Peggy Wheeler
Erika Ross Named Successor
MT. PLEASANT, Mich.,—Isabella Bank Chief Operations Officer Peggy Wheeler has retired after a 49-year career with the bank, the longest tenure of any employee in its history. Erika Ross has been promoted to chief operations officer.
Wheeler joined Isabella Bank in 1977 in the bookkeeping department and advanced through a series of positions that included computer operator, accounting clerk, staff accountant, accounting manager, controller, senior vice president of operations and chief operations officer.
Erika Ross
Beyond her banking career, Wheeler served on the Michigan Bankers Association’s service corporation board and as treasurer of RISE Advocacy. She also was a trustee of the Mt. Pleasant Area Community Foundation, chaired its grant review committee and served on several community nonprofit boards.
Wheeler earned a bachelor’s degree from Central Michigan University and graduated from the Graduate School of Banking at the University of Wisconsin. She also completed the Dale Carnegie Executive Development Leadership Program, the Dale Carnegie Team Development Program and the Mt. Pleasant Area Chamber of Commerce’s Rollie Denison Leadership Program.
“Peggy’s impact on Isabella Bank is immeasurable,” said Neil McDonnell, president of Isabella Bank. “She has helped guide this organization through decades of change with steady leadership and deep institutional knowledge. It has been a privilege to work alongside her.”
Ross has more than 20 years of experience with Isabella Bank, joining the organization as a credit analyst before serving as marketing project manager, director of marketing, vice president of operations, senior vice president and chief risk officer.
Ross earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a major in finance from Central Michigan University. She is a graduate of the Graduate School of Banking at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and holds the Certified Enterprise Risk Professional credential from the American Bankers Association.