Wendy Desjarlais, Branch Manager, Pincher Creek

Did you grow up in Pincher Creek?

No…I’m a newbie because I've only been here for 15 years! If we don't know your grandma, you're not from here. I grew up in Saskatchewan on a ranch out there. I went to college in Medicine Hat like most kids from southwest Saskatchewan do. In 2003, after graduating college, I got involved with the credit union in Medicine Hat. And then from there, I took a bit of a promotion and moved to their branch in Lethbridge. I hated living in the city, so much. When there was an opening out here in Pincher Creek in 2006, I took the job and made the move. 

What makes you successful in your role at the branch?

Being relatable is probably my biggest thing. I can connect with my members on a personal level. I don't feel the need to be on a pedestal as a banker. My members know me and I know them. And we can all just be ourselves. I think people respond really well to that. There's no reason we can't all have a good laugh while we're doing banking, right?

With nearly two decades of credit union experience, what do you value most about credit unions?

Oh, everything. The biggest thing is that we know our members, we care about them as people and we care about their successes… For us, helping our members is number one.

I've always been a credit union kid. I had a fat cat account in the local credit union when I was little. It just makes sense to me. I’ve always loved how credit unions give back to the community. And everything stays in the community; our profits go back right back into the community as well.

What’s the team dynamic like at the Pincher Creek branch? Are you close-knit?

Yes. There's only eight of us in the whole branch now. We definitely all have a friendship, inside and outside of work, which is nice. Most of our team has all been here for five-plus years at this point, so we all kind of talk the same language and understand each other. It works out really well.

How does the team feel about the merger with Vision this summer?

The challenge is that a lot of us are starting fresh because we have three senior staff members who are all the exact same age and they’re all retiring. That's basically half our team! So, for the rest of us, there’s a bit of the unknown. But there’s definitely excitement because everyone we've talked to with Vision has been awesome. And it just seems like a really laid back, positive organization. We're excited about that. 

What do you love about living in Pincher Creek and the community?

Well, Pincher is kind of like (the best of) both worlds, both geographically and people-wise. We’re right on the edge of the mountains. We've got mountains and prairie, depending on which direction you're facing. And then there’s the people…There are people who have lived here for generations and then there are a lot of people that have moved to the area, too… so there's a lot of diversity in our town. We're a part of the most beautiful place in the world, in my opinion…as long as you can handle the wind.

How do you get involved or give back to your community?

I like to do fundraisers through my gym where I’m a part-time coach. Last fall, I ran a Deadlifts for Cancer fundraiser where we just lifted a lot of weight and raised a bunch of money. And now we're doing another one. I called it Sit-Ups for Pups. Everyone in our gym has to do as many sit ups as possible in the month of June and I get pledges towards the SPCA. I get to wrap that up soon and see how we all did. So, just kind of fun things like that.

When you’re not at the branch or in the gym, where would we find you?

In my garden and my greenhouse. That's my happy place. I do a lot of gardening, growing all different vegetables. A lot of tomatoes—which is funny because my husband hates tomatoes, but I grow a ridiculous amount of them. This year, we got a few cows. I'm really enjoying having cattle around on our little acreage…Otherwise, I'm out with my friends doing adventures and shenanigans, like hiking or axe throwing... I’m always up for anything.