SAFE Board service:
Chairperson since 2017. Also served as 2^nd Vice Chairperson and Director.

Professional and executive experience:
Vice President of Corporate Services for Raley’s (retired).

Other board service:
Former board member of Northern California Grocers Credit Union (1983-1985); the Regional Advisory Council for ByDesign; and IMCO General Construction.

Education:
Bachelor's degree from California State University, Sacramento; graduate of the USC executive food management class.

Community involvement:
Habitat for Humanity and Building Together.  Outstanding Volunteer Award in 2020 from the California Credit Union League. 

SAFE Board service::
1^st Vice Chairperson since 2018. Also has served as 2^nd Vice Chairperson, Director Pro Tem, and Director.

Professional and executive experience:
Director of Business Operations for DST Output LLC (Cable Data USCS. Inc.) (retired)

Other board service:
Former Chairperson of the Board for American River HealthPro Credit Union (2001-2003 and 2006-2009; Board Member of El Dorado Business Park.

Education:
Attended Advanced Management College and Finance Course at Stanford University; Six Sigma Champion.

Community involvement:
Board member of Big Brothers/Big Sisters.

SAFE Board service:
2^nd Vice Chairperson since 2020. Member of the Audit Committee since 2018 and Chairperson of the Audit Committee since 2020. Also served as Director Pro Tem.

Professional and executive experience:
Chief Financial Officer for mechanical engineering and construction firm Frank M. Booth Inc. He also has extensive experience in financial management and strategic planning for HD Supply in Roseville, General Electric, and Ernst & Young in Philadelphia.

Other board service:
Board member for Frank M. Booth Inc. and Granite Bay Rotary Club.

Education:
CPA and CGMA designations

Community involvement:
Serves as director of football and volunteer coach for Granite Bay Jr. Grizzlies Organization.

SAFE Board service:
Treasurer since 2018. Also served as Director. 

Professional and executive experience:
Regional Managing Partner with Arthur Anderson LLP (retired); independent Certified Public Accountant. Adjunct instructor at Sierra College and principal of a real estate consulting practice. Served on the faculty of CSU San Francisco, CSU Sacramento, UC Davis School of Management, and Sierra College.

Other board service:
Former Board Member and Treasurer of United Way California Capital Region; founding Board Member and Treasurer of Eureka Schools Foundation; former Board Member and Treasurer of the Sacramento Metro Chamber of Commerce.

Education:
B.S. in Accounting from Southern Illinois University.

Community involvement:
Blue and Gold Officer for the United States Naval Academy Admissions Group.

SAFE Board experience:
Director since 2020

Professional and executive experience:
Human Resources Director, Intel. Manager and Senior Consultant for Accenture. Member of Intel’s Black Leadership Council and its Black Network of Executive Women.

Other board service:
Board Vice Chair for an education nonprofit and chair of the Strategic Planning Committee.

Education:
Bachelor’s in Economics/Business from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), graduating Phi Beta Kappa with Honors. Master’s in Business with concentrations in Finance & Management from Johns Hopkins University.

SAFE Board service:
Director from 1986-1996. Chairman from 1996-2016.

Professional and executive experience:
Deputy Director of specialized management, McClellan Air Force Base (retired).

Other board service:
Member of the California Credit Union League Board of Directors, 2003-2012.

Education:
Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Clarkson University and a master’s degree in public administration from Auburn University.

Community involvement:
Holds a certified credit union volunteer designation. Awarded the California Credit Union League Volunteer of the year award. Designated CUES Director of the Year by the Credit Union Executive Society presented in 2013.

SAFE Board service:
Director since 2020

Professional and executive experience:
Former Chief Financial Officer of Foster Poultry Farms LLC. Former Chief Financial Officer of VSP Global. Former SVP and CFO of Raley’s grocery stores. Former Senior Executive and Chief Financial Officer of IKEA North America.

Other board service:
Member of Crystal Creamery-Foster Farms’ Dairy Board of Directors. Former representative of the VSP Global Board of Directors, Finance, Retirement, Public Policy, and Audit committees. Former board member of IKEA North America.

Education:
Bachelor’s degree from Marist College and an MBA from Pace University in New York City.

Community involvement:
Former board member of Make-A-Wish Foundation Sacramento and Northern California, frequent guest lecturer at CSU Sacramento.

SAFE Board experience:
Director since 2021

Professional and executive experience:
Currently Senior Vice President – Area Manager and Hospital Administrator for Kaiser Permanente in South Sacramento and Elk Grove. Former Chief Operating Officer of Kaiser Foundation Hospitals and Health Plan, Northern California Region. Former Chief Operating Officer and Chief Nursing Officer Kaiser Foundation Hospitals Hawaii Region.

Other board service:
Past chairperson for the American Heart Association and the Sacramento Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce.

Education:
Master’s degree in Public Health from the University of Hawaii; bachelor’s degree in Nursing from the University of Lethbridge, in Alberta, Canada. She also attended the Executive Leadership Program at the Harvard Business School. 

Community involvement:
Currently serves on the executive committee of Valley Vision and is a board member for The Crocker Art Museum. 

Board position/title:
Director

Professional and executive experience:
Currently Chief Operating Officer for MDstaffers, responsible for firm-wide financial and operational performance, including P&L. Previously served as Vice President of Service Delivery for MDstaffers, leading growth, technology, planning, and delivery.

Other board service:
Board Trustee for an emergency communications nonprofit

Education:
American Military University

Community involvement:
U.S. Army veteran

SAFE Board service:
Director

Professional and executive experience:
Executive Director of the Center for Regional Change at the University of California, Davis, serving as a lead on multidisciplinary research projects, including developing tools to support affordable housing, understanding megaregion migration, supporting transportation equity, and advancing carbon neutrality. Member of the Faculty Executive Committee for the UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. Founder of Bernadette Austin Consulting Services. Held leadership positions at Domus Development, Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency, California Capital, Breast Cancer Network of Strength, formerly Y-ME National Breast Cancer Organization, and New Connections. Her projects include Sacramento’s first true transit-oriented development, West Sacramento’s first urban farm stand, and the first project in the country to implement a program combining housing vouchers and health services for disabled adults. Bernadette has been recognized as a notable woman leader by Sacramento Magazine and Comstock’s Magazine, and the Sacramento Business Journal include her on their list of 40 Under 40.

Other board service:
Board member for Girl Scouts Heart of Central California, Alchemist Community Development Corporation, and Sacramento ENRICHES. She also served as President of the Sacramento Valley Chapter of the California Coalition for Parent Participation Nursery Schools.

Education:
Master of Science in Community Development from U.C. Davis and a Bachelor of Science in Community Health from St. Mary’s College of California.

Community involvement:
Bernadette has served in leadership roles for a variety of professional organizations in land use and real estate development, including the Urban Land Institute, Lambda Alpha International, American Planning Association, and California Planning Roundtable. Bernadette serves as co-leader for the Sacramento Area Chapter of the Scholars Strategy Network.  Bernadette was an appointed official for the City of West Sacramento for 13 years, including seven years on the Parks and Community Services Commission and six years on the Planning Commission. Volunteers with Girl Scouts, Cub Scouts, Amigos de las Americas, and Wonder, a mentorship program of Stanford Sierra Youth and Families.

SAFE Board service:
Secretary from 2004-2022. Chairperson of the Board Policy Committee. Also served as 1^st Assistant Secretary and Director.

Professional and executive experience:
Various management positions at McClellan Air Force Base, including senior enlisted adviser (now titled command chief master sergeant) to the center commander. He retired from the Air Force after 30 years of active duty.

Other board service:
Member of Advisory Board for the Sacramento Chapter of InfraGard.

Education:
3.5 years of college

Community involvement:
Financial Services Sector Chief of the Sacramento Infragard Member Alliance, a nonprofit organization dedicated to sharing information and intelligence to prevent hostile acts against the United States.

SAFE Board service:
Served as Director Pro Tem, Director, and Director Emeritus.

Professional and executive experience:
U.S. Air Force general officer (retired). Vice commander of the Sacramento Air Logistics Center and the commander of the Ogden Air Logistics Center.

Other board service:
President of the Aerospace Museum of California Foundation Board.

Education:
Bachelor’s degree in business administration, an MBA from USC, and a master’s degree in aerospace management. Graduate of the Senior Management Program of the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University and the National War College.

Community involvement:
Director of the California Capital Air show Board of Directors; Board Chairperson of the Volunteer Center of Sacramento. Permanent Deacon of the Catholic Church.

SAFE board service:
Director since 2004.

Professional and executive experience:
President and CEO of California Community Credit Union (retired). Air Force (retired).

Other board service:
Member of the Board of Governors of the Sacramento Valley Chapter of the California Credit Union League, and Chapter President in 1991 and 2007.

Education:
Bachelor's degree from Chaminade University in Honolulu and an MBA from Golden Gate University.

Community Involvement:
Member of the Roseville Personnel Board and board treasurer of the Sacramento Valley Crime Stoppers.

SAFE Board service:
1^st Vice Chairperson 1996-2019; also served on the Governance and Nominating Committee, Finance Committee, and as a 401(k) trustee.

Professional and executive experience:
Comptroller of the Sacramento Air Logistics Center, McClellan Air Force Base (retired Colonel). Former Director of Accounting and Finance at Hq Air Force Logistics Command at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. Director of Cost Analysis at Hq Military Airlift Command, Scott AFB, Illinois.

Other board service:
Member of the Sacramento Valley Chapter of the California Credit Union League and president in 2006/2007.

Education:
Bachelor’s degree in business and industrial management from San Jose State University. Master’s degree in management from Webster University, St. Louis.

Community involvement:
Member of the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors Big Brothers/Big Sisters of the Greater Sacramento area 1988-1995. Recipient of the 2009 Outstanding Volunteer Award from the California Credit Union League.

Faye was promoted to President of SAFE Credit Union on January 1, 2022, and took on the combined role of President/CEO in January 2023. In her previous role as Chief Credit Officer, Faye provided organizational leadership, strategic vision, and lending expertise as a key member of SAFE’s Executive Management Team. Faye is also the strategic leader and executive sponsor of SAFE’s core system conversion to Fiserv DNA, completed in April 2022. 

Prior to joining SAFE, Faye worked for KeyPoint Credit Union in Santa Clara, California, for 22 years in a variety of credit operations and management positions, including most recently as their Chief Lending Officer.

Faye has served as a member of various boards of directors, including MBL LLC (now CUBG), as Member Engagement and CLO Forum Committee Member for the CUNA Lending Council, and as a board member of the Folsom Tourism and Economic Development Corporation (2016-2018). She earned a degree in Leadership and Organizational Development from Saint Mary’s College of California.

Chris Harris is the Executive Vice President/Chief Strategy Officer (CSO) for SAFE Credit Union.  He was initially hired as Controller and served as Chief Financial Officer. He is a key part of SAFE’s Senior Executive Team, and is responsible for all enterprise strategy and planning, enterprise business intelligence and data management, enterprise risk management, and facilities management. Such responsibilities include strategic planning, business planning, strategic growth initiatives, and data governance. Chris works closely with senior management and the Board of Directors to develop the business plan and corporate goals for the organization. He evaluates, recommends, and leads strategic and enterprise-wide projects.

Chris is a CPA with 27 years of corporate finance and audit experience, with 22 of those years in the financial services industry.  Chris is a Sacramento Business Journal’s 40 Under 40 award recipient. He is also a director for the Credit Union Self Insurance Group of California.  Prior to SAFE, he worked for Wachovia Bank’s (now Wells Fargo) Finance group supporting the small-business and commercial lending division within the organization. Chris has a bachelor’s degree in Accountancy from California State University, Sacramento.

As EVP, Chief Financial Officer, Alexis is responsible for all facets of SAFE’s Finance Department, including financial planning and analysis, accounting, and treasury. She serves as a key member of the Senior Executive Team, providing insight and guidance into SAFE’s financial condition and performance, as well as participating in the organization’s strategic and business planning activities.

Prior to coming to SAFE, Alexis was in public accounting for 13 years. She uses financial analysis to help the organization make forward-looking and strategic decisions. She helps facilitate the best financial decisions for SAFE by having a clear view of the credit union’s financial health by reviewing and managing the balance sheet and developing strategies to grow revenue and maximize return on capital.

She is involved in the Sacramento Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and American River Parkway Foundation, sitting on the Board Finance Committee. She also sits on the board for the Folsom Chamber of Commerce.

With 18 years of experience in human resources, Colleen has a strong belief and dedication to the development of people and service excellence. She enjoys fostering a positive and engaging work environment for employees by promoting skill development, coaching for improvement and growth, and enhancing positive employee morale through building an exceptional culture. Prior to SAFE, she held roles such as lead human resources with Gap and Senior Vice President, HR Director with Mechanics Bank.  

Colleen is a volunteer board member for Keaton’s Child Cancer Alliance (KCCA) and is president-elect/volunteer board member for the Sacramento Area HR Association (SAHRA). 

Colleen is an accredited Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR). She earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration/Human Resources Management - Sacramento State University, and a Master of Science Degree in Human Resources and Employment Relations from Penn State with a concentration in Ethics and Leadership.

Tiffani Vargas, SAFE Credit Union’s EVP, Chief Lending Officer, oversees nearly half of the $4.3B organization’s income centers, including the mortgage division, loan servicing, collections, personal lending, auto financing, college funding, and insurance products.

Her leadership journey began in consumer finance, managing origination and servicing of personal, auto, equity loans, and credit cards. She later managed sales and operations for two California mortgage companies before joining SAFE in 2018 as Senior Vice President, Real Estate & Consumer Lending.

Educated in business, Vargas earned her bachelor’s from Auburn University and master’s from CSU, Sacramento. She innately sees the big picture – useful in orchestrating the many moving parts to make lending a success.

When not at the helm of lending operations, Vargas teaches her fitness boot camp at SAFE headquarters, mentors fellow employees, and offers support to the community by serving on the First Tee, Sacramento board. Every day she strives to inspire others to dedicate themselves to excellence.

Mike McCarthy leads the development and execution of SAFE’s technology strategy and digital transformation to improve the member experience, ensure the security of data and systems, and increase enterprise efficiency. Leveraging expertise in IT governance, ATM services, network and systems engineering, information security, data center operations, disaster recovery, and vendor management, Mike creates business advantages and cost optimizations that help SAFE achieve its mission and strategic objectives. As a member of the Executive Team, he provides thought leadership to help drive organizational decisions to support SAFE’s growing membership, positive company culture, and effective business operations. In addition, Mike sits on SAFE’s Technical Integration Review Board, and is a key advisor to the Board, CEO and Executive Team.

In the community, Mike is member of the CUNA Payments Subcommittee, Greater Sacramento Economic Council (GSEC) – Fintech Consortium, and Sacramento Veterans Employee Resource Group (VERG) Board of Directors.

Having honorably served in the U.S. Army and National Guard, Mike brings the experience he gained there in network engineering, information security, and intelligence analysis to his current work in information technology at SAFE. He holds a degree from Kaplan University in Information Security and Forensics and several industry recognized technology certifications.

Throughout her two-decade career at SAFE Credit Union, Staci has been a transformative leader: from her work at the branch level as a manager, progressing to regional oversight as Assistant Vice President of Sales, and now over the entire retail network. Staci provides oversight to Branches, Call Center, Wealth Management, and the Private Client team. She previously led the Community Banking and Indirect Lending Teams.

Staci’s proudest accomplishment is seeing those she has mentored through the years go on to become inspiring leaders themselves. Staci is a member of CUNA (Credit Union National Association) Experience Council, and a past board member of Eskaton. She earned a degree in Business Administration and Management from California State University – East Bay.

Ken has worked in banking for 30 years. He is responsible for all aspects of the Commercial Lending and Business Banking origination channels, collaborating with our Credit Administration and Portfolio Management partners to provide a meaningful experience for our members. Ken has led teams, built strong partnerships, and made it his mission to help others, starting out at a community bank, a non-bank lender, and large commercial banks. He joined SAFE in 2011. Ken strives to support our local business community with best solutions and delivering exceptional experiences. 

An alumnus of California State University, Sacramento, Ken serves on the board of Folsom TEDcorp (Folsom Tourism and Economic Development) and is a member of ACRE (Association of Commercial Real Estate Executives).

Gina Olson, SVP Member Services and Operations, is a key member of SAFE's Executive Team, responsible for developing and executing efficient and cost-effective operations to enhance member experience, quality of delivery, and process improvement across the organization. Tapping into her deep knowledge of technology she applies her experience toward implementing SAFE's vision and strategic priorities. Paramount to that effort is aligning operational functions to service level commitments, streamline workforce efforts, and improve service consistency across all channels.

As a seasoned veteran of SAFE, Gina has focused much of her more than 30-year career in the technology space advancing from working as a programmer and analyst to becoming Senior Vice President of Enterprise Applications. Prior to joining the IT Department, Gina worked in, as well as led, many teams at SAFE including Card Services, Compliance, Deposit Services, and Loss Prevention. She began her career as a teller at SAFE's Watt Avenue Branch.

Along with her technological background, Gina has focused many years at SAFE implementing and overseeing SAFE's Project Management Office. One of her proudest accomplishments was leading a team of 200-plus employees across all business channels including - multiple consultants, and vendor partners ‐ through SAFE's Core System Upgrade in 2022. The effort culminated many years of preparation and required extensive collaboration across the organization to ensure success ‐ all the while meeting challenges during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Gina is a member of CUNA (Credit Union National Association) Operations Council and CUNA's Payments Subcommittee. She is also Executive Sponsor of SAFE's LGBTQ+ employee resource group.

Sun is responsible for overseeing the credit union’s governance and strategy for risk management, compliance, and internal audit. Sun’s team provides independent oversight and guidance for managing risk and ensuring compliance, including the development and implementation of risk management measures and an effective audit program across the credit union. Prior to joining SAFE Credit Union in 2013, Sun was the Head of Business Finance in Fidelity Investment in Korea, where he worked directly with the Country CEO to manage all aspects of the company’s financial performance and reporting. Sun spent the first 10 years of his career at Deloitte and KPMG.  As a Director at KPMG, Sun served global financial institutions with auditing and transaction services. Sun is a CPA, a certified CRISC, and holds degrees in both engineering and accounting.

Creativity. Collaboration. Charisma. 

Throughout her career as a marketing and communication professional, Allison Yee-Garcia has earned a reputation as an innovative and charismatic leader whose marketing campaigns help drive significant culture changes and produce excellent results. SAFE is pleased to have welcomed Yee-Garcia to its dynamic team of executives in 2022.

Yee-Garcia’s experience includes serving as the Vice President of Marketing for Sacramento Republic FC, where she led the bold brand which represents passionate football fans across the region, and the club’s aspirations to represent Northern California on the Major League Soccer pitch. Her work can be seen in the successful launch of the team’s alternate jersey – the City Kit, a tribute to the indominable city the team calls home – as well as the club’s Watch Me campaign, igniting a regional women’s empowerment initiative through the beautiful game, beginning with the club’s bold community steps.

Throughout her career, she has proudly created campaigns for Sacramento. At 3fold Communications, a full-service marketing and consulting company, she helped build a client services team, which helped create one of the region’s most respected marketing and consulting agencies. 

Michael Popp is a veteran real estate and lending professional with over 25 years of extensive banking experience. Throughout his career, Michael has gained a reputation for his ability to develop programs and lending products that are member centered and support enterprise goals. Michael joined SAFE Credit Union in 2022 and is responsible for leading Real Estate sales and operations and has oversight of the credit union’s mortgage and equity products.

Prior to joining SAFE, Michael served as SVP, Chief Retail Officer at Golden 1 Credit Union where he led experience for members and employees within branch, contact center, and digital channels that resulted in high satisfaction and growth. He also served as VP of Professional Services for CU Direct, where he led new ventures to bring holistic lending support services to credit unions across the country.

Michael and his wife Tracy live in Rocklin and have two sons attending college. In his spare time, he and his wife enjoy playing a few rounds of golf and visiting wineries throughout Northern California. Known in professional circles as a humorist, Michael lists swimming the English Channel backwards and fighting a grizzly bear in Montana as personal developmental goals.