Long-Serving GECCU Communications Manager Danny-Lee Francis Steps Down After 25 Years of Service
By Admin. Updated 12:50 p.m., Sunday, September 27, 2026, Atlantic Standard Time (GMT-4).
Danny-Lee Francis has ended a career spanning more than two decades at the General Employees Co-operative Credit Union (GECCU), bringing to a close a chapter that colleagues say helped shape the institution’s public image and strengthen its relationship with members.
Francis, who served as GECCU’s Marketing and Communications Manager, announced her departure in an email circulated to media partners on September 25, confirming that the day marked her final one with the organisation.
“It has been an absolute privilege to collaborate with everyone,” she wrote.
“Together, we have shared memorable wins and launched meaningful campaigns. Your collaboration has been instrumental to my success as a cooperator, and I am deeply grateful for the strong partnership we have built over the last two and a half decades.”
GECCU, the largest credit union in St Vincent and the Grenadines with more than 50,000 members, has relied on Francis for years as one of its most recognisable public faces.
She played a leading role in coordinating scholarship programmes, managing media relations, promoting the credit union’s products and services, and providing timely information to members and the wider public. Her work also included overseeing marketing campaigns and helping to strengthen GECCU’s community presence.
To ensure a smooth transition, Francis advised that Marketing and Communications Assistant Lucinna Poyer will now serve as the primary contact for all marketing and communications matters.
Reflecting on her time at the credit union, Francis described the relationships she built along the way as the most rewarding part of her career.
“Marketing and Communications are ultimately about connection, and I feel truly fortunate to have connected with people who bring dedication to their work every day,” she said, while expressing gratitude to colleagues and media partners for their support over the years.
A day after her departure, Senior Loans Officer Ivo Joslyn paid an emotional public tribute, describing Francis as “a coworker who became my friend.”
Joslyn, who joined GECCU in 2009 after leaving the St Vincent Co-operative Bank, recalled that although he arrived as an experienced banker, Francis was the person entrusted with introducing him to the credit union system.
“When I was told Danny Lee would be the one training me to take up the position of Senior Loans Officer, I initially thought: ‘How is a junior loans officer showing me how to be a senior loans officer?’ Then I soon realised it was because she was power packed with institutional knowledge of the credit union, always highlighting its core principles,” he wrote.
He credited Francis with helping to deepen his appreciation for the co-operative movement and praised her professionalism, leadership and willingness to mentor others.
Joslyn also shared a light-hearted memory of the pair hosting a radio promotion, recalling how Francis eased his nerves before the live broadcast and helped turn the programme into a success.
“Danny Lee has always been a source of inspiration, encouragement, and a driving force to keep me going,” he wrote.
“I can say with immense pride that you are a coworker who became a friend. Thank you, my friend, for the profound impact you’ve had on my life.”
While Francis has not disclosed her next professional move, her departure closes a 25-year association with GECCU during which she became one of the institution’s best-known ambassadors, helping to connect the credit union with its members, the media and the wider Vincentian public.
The General Employees’ Co-operative Credit Union Ltd formerly “Government Employees’ Co-operative Credit Union Ltd says on its website that it was duly registered on July 14th 1964 with sixteen (16) members. On August 6th of that same year, GECCU held its first Annual General Meeting (AGM) with the late Bertrand R. Neehall presiding. From its humble beginnings, the credit union depended heavily on persons giving voluntary service for the Board of Directors and other Committees. While the credit union’s initial membership consisted mainly of civil servants, a resolution was passed in 1974 to extend membership to include direct relatives of members and on February 18th 2003, an official name change was done to extend the common bond to all Vincentians. Read more about the credit union’s history here.
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