Meet Lily Newfarmer: 2027 Herb Wegner Memorial Award Winner

“Lily refuses to let them be left behind. She advocates not for her own institution’s interests, but for the collective good — raising her voice on behalf of those who may not have a seat at the table, and working tirelessly to build a table large enough for everyone.”
Christie Kimbell, EVP, Filene Research Institute

 

Lily Newfarmer knows a little something about leading a small credit union. It means being strategist and operator, advocate and problem solver, community leader and student of an industry that never stops changing. It means finding ways to innovate with limited resources, making sure members receive the same opportunities, technology and service they could find anywhere else. And often, it means doing all of that while fighting the assumption that bigger automatically means more capable.

Lily has spent much of her career challenging that assumption. But perhaps Lily’s most important contribution has been what she has done with the influence she earned along the way to make room for others.

Making sure small credit unions are seen

Lily leads a credit union of approximately $125 million in assets, comparatively small by industry standards. Her influence is anything but.

Over decades of national and state leadership, Lily has become a persistent voice for smaller credit unions bringing their realities into conversations about innovation, regulation, leadership, and the future of the cooperative movement. Through her work with the Filene Research Institute, she helped bring innovation training to small credit union CEOs who otherwise may not have had access to those resources, helped catalyze research examining what successful small credit unions do differently.

Why? Because Lily believes the strength of the movement depends on all of its institutions having the opportunity to thrive.

Christie Kimbell of Filene put it plainly, “small credit unions are the lifeblood of the industry, and Lily refuses to let them be left behind.” That belief has followed Lily into boardrooms, committees, and classrooms across the movement.

Caroline Willard, President & CEO of the Cornerstone League, remembers seeing it early. “While she led a smaller credit union, she approached innovation and strategic growth with the vision and discipline of a much larger institution.” Lily’s career is proof that leadership is not measured by asset size and she has made it a priority to ensure opportunity isn’t either.

Lily has been an active leader within the Cornerstone League and its foundation, served on the boards of the National Credit Union Foundation and Filene Research Institute, participated in national committees focused on small credit unions and international cooperation, and spent more than two decades as faculty with Southwest Credit Union Management School.

Creating the support she couldn’t find

Lily’s advocacy for small credit unions also led her to recognize a more specific gap: support for the women leading them.

She saw an established network helping women CEOs of larger institutions build relationships, strengthen their leadership, and learn from one another. So Lily asked the simple question, what support exists for women CEOs of small credit unions?

The question went unanswered and so Lily decided to do something about it. She became a founder and inaugural Board Chair of the Credit Union Women’s Leadership Alliance, or CUWLA, creating a community centered on connection, mentorship, visibility and opportunity for women credit union leaders.

What began with a relatively small group of CEOs has grown into a national network of women learning from one another, supporting one another and helping the next generation of leaders see what is possible.

For Tracie Kenyon, Co-Founder & Executive Development Partner at Zealyst, the impact is bigger than any one program. “Lily consistently lifts the contributions of those around her, giving credit freely and celebrating the successes of the collective rather than her own role in making them happen.”

Proving small can lead

Lily has applied that same mindset inside Tarrant County’s Credit Union. Under her leadership, TCCU became the first credit union in the nation to introduce a Keep the Change-style savings product, the first in Texas to implement the DesignIt! Credit Card Personalization Program, and the first in Texas to offer a debit card security app.

She has built partnerships around financial education, established TCCU as a VITA tax assistance site with Spanish-speaking support, expanded access to financial counseling, and created a headquarters that includes dedicated community space for financial education.

The throughline is not innovation for innovation’s sake but refusing to accept that members of a smaller credit union should expect less.

Leadership that multiplies

Lily’s influence may be most visible in the organizations she has helped build, but her nominators repeatedly returned to the way she makes other people believe more is possible for them.

Deborah Wege, a 2025 Herb Wegner Memorial Award recipient, described Lily as “a servant leader who elevates others, a visionary who builds intentionally for future generations, and a heart-centered professional whose influence will echo across the credit union movement for years to come.”

It is perhaps no surprise that Lily describes her own recognition not as something achieved alone, but as something made possible alongside others. She reflects, “the Herb Wegner Memorial Award means so much to me because it reflects the values that have guided me throughout my career: service, collaboration, and helping others succeed. I am deeply honored by this recognition and grateful to the colleagues, partners, mentors, and communities who have supported and inspired me along the way. This award is as much a reflection of their impact on my journey as it is of my own.”

Despite a national résumé of board and committee service, those who know her describe a leader far more interested in helping someone else succeed than ensuring her own contribution is recognized.

Her vision for the credit union movement isn’t one where a few organizations or leaders succeed. It is one where there is room for everyone to contribute. Where women have the support and opportunity to lead. Where smaller credit unions have a voice in shaping the future. And where the size of your organization never determines the size of your potential.

Lily Newfarmer has spent her career opening doors, creating opportunities, and making the table bigger for those coming behind her.

That is the impact of Lily Newfarmer, recipient of the 2027 Herb Wegner Memorial Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement. Her story deserves to be celebrated. Pull up a chair and join us for the 2027 Foundation Gala and secure your ticket, table, or explore sponsorship opportunities today.