Gary Oakland
President and CEO of BECU, retired
During his 32-year tenure, Gary Oakland helped grow BECU to 700,000 members and $10 billion in assets in 2012. Guided by a member-first philosophy, Oakland identified innovative ways to support members, including founding the BECU Foundation. Since 1995, the BECU Foundation has provided 1,250 students with more than $3.3 million in scholarships.
Congratulatory Listings
BECU congratulates Gary Oakland on his induction to the 2022 Cooperative Hall of Fame. Gary is widely recognized for his role in pioneering our member-first philosophy. His contributions continue to make a positive, lasting financial impact on our members. BECU celebrates this great achievement!
Congratulations on being recognized among your peers for your commitment to the credit union movement and its cooperative principles. You have been an inspiration to others as you’ve consistently and passionately exemplified the cooperative identity of “people helping people."
Members Trust Company congratulates Gary Oakland on his induction to the Cooperative Hall of Fame. His leadership was instrumental in developing the Charitable Lead Trust and Charitable Donation Account, two programs that support both credit unions and their member communities.
Congratulations Gary! Your induction is a fitting honor for your leadership at BECU and throughout the credit union industry. Your passion for member centric decision making was inspirational to those who had the honor and privilege of working with you.
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Stacie Wyss-Schoenborn
President/CEO
Central Willamette Credit Union
Express CU wouldn’t be serving vulnerable individuals and families today without Gary’s support of our community development mission. His commitment to Low Income Credit Unions will continue strengthening communities and creating financial resiliency for decades to come.
The National Association of State Credit Union Supervisors (NASCUS) offers heartfelt congratulations to Gary Oakland on his 2022 Cooperative Hall of Fame Award. Thank you for your dedication and considerable impact to the credit union system.
Gary, congratulations on this much-deserved recognition. Your leadership has inspired so many people in the credit union movement, and we would not be where we are today without your thoughtful, passionate, and dedicated work. Thank you for decades of championing our members!
From supporting financial education to innovative and empathetic member service solutions, Gary Oakland embodied what makes our Credit Union Movement special. On behalf of the GoWest Credit Union Association, we celebrate Gary Oakland’s tremendous contributions to the credit union industry.
SF Fire Credit Union congratulates Gary Oakland on his induction into the Cooperative Hall of Fame. We honor and admire his commitment and service to the credit union movement and the communities he served during his extensive and impressive career.
Congratulations, Gary. You played an instrumental role in ensuring credit unions and the movement continued to thrive. Thank you for empowering credit union employees across Washington help Members and their communities establish long-lasting financial well-being.
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- Bill Cheney and the SchoolsFirst FCU team
Friends of Gary Oakland
Benson Porter
Deborah Wege
Jason Ritzenthaler
Karen Zimbelman
Lucy Ito
Mary Griffin
Michael Quamma
Roger Mauldin
Rudy Hanley
Sharon Hall
Susan Streifel
Tom Berquist
Tracey Fitzgerald
Gary Oakland
Honoring and Planning Committee
Benson Porter
Deborah Wege
Tom Berquist
Tracey Fitzgerald
Nominated by:
BECU
Deborah Wege
Cooperative Community Advocate