Coosa Pines Federal Credit Union announced that former Accounting Manager Benjamin Puckett has been promoted to Chief Financial Officer (CFO). Benjamin began his full-time career with the credit union over four years ago after interning for three years during college breaks. A Childersburg native, Benjamin received an undergraduate degree in accounting from the University of Montevallo and a master’s degree from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
Benjamin went to Montevallo planning to study marketing, but one course in accounting changed that. “I realized that was where I was meant to be,” he said. “I just loved working with numbers.” If accounting changed his education goals, interning at CPFCU changed his career trajectory. “Interning here I knew that I wanted to come back and work at Coosa Pines again. It truly is a special place to be, and it is all because of the amazing people I get to work with every day,” said Puckett. “There is never a dull moment.”
President/CEO Don Carden said that there was no doubt Puckett was the right person for the job. “He’s very intelligent and hard-working, never shies away from tough jobs, but what stands out is his ‘can-do’ attitude and positive energy,” Carden said. “As an intern he would come in singing to his coworkers every morning. It’s a pleasure working with him.”
As for who helped Benjamin along the way, there was no question it was his mentor and Coosa Pines FCU’s previous CFO Trent Barnett. “He was an incredible boss who taught me valuable lessons in the workplace and in life.” Two lessons immediately came to mind. “Trent showed me that I should always be happy to lend a hand and that I should start each day with a clean slate.”
“Benjy is professional and hard-working,” Barnett said. “He has the drive to see the credit union succeed while keeping focus on the member-first mentality of the credit union movement. He has a heart of gold, which allows him to work with his coworkers, members, and the Board effectively.”
Puckett’s goals as CFO are simple, “It boils down to one sentence. I want to keep Coosa Pines running as smoothly as possible while staying up to date with modern services that our members need.”
Coosa Pines FCU was chartered in 1950 and has a field of membership that includes Talladega, Shelby, St. Clair, Jefferson, Coosa, and Clay counties, Alabama. Coosa Pines has over $351 million in assets and close to 25,000 members. Their five branches are in Childersburg, Sylacauga, Chelsea, Pell City, and Vincent. The Credit Union can be reached at (256) 378-5559, toll free 1-800-237-9789, or online at CoosaPinesFCU.org.
