Longtime CEO, Roger Ball, retiring; West named successor

“For more than 36 years, Roger Ball has served the members of Call Federal with honesty, integrity and compassion,” said Jim Horne, Call Federal Board Chairman. “He has always made our members the number one priority, and worked constantly to build an organization that helps members reach their goals and improve their financial health.”

Roger began his Call Federal career in May 1983, when he was hired as assistant general manager and the 12th employee of Call Federal, which was founded in 1962 to serve members working at Philip Morris USA.  At that time, the credit union had one branch in the main office and assets of $12 million.  Since then, Roger has led Call Federal through periods of rapid expansion, economic recessions, PM USA and Altria workforce reductions, and increasing competition in the marketplace.  Under his leadership, Call Federal has expanded to six branches, introduced mortgage lending and credit cards, completed three mergers with other credit unions, added more than 80 select employee groups to membership, and expanded the field of membership to include the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area. Today, Call Federal has a service-focused staff of 89 employees, a growing presence in the community, and assets of more than $400 million.

“I’ve been fortunate to have the support and confidence of the Board in leading Call Federal to the position it has reached today,” said Roger.  “We are financially sound, have received high ratings from our regulator, NCUA, and enjoy a good reputation.  I’m honored to be a financial steward for our members.  We always put our members first, and live by the cooperative spirit and principles that distinguish credit unions from other financial institutions.”

Succeeding a leader who has left such a lasting impression on the organization is no small task, but the Call Federal Board is highly confident in both the abilities and experience of John West. John joined Call Federal in October 2012.  He previously worked at Mary Washington Healthcare, where he was Director of Capital Accounting, and for the United Way of Fredericksburg. John worked as the Director of Accounting and Finance at Call Federal until 2015, when he was appointed Vice President of Operations.  More recently, he has served as Acting CFO and Vice President of Accounting. When asked about his new role, John said, “Call Federal has a strong mission, a focused team that believes in that mission, and the resources to successfully pursue it. For these reasons, I’m excited to take on this opportunity.”

West is also graduate of Leadership Metro Richmond and served for one year with Lead Virginia.  Both of these organizations are well recognized for their networking and development of strong leaders in the Richmond area.

With regards to the transition, CFCU Board Chairman Jim Horne remarked, “We are grateful for Roger’s service over the past 36 years, and wish him the best in his retirement. He will work in close partnership with John for the remainder of 2019 to ensure a smooth transition and ongoing execution of CFCU’s business plan.  We welcome John as the new leader of this great cooperative financial institution, and look forward to working with him as we continue to help our members reach their goals and achieve financial health.”