Every credit union member is eligible and encouraged to vote in the board of directors election. The election will open on Tuesday, February 20, 2024, at 12:00 a.m. and close on Saturday, March 16, 2024, at 12:00 a.m.
There are three seats up for election in 2024: a Minot seat and a Fargo seat, which are both three-year terms and an At Large seat, which will serve a one-year term. Board Member Jay Hight served in the At Large position before he sadly passed away in late November. The candidate elected to the At Large position will fulfill the final year of Jay’s term, and then that position will be up for election for a full three-year term in 2025.
The Minot Board seat must be filled by a member living within 75 miles of Minot; the Fargo Board seat must be filled by a member living within 50 miles of Fargo; and the At Large Board seat may be filled by a member living anywhere within our field of membership.
There will not be any nominations from the floor at the Annual Meeting. Any member interested in running as a nominee by petition must submit to the Board Secretary a statement of qualifications and biographical data with a petition signed by 100 members before Saturday, February 10, 2024. Qualifications and biographical data will only be included on the mail ballot and the voting website.
Election results will be shared at the 85th Annual Meeting held on Thursday, March 21, at 12 p.m. CST.
Voting Instructions:
Members can vote one of three ways:
- By phone at 1-888-304-1693
- paper ballot or
- online at http://townandcountry.cuballot.com
To vote by phone or to request a paper ballot, call 1-888-304-1693. If a paper ballot is requested, it will be sent with a prepaid postage return envelope. Completed paper ballots must be received by 12:00 a.m. on Saturday, March 16, 2024. Ballots will not be accepted at any branch location.
When voting by phone, your ID will be your account number, your password is your birthday (Ex, January 12, 1960 would be 01121960), and your business account password will be the last four digits of your tax ID number.
You can find your account number on your checks, by checking your eStatements, or by stopping into the nearest Town & Country location.
- From a check: The line of numbers on the bottom of your check includes your routing number, account number and check number. To find your account number, look at the middle section of numbers. Take off the first three digits and the last one digit, and that middle section remaining is your account number. For accounts opened after February 28, 2021, you will only disregard the first six digits and include the last digit as part of your account number.
- Check example: For accounts opened before February 28, 2021:
- Check example: For accounts opened before February 28, 2021:
- From eStatements: Select eStatements within TCCU Online or the mobile app. It will take you to a landing page with links to all of your statements. The left column of that list is your Account Number. The Account Number is XXX for security on your actual eStatement, so make sure to check the list before you click on a link.
- Find your nearest location here.
Members may not vote by proxy, but a business or organization may vote through an agent designated in writing. A trustee or other person acting in a representative capacity may not vote.
Questions or concerns? Please contact us at 1-800-872-6358.
CANDIDATE INFORMATION
The candidates below have been submitted by the Nominating Committee for election in 2024. Members can vote for one candidate for each seat. The top vote-getter for each seat will earn the Board position.
Brian Nelson withdrew his candidacy for the Board of Directors election and sadly passed away on February 22, 2024. Learn more about his impact on our credit union and community.
2024 Minot Board Seat Candidate:
Kalvin Larson is a native of Minot and a lifelong member of Town & Country Credit Union. While not a producer himself, Kalvin comes from a family of fifth-generation farmers in the Minot area. A graduate of Minot State University, Kalvin has built a career in the oil and gas industry over the past ten years. He currently serves as the Vice President, Williston Basin with Creedence Energy Services, overseeing the sales, service, operations and analytical teams.
In addition to his professional experience, Kalvin is an involved community member, including serving as the Past President of the Minot Sunrise Rotary Club, a Community Investment Advisor with the Minot Area Community Foundation, a member of the Minot State Board of Regents, and Current Chair of the Delta Waterfowl Chapter in Minot. He is looking forward to leveraging his understanding of agriculture, professional experience and passion for serving the credit union membership as a Board member if elected.
2024 Fargo Board Seat Candidates:
Wendy Loucks is a native of Rugby, ND and currently resides in Fargo. She is a graduate of North Dakota State University, the University of Nebraska College of Law, and the FBI Academy in Quantico. Wendy was a Special Agent with the FBI for 24 years, serving in several field offices across the country as a criminal profiler, assistant legal advisor and ultimately supervisor for FBI operations in ND and Western MN. Upon her retirement from the FBI, she worked for a federal contractor as an investigator and later as Chief Legal Advisor for the Western United States. Wendy and her husband also owned a construction and remodeling company for fifteen years, operating in ND and AZ. She currently considers herself "quasi-retired."
Wendy is passionate about community service, with over 35 years of service on local and national boards. She currently serves on the Cass County Electric Co-Op Board, an electric distribution cooperative with 58,000+ members in southeastern ND. Previously, she served on the IdeaOne Telecommunications Board and was the first and only North Dakotan to serve on the Federated Rural Electric Insurance Exchange Board. Wendy also enjoys giving back to local charities like the local food pantry and Red River Zoo, as well as cheering on NDSU, UND, and AZ Cardinal football. If elected, Wendy plans to leverage her interest in finance to represent the membership fairly and transparently while prioritizing the well-being of our members and communities.
2024 At Large Board Seat Candidates:
Diane Schatz grew up in Minot, attended Eureka Rural School, and graduated from Bishop Ryan High School. She was employed by Minot Federal Savings and Loan and Pringle & Herigstad Law Firm before meeting her late husband (Danny). Diane started her career as an entrepreneur when she and her husband leased the Crossroads Truck Stop and Café from Westlie Motor Company in 1977. They purchased the Minot Standard Truck Stop in 1983 and then expanded to Fargo in 1994 when they built the Petro Stopping Center. Diane served on the Iron Skillet Committee with Petro Corporate from 1998 to 2007.
Diane managed the financial growth of these businesses over the last 46 years and assisted in opening the Fastlane Carwashes in Fargo and Minot. She currently manages real estate operations as the President of Schatz Properties LLC and Valley Properties LLC, which maintain the real estate holdings for the family. In her free time, Diane follows and supports her children, Donny, Deanne and Krista, and her seven grandchildren, who are involved in sports such as racing, basketball, softball, and showing reining horses.
Curtis Smith is a US Air Force officer currently serving as a B-52 pilot at Minot Air Force Base. Following his graduation from the U.S. Air Force Academy with a Bachelor of Science in Political Science and a minor in Spanish, Curtis was chosen to attend Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training in Texas. Upon completion of this training, he was selected to fly the B-52 Stratofortress and subsequently stationed here in Minot.
An Eagle Scout native to Plymouth, Indiana, and a new resident of North Dakota, Curtis is excited to settle into the area and serve his new friends, neighbors, and the local military community. As a member of the Board of Directors, Curtis would bring an iron work ethic, dedication to service, and outside perspective to Town & Country Credit Union.
