Valley Credit Union’s CEO has announced her retirement after over a decade working with the organization
BILLINGS, MT (December 9, 2020) — With appreciation, Valley Credit Union (Valley) has announced the retirement of Chief Executive Officer, Darla Card. Card’s decision to retire will bring to close a remarkable career of over a decade of service with the credit union. Casey Klein, Senior Vice President of Branch Administration at Valley, will succeed Card as the new CEO effective January 16, 2021.
“Darla has played an invaluable role in supporting our credit union over the past twelve years,” said Klein. “She has worked endlessly to guarantee our credit union keeps pace with the changing needs of our membership while simultaneously preserving our core values and propelling the impact we have been able to make within our community by following her passion and applying the credit union philosophy of people helping people. We are forever grateful for her dedication and wish her the best in this next chapter.”
Card got her start in the financial industry in 1978 and has been serving the credit union movement at Valley since February 9, 2009. Upon joining Valley, she took on the role of Chief Lending Officer and was named interim CEO in July of 2014 before being offered and accepting the position as the first female CEO of the credit union in November later that year. Under Card’s leadership, the credit union went from $201 million assets with 25,013 members to $332 million in assets and over 32,000 members. She also took the credit union’s charter from federal to state in under two months and assisted in the opening of the credit union’s new branch in Bozeman.
“Valley Credit Union has allowed me to do what I love while also having the unique opportunity to serve and enrich the community that has given so much to me,” said Card. “It has been an honor to work with this progressive and compassionate organization. I am eager to watch the credit union continue to grow and I’m confident that it will have immense success through the next generation of leaders.”
Valley Credit Union has selected Casey Klein as the successor of Card. Klein has over 15 years of experience in the financial industry and has been an integral part of the Valley team since 2008. Klein has most recently served as SVP, Branch Administration for Valley, where he oversaw all nine of Valley’s branches, Valley’s Mortgage Origination, and Commercial lending division. Similar to Card, Klein has a deep passion for uplifting the community as he currently serves as Vice President on the Board of Directors for the Wise Wonders Science and Discovery Museum. The credit union knows that Klein will follow in Card’s footsteps to propel the credit union’s mission over the years to come.
About Valley Credit Union
Since 1949, Valley Credit Union has proudly served citizens within its communities, which now includes 30 counties across Montana and Wyoming. From the beginning, the credit union was founded on the promise to provide accommodating, personalized service, as well as top-notch financial services to its members. Those founding principles are the same driving force that still directs its mission today.
For more information about Valley Credit Union, visit www.valleyfcu.com.
