CFE Federal Credit Union

5 Stars for a surprisingly pleasant and human experience… At a financial institution!
I was just going in to be added as a cosigner on an existing account but every moment of this experience was above expectation.
First we went directly upstairs (as this was for a nonprofit account) and signed in on an iPad as instructed by the person behind the desk. Within moments a smiling woman came out of her office and led us back to get started. Sandra was extremely personable and helped us understand the entire process. Every step was explained and she happily made conversation with us while we waited for documents to print. I’m very chatty (shocker) and sometimes get the cold shoulder when I try to make conversation during quiet moments. In this case, I felt like I was talking to a real person, with a family, and siblings, who happens to have many years in the financial sector. No one was waiting behind us and she clearly read the room (again, I’m clearly a talker) so we shared a few common stories as we went through the process.
She even mentioned they were short-​staffed because two people had to call out sick yet she never made us feel rushed and made sure to help us with some less-​related questions. Other employees popped in to say hi so it seemed like this human interaction was the norm here and not a fluke.
So often I feel like financial institutions are trying to be so efficient that they lose any semblance of a personal touch, but this was so different (in an authentic, non-​salesy way) that I honestly left wondering if I should consider using this credit union for my own banking.
Overall, really surprising, down-​to-​earth, helpful visit.