2022 Excellence in Banking: Community Banks & Credit Unions

Banking: The Pillar of Community

“Banks are the single most important component of Arizona’s economy. Not only do they lend to Arizonans, but they employ nearly 50,000 Arizonans, reinvesting in their communities and providing financial and social stability in their markets. Bankers educate young adults on the importance of financial responsibility. Bankers donate significant time and money to charities. Banks are, in many ways, the lifeblood of our neighborhoods and communities,” says the Arizona Bankers Association

Neill LeCorgne

Neill LeCorgne is president and chief executive officer of Scottsdale Community Bank. He has nearly 40 years of experience in the financial industry, including 11 years as president and director of a multi-bank holding company in the State of Florida comprising a lead bank in South Florida and a de novo bank in South Carolina, four years as manager of a corporate banking team at a super-regional bank, 15

Brian Crisp

Brian Crisp is the Arizona Region president for Enterprise Bank & Trust. In his role, Crisp is responsible for overseeing current clients’ business and personal banking needs as well as generating new commercial loan and deposit relationships. Crisp previously led the Commercial and Industrial banking team in the Arizona market, which focuses commercial banking solutions for small to mid-sized businesses throughout the state, including leveraged buyouts, acquisition financing, owner-occupied

James Christensen

James Christensen is the president of Gateway Bank, the only community bank in Mesa, Arizona. Under his leadership, Gateway has thrived through multiple economic downturns and is consistently one of the strongest-performing financial institutions in its peer group. Christensen has worked in the banking industry for more than 36 years, mostly in commercial lending and management. Hailing from the Midwest, he was president of a community bank in Kansas

Jeff Meshey

Jeff Meshey is the president and CEO of Desert Financial Credit Union — a full-service, Arizona-based financial institution founded in 1939. Desert Financial currently operates 47 branch locations throughout Maricopa, Pinal, Gila, Coconino and Yavapai counties. Meshey is a certified public accountant and launched his career with Ernst & Young, specializing in audits of financial institutions. Meshey joined Desert Financial in 1994 and became CEO in 2017. His tenured

Bo Hughes

Bodil (Bo) Hughes is the president and chief executive officer at Canyon Community Bank, an Asian American-owned bank founded in 2000. Canyon Community Bank is a $225-million minority-designated institution (MDI) based in Tucson, Arizona, serving clients in Maricopa, Pima and the rural/minority-populated Arizona counties of Navajo, Yavapai and Coconino. Canyon’s primary mission is to provide best-in-class commercial banking and lending to small- to medium-sized businesses in Tucson, Greater Phoenix

Chad Forkenbrock

Arizona Financial, formerly Arizona Federal, is a $3.3-billion, not-for-profit, Arizona-based credit union providing consumer and small business banking services and expertise to more than 160,000 member/owners. Founded in Arizona in 1936, the credit union empowers members to take hold of their financial future through the delivery of leading-edge self-service tools and mobile apps, competitive rates on loans and deposits, robust home loan solutions, identity protection services, and SBA and

Excellence in Banking Community Banks & Credit Unions