program in their local communities. All told, for the 2024-2025 school year, 57 credit union employees from 10 unique credit unions are selflessly giving their time and talents to help educate the next generation of consumers about financial well-being. The Dakota credit union foundation also has made generous donations to the program for the past four years! We truly are making a difference now, and for the future – the next generation of credit union members! Well, done!

Congratulations to Lorna Houge on 40 years of service!
I had a chance to meet and learn about Lorna Houge’s impressive 40 years of dedicated service at Dakotaland FCU (Huron, SD). Lorna began working at the credit union in 1984 and has seen many changes throughout the years, but one thing has never changed – her dedication to their members and her coworkers. Congratulations, Lorna, on this major milestone!

A benefit of membership: Employment and Labor Law webinar!
Finally, I want to invite you to join us on Thursday, October 31, at 12:00 p.m. (CT) for a look at the latest updates surrounding employment and labor law. This past year has been an active one for updating rules and regulations affecting employers today, and your association is proactively offering insight and a closer look at what some of those regulations mean. This complimentary webinar featuring Chad Richter of Jackson Lewis, P.C. is part of the valuable dues supported services DakCU is offering to assist in answering the many questions credit union leaders and HR staff have in the Dakotas. Register here and please contact George McDonald with any questions.  

Have a great week!

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DakCU President/CEO