CU1 Celebrates International Women's Day
International Women’s Day (IWD) is held annually on March 8th.
It’s a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women, as well as marks a call to action for accelerating women’s equality. CU1 is celebrating IWD by highlighting the strengths of the women of CU1!
Brenda Crane | SVP / Chief Lending Officer
Brenda Crane started her career with Household Finance where she worked her way up to be the Regional Vice President with management, internal audit & collection certifications. Her sales successes were recognized nationally! She came to Credit Union 1 in 1988 as a loan officer.
Brenda’s work ethic helped her stand out against her peers and brought her to leading CU1’s lending program from that point forward. Additionally, she’s built and developed the CU1 card programs, managed real estate, call center, collections, mortgage servicing and soon to add commercial teams.
We are lucky to have her vision on CU1’s team. Brenda says, “I ooze the credit union industry vision of people helping people. I am a cheerleader and true advocate for Credit Union 1”.
Outside of the office Brenda served and chaired on the board of directors for local charities: Crisis Nursery, Credit Bureau of Central Illinois-Trans Union affiliate and East Central Illinois Community Service Center. She is also on the local Village Liquor and Planning commissions, as well as presently a Director on both the Illinois Credit Union League and League Service Corporation. “I am also a member of the Legislative, Audit and Compensation committees of the Illinois Credit Union System.”
Brenda’s successes doesn't end there! She is blessed to still have both parents, a son (Patrick) and daughter-in-law (Krystal), is a “mom” to her Boxer Sampson, and is looking forward to being a 1st time grandma in May!
Sue Heyen | SVP Human Resources
Sue Heyen leads our Human Resources team here at Credit Union 1. Sue started in 1994 as the Administrative Assistant in the Executive Office. As CU1 continued to grow and transition, her role evolved to oversee the Training and Development team. Sue says, “I find it rewarding to invest in the growth and support of Credit Union 1’s biggest asset – its employees – and to work together as a team to build a strong and meaningful culture.”
As her time went on at CU1, Sue advanced to leading the Human Resource team as the Senior Vice President of HR. Her past 25 years at CU1 has set high standards for every employee to be developed to their strongest potential.
Teri Post | VP Member Solutions and Operations
Teri Post came to CU1 with 13 years’ experience working in the banking industry. Teri has been at Credit Union 1 for 27 years and always strives to succeed as well as develop others to achieve their highest potential. At Credit Union 1, she started her career as a Head Teller, then advanced to a Branch Manager, then the Call Center Manager, then AVP Call Center then VP Member Solutions and Operations.
Teri credits her success to the strong leaders that advised and coached her along the way. “I would recommend for anyone to go after what they want. Present yourself as if you are interviewing every day.”
Nicole Foote | VP Consumer Lending
Nicole Foote started her career in finance during the great recession of 2009. At that time, it was very difficult to find a job anywhere, especially in the financial industry. As a recent graduate with her degree in Finance, Nicole would not take “no” for an answer. Nicole’s strong work ethic and determination landed her first position in the financial industry and advanced her career. Her vocation has taken Nicole to the Pacific Northwest, the South, and now the Midwest.
“The thing I love most about working for a Credit Union is that we aren’t working to pad the pockets of our board members, we are working to make a better life for our members. If I could give one piece of advice to career minded men and women alike, it would be this: if you do 2 things right, then you’re doing your job. 1) Make your boss’ job easier, and 2) make your boss look good to his/her boss. People who do these 2 things regularly will gravitate towards success.”