Salkeld Dahinden retires after 40 years with Arkansas credit unions

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After four decades of serving Arkansas credit unions, Arkansas Credit Union Association Executive Director Vicky Salkeld Dahinden will retire at the end of this year. Cornerstone recently celebrated her long career and shared fond memories with many of our Arkansas friends.   

^{Pictured at her retirement party (left to right): Cornerstone League Chief Advocacy Officer Jim Phelps,
ARCUA Executive Director Vicky Salkeld Dahinden, and Cornerstone League President/CEO Caroline Willard.}

Over the course of 40 years, Salkeld Dahinden facilitated more than 500 planning sessions for credit unions. She is a Credit Union Development Educator, Class of 1984, which was only the second DE class ever. In 1993, she graduated with honors from the three-year Certified League Executive program, a joint educational opportunity developed by AACUL and CUNA. Salkeld Dahinden then served for 10 years as a Southwest CUNA Management School faculty member teaching asset/liability management.  

Salkeld Dahinden has met with and fostered relationships with hundreds of Arkansas state and federal lawmakers in Little Rock and Washington, D.C., and she's been a strong supporter of ARCUPAC and CULAC.

The holiday festival, Rockin’ Around the Wreath, was Salkeld Dahinden’s brainchild in 2016 after meeting with Arkansas chapter leaders about ways to bring joy to people over the holidays while supporting the Cornerstone Foundation with the festival’s proceeds.

“The Foundation has always been there for us,” she said, “and this was a great way we could do our part to help them—and have great fun doing it. We have recently expanded the offerings, adding more decorative holiday items in addition to the many beautiful wreaths.”

Salkeld Dahinden’s trove of skills and accomplishments can hardly be encapsulated in one article, but it’s important to point to the decades of one-on-one assistance she’s provided to credit unions. She’s been the go-to person for Arkansas leaders, consulting on credit union matters with people she’s known for 40 years.

“Leaving after 40 years is bittersweet,” said Salkeld Dahinden. “I’m going to miss the people and Arkansas credit unions terribly because they’ve been my whole life. But I do hope to stay involved, perhaps by serving on a credit union board.”

“Over the last six or seven years, I lost both my parents and my husband, and it reminded me that we are not promised tomorrow,” she added. “I still have a lot of things I want to do, and I’ll need the time to do them.”

Salkeld Dahinden assumed the helm with ARCUA in 2016, replacing the long-serving Reta Kahley. Upon announcing her retirement, Cornerstone League launched a search for a worthy successor. The executive director position is a key role representing credit unions with the Arkansas state and federal delegations.  

We at Cornerstone League are grateful for her invaluable contributions and wish her well as she embarks on a new chapter of her life.