America’s Credit Union Museum Announces New Board Members

October 28, 2020

America’s Credit Union Museum has announced the appointment of seven new members to its Board of Directors: Kristi Arrington, Vice President, Growth by Design/League of Southeastern Credit Unions & Affiliates; Patti Hazlett, Director of Public Affairs, Mountain West Credit Union Association; Tom Kane, President, Illinois Credit Union League; Sue McCue, Managing Director, Credit Union House; Mark Meyer, President & CEO, Filene Research Institute; Marina Miller, Vice President of Credit Union History and Culture, SchoolsFirst Federal Credit Union; and Merry Pateuk, Senior Vice President, Industry Engagement, PSCU. The new members bring with them a wealth of experience in the credit union movement as well as a deep commitment to preserving the rich history of our country’s credit union heritage.

“For the first time since we increased our board size, we have a full slate of directors,” said Stephanie G. Smith, Executive Director at America’s Credit Union Museum. “We have an incredible roster of credit union professionals and affiliates that are committed to executing our museum’s mission to ensure future generations not only understand the credit union difference, but also our People Helping People philosophy.”

The newly appointed directors will serve a three-year term on the Board.

  • Kristi Arrington is Vice President at Growth by Design, an award winning, full-service marketing agency housed in the League of Southeastern Credit Unions & Affiliates. In this role, Kristi oversees all operations, ensuring a 16-person staff provides creative, high quality and innovative marketing, business development and communications solutions to 100+ clients across the U.S. Kristi has over 20 years of experience in marketing and business development strategy in the financial services arena. She is a member of the Georgia Marketing Council Board, Credit Unions for Kids Activation Board (Children’s Miracle Network), and Credit Unions for Kids Content Marketing Board. She also is a member of the Children’s Miracle Network Greater Atlanta Chapter Committee and the AACUL Communications/PR Advisory Committee.
  • Patti Hazlett is the Director of Public Affairs at the Mountain West Credit Union Association. As Director of Public Affairs, Patti oversees all aspects of public relations and communications for the Association and member credit unions. She is responsible for developing and maintaining relationships with trade and local media to position credit union experts and the credit union message in a positive light. She also provides support across the organization in strategic priority areas such as advocacy. In 2015, Patti won the prestigious Blockbuster Award from CUNA for the Best Public Relations project for her work with Landings Credit Union in Phoenix. She also has earned the Credit Union Development Educator designation.
  • Tom Kane has been President/CEO of the Illinois Credit Union System since 2015. Since joining the Illinois Credit Union League and LSC in 2003, Tom has held several key leadership roles including Chief Administrative Officer, Executive Vice President of Operations, and Chief Security Officer. Tom previously held executive positions with Aon Corporation and Focal Communications and worked at Quaker Oats and the Central Intelligence Agency. Tom serves as a Director of the Credit Union National Association, Credit Union Museum, Cambio Financial Health, is Vice Chair of League InfoSight, and is a member of the FIS Credit Union Advisory Board.
  • Sue McCue is the Managing Director of Credit Union House and works with credit union executives, association leaders, and lawmakers. As a steward of the credit union movement’s permanent home in Washington, DC, Sue ensures Credit Union House is a prominent fixture of the Capitol Hill community. Sue also is heavily engaged in fundraising for Credit Union House as well as running its day-to-day operations and developing its overarching strategy. She is a member of Meeting Professionals International and the Live Events Coalition. She has earned the Credit Union Development Educator designation and serves as the American Association of Credit Union Leagues representative on the Credit Union DEI Collective’s governing body.
  • Mark Meyer is the President & CEO at Filene Research Institute. With more than 20 years of leadership experience in cooperative finance, Mark’s recognized as one of North America’s big thinkers in improving consumer financial well-being. An innovation evangelist, seasoned speaker, and facilitator, he’s lectured to audiences across five continents and advised the US Department of the Treasury. Always thinking forward, Mark’s research has appeared in The Wall Street Journal and on National Public Radio. A licensed attorney, Mark held executive posts with Arizona State Credit Union and CUNA Mutual Group prior to joining Filene. For more than 10 years, he served on the board of Summit Credit Union.
  • Marina Miller is Vice President of Credit Union History and Culture at SchoolsFirst Federal Credit Union. In her position as Vice President of CU History and Culture, she serves as the on-site historian, ensuring the culture is nurtured throughout all team building activities and credit union learning courses. Marina served on the California Credit Union League’s Orange County Chapter board for many years. She is a graduate of Western CUNA Management School and a 2017 graduate of the Credit Union Development Educator program. Marina has worked for SchoolsFirst Federal Credit Union for 35 years and has held a variety of roles throughout the organization.
  • Merry Pateuk is the Senior Vice President of Industry Engagement at PSCU. She fulfills PSCU’s strategic objective of leveraging the cooperative’s scale to advocate on behalf of the credit union industry. Prior to leading the Industry Engagement group, Merry championed, shaped, and orchestrated a superior Corporate Communications and Public Relations practice for the cooperative. Merry also has served in a wide range of senior leadership roles at PSCU to include Account Management, Sales, Corporate Relations, and Marketing. Merry earned the Credit Union Development Educators and Africa Development Educators distinction from the National Credit Union Foundation. Prior to joining PSCU, Merry worked for KPMG in the Financial Services practice as a Manager of Management Consulting.

The America’s Credit Union Museum is currently led by Chairman Paul Gentile, President/CEO, Merck Employees Credit Union. Representation on the 17-member board is comprised of credit union leagues, credit unions, and credit union partners. To view a complete list of the 2020-2021 America’s Credit Union Museum Board of Directors, visit: https://www.acumuseum.org/board-of-directors.html.