Elizabeth Returns!

One of our Member Service Representatives, Elizabeth D., recently returned from a six-month trip to South Africa where she studied abroad and embarked on all sorts of new experiences.  We thoroughly enjoyed following her adventures via email updates and pictures, and now that she’s back we asked her to share some of the highlights from her trip…

The hardest part about leaving SCFCU was…
Leaving an amazing work environment that was a part of my life almost every day and saying goodbye to co-workers for a long period of time.  

My first impression of South Africa was…
How similar it was to the U.S.! I was very surprised at how developed and westernized the country is. I also noticed their slightly British accents, which I loved!

My favorite food/treat I ate while I was there was…
Milk tart! It is a dessert that has a milky thick custard filling poured onto pie crust and sprinkled with cinnamon. Another favorite is Horlicks milkshake. Horlicks is a powder that can be mixed with ice cream and milk to create a malt and tastes like a blend of vanilla and cake batter, it is absolutely delicious. I have the recipe for the milk tart but I am determined to find Horlicks on Amazon.  

The craziest/most adventurous thing I did while there was… 

Bungee jump off of the highest commercial bungee bridge, the Bloukrans Bridge, at 216M.  I went skydiving and jumped out of a plane from 10,000 feet. I also went scuba diving and swam right next to a couple of ragged tooth sharks. 

The prettiest animal I saw was…
A leopard! I saw one for the first time in my life in South Africa at Kruger National Park. We were able to drive around the largest game reserve in Africa and to our luck we spotted a leopard in a tree devouring its recent kill, an impala. It was such a sight and the leopards coat looked absolutely beautiful!

My favorite part about everyday life in South Africa was…
You never knew what was going to happen; every day was a new experience. The people are extremely friendly and I was able to immerse myself into the culture and learn new things every day. I also became very well acquainted with the lingo there by naturally saying things like; ‘shame’ or ‘I’ll be there just nownow’, or ‘that’s dodgy’.  

While I was gone, I really started to miss… 
My car! I had to walk almost everywhere otherwise I would take the cheapest transportation available which were called Kombi’s. These vans were a bit ‘dodgy’ (sketchy) because they crammed several people into one vehicle but were also very fun because they played very loud music. All I have to say is luckily I always arrived to my destination.   

One thing I learned while on the trip was…

To not take certain commodities for granted. Conveniences that I easily accessed at home were sometimes not available in South Africa. I also know that in rural areas the villages lack basic resources such as clean water, a sewage system, and electricity.  

I’m surprised how much I miss…  
Living in Annie’s with the community of international students, the beach, the rugby games, traveling in jam packed cars and driving for up to 36 hours straight, and the South Africans!

The most exciting part about coming home was..
Seeing my baby sister, Avery, again! Prior to my departure she would only roll around and smile, then during my stay she began crawling, growing teeth, and speaking the cutest gibberish! I was extremely happy to see her and happily surprised that she remembered me!   

My words of wisdom now that I’m back are…
A life lesson I learned in South Africa and from the trip itself is that you will never know what you are capable of doing unless you give it a try. I realize now how much the world has to offer and the abundance of opportunities there are that any single individual can accomplish. Always strive for more and never settle for less.  

We are so happy that Elizabeth had a wonderful time in South Africa, but we sure are glad she’s back!  It is nice to have her warm smile and friendly personality in our Sartell office again, welcome home Elizabeth!

Meet Karen!

Have you ever been chased around by a wild donkey in the middle of South Dakota? We didn't think so.  However, one of our very own employees has!

Karen O'Hara has been with us as St. Cloud Federal Credit Union for over 7 years and is one of our prized Member Service Representatives.  Karen’s smiling face is recognizable by many of our Members when they visit us at the Credit Union.  Karen says her favorite part about being an SCFCU employee is ‘all the fun people’ she gets to work alongside; we couldn't be happier to have her.

When Karen isn't assisting our Members, you can often find her diving into a romance novel, watching a new movie, or surfing all that Pinterest has to offer.  If Karen flips on the TV, it’s usually to watch Smash, Vampire Diaries, and How I Met Your Mother.  Karen’s favorite subject in school was English and her favorite color is pink.  If she could travel anywhere in the world, Karen would choose to go to Ireland; her last name would be recognizable there, no doubt!

With her contagious laugh and positive attitude, Karen brightens everyone’s day.  She is always willing to help with projects and we know we’re very lucky to call her one of our own.  Thank you for all you do, Karen – we’re so happy you’re part of our SCFCU Family!


 We are People Helping People.

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Life in the Spotlight: Meet Bryce!

Have you seen the Sartell Chamber of Commerce’s April photo caption contest?  If so, you’ve seen the friendly smile of one of SCFCU’s prized employees, Bryce!  We wanted to allow you all to get to know the man behind the photo just a little bit better… who knows, maybe it’ll inspire some ideas for your own caption entry!

Bryce has been a Member Services Representative at our Sartell location for 3 years now.  His favorite part about working at St. Cloud Federal Credit Union are his co-workers (thanks Bryce, we like having you around too)!  Before the life of spotlighted photographs and helping our Members, Bryce dreamed of being a State Trooper in Alaska, which is where he would go if he could vacation anywhere.

While you’ll find Bryce’s smiling face whenever you stop in our lobby, it may fade now and then around this time of year. Why? Well, St. Patrick’s Day (Bryce’s favorite holiday) has passed, Winter (as a true Minnesotan, his favorite season) is coming to an end, and snakes and spiders (the 2 pets Bryce would never have) start to creep and crawl around.  Luckily, Bryce has The Walking Dead and Sons of Anarchy (his favorite TV shows) along with his two sisters to cheer him up!  Bryce’s favorite color is green, he listens to Country and Rap music, and if he could hang out with any celebrity for a day, he’d choose Sheldon Cooper; bazinga!

Bryce is a friendly, cheerful, fun employee to have here at SCFCU and we couldn’t be happier that he is a part of our team.  Thanks for all you do Bryce, we’re lucky to have you!


 We are People Helping People.

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Presenting, Erica!

Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome aboard!  If you’ll please take your seat, close all overhead compartments, fasten your seat belt, and turn your attention to the front of the … just kidding!  We are dedicating this blog to our lovely Member Services Representative, Erica, who before her time at SCFCU, dreamt of being a flight attendant.

We've been lucky enough to claim Erica as one of our own for almost 10 years! Erica was an employee with us for about 5 years in our St. Cloud office prior to leaving to do daycare and spend time with her children.  She came back in 2007, and we couldn't be happier to have her! Now you can find Erica’s smiling face at our Sartell location.  Erica says her favorite thing about working at St. Cloud Federal CreditUnion is her fun co-workers – we think she’s pretty fun to have around too!

When she’s not helping our Members, Erica likes to go camping and spend time with her family and friends.  If she could spend her vacation time anywhere, she’d take off to Hawaii – and we’re betting it’s because of the warm weather; Erica’s favorite season is spring because it means winter is over!  Math was Erica’s favorite subject in school, and if she could spend time learning any language she’d choose Spanish.  Her favorite color is red, Christmas is her favorite holiday, and when it aired, Friends was her favorite TV show.

What you might not know about Erica is that she can do the splits. Its true folks, we've seen her do it – don’t believe us? Click here to see for yourself!

Erica’s bubbly, positive personality is always a joy to have around and our Members are always glad to see her in the Sartell lobby or drive-up.  We’re so happy you’re part of our team, Erica – thanks for all your work!