Partnering with cattle and ranch organizations throughout western North Dakota remains an important aspect of Dakota West’s region, and this week we are proud to sponsor the North Dakota Stockman’s Association’s Tomorrow’s Top Hands Beef Leadership Summit in Minot this Thursday through Saturday in Minot.
The Tomorrow's Top Hands Beef Leadership Summit is a high-energy, power-packed, beef-industry career exploration and leadership development conference to help youth gain connections and develop leadership skills. Focused on the youth ages 14 through 20, speakers from across North Dakota are gathering to help instill the leadership skills among the next generation of North Dakota’s ranchers.
We've supported ranching students from 4-H fundraisers, to regional saddle clubs, from high school rodeos to our own Dakota West scholarship recipients such as Charles Eriksmoen. Supporting today's students and tomorrow's ranchers will continue the traditions of western North Dakota.
To learn more about this event, and all the ways the North Dakota Stockman’s Association is serving ranchers, be sure to visit ndstockman.org, or follow its Facebook page to learn more about current events in our region. Dakota West is proud to be a member of this organization and support its work in supporting the efforts of ranchers throughout western North Dakota.
Meet Cindy Domagala Wald
Down in our southernmost branch, one of the faces you see when you walk in the door is Cindy Wald. Cindy recently celebrated her seventh anniversary with Dakota West, a change that gave her the opportunity to stay in one place.
“I was working out of town when I applied. When I was hired, I was so glad to have no more travelling for work.” Her previous work in the financial industry gave her a quick start that helped make her a valuable part of the Member Services team in Bowman.
While this year has been topsy-turvy for many folks, it has brought Cindy a special excitement that she’s enjoyed thinking ahead and planning: she recently got married! During their engagement, she and her fiancé focused on spending time camping and fishing on Lake Oahe rather than fretting over the details. We couldn’t be happier for her!
For our members who live in the Bowman County area, you might also recognize Cindy as the BINGO caller at Windy’s. She’s been enjoying her opportunity to meet people throughout the community in this way for almost as long as she has worked at Dakota West.
Even if you don’t visit our Bowman branch, you might hear her voice as she helps all of our members by phone, regardless of their location. She often shares with our members bits of information they may not have known, such as the advantage of shared branching outside of the Dakota West region and the fact that our mobile app provides all the same features as many big banks.
Next time you are in the Bowman region, stop by and say, “Hello,” to Cindy, or maybe you can holler, “BINGO!”
Member Calendar - November 2020
Welcome to Autumn – officially – although the weather of late still feels a bit like the previous season. So what! The fall fun is underway in many of our communities, and looking at the November Calendar, it is time to start planning for your Thanksgiving meal. It’s been a year to truly give thanks for what is most important in our lives: our families, our freedoms, our health, and our traditions.
Whatever November holds for you, we are here to provide you with the guidance you need to plan for the coming holidays, to express our gratitude to our members, and to enjoy the first fall of snow together. Happy Birthday North Dakota, and Happy Thanksgiving to you!
Meet Bonnie Locken
Of all the qualities we love about our members, the sense of community we feel ties us to our membership, but in the case of Bonnie Locken, it brought her to work for Dakota West.
Nearly thirty years ago, after losing her husband, the credit union reached out to her knowing she and her small children needed a financial boost to her part-time job. It was more than keeping her safe and secure, she recalls, "They wanted the kids to stay." The humor she uses to describe her first job at Dakota West continues to be a part of her welcoming smile and personality as the Regional Operations Manager at our Mohall location.
Born and raised in North Dakota, she always wanted to study interior design, but went to school to be a dental assistant. In the end, her creative touches can be felt in the branch and in the community that welcomed her. She sews, she restores furniture, and she designs and sells her own creations of purses and handbags.
Helping those who helped her brings her joy in the ways she can help our members. Bonnie recalls helping someone in her community who came to the branch in tears, worried about the family's debt, whom she helped get a small personal loan. "It made me feel amazing, watching the weight of the world lifted off their shoulders."
Bonnie celebrates her birthday this month among the friends and community that opened its arms to her, and calls her one of their own even today. If you stop into our Mohall branch this month, be sure to wish her best wishes - it's what she wishes for all of the people in Mohall who opened their arms to her and kept her close to their town and their hearts.
