The Fred Laing II Navigating Payments Scholarship

In Memory of Fred Laing II: Fred retired from UMACHA on September 1st, 2019, after 35 years of dedicated service.  In 1984, he became UMACHA’s Executive Director and successfully grew and led UMACHA to become the strong organization it is today.  When he joined UMACHA there were only two employees and with his vision, enthusiasm, and hard work, he grew UMACHA to fourteen employees, over 700 members, and a breadth of electronic payments education and compliance services.  The Navigating Payments conference has been going strong for 30+ years and much of the success of this conference was thanks to Fred.  Fred lived a positive and upbeat life day in and day out. He loved his work, all aspects of his home life, and willingly shared that joy with all of us. He is remembered as our ACH expert, for his humor, warmth, great relationships with our team and our members, as well as his fun costumes at Navigating Payments.

The Fred Laing II Scholarship: In honor of Fred and his passion for payments, UMACHA created the Fred Laing II Navigating Payments Scholarship.  This annual scholarship opportunity grants a complimentary Navigating Payments conference registration for one staff member of a UMACHA-member organization.

Past Scholarship Recipients:

• 2024 - Kathy Drexler, Citizens Bank Minnesota
• 2023 - Lynette Konrad, Farmers State Bank & Jillian Johnson, Flagship Banks
• 2022 - Wendy Nieuwbeerta, First National Bank of Osakis
• 2021 - Judy Stroh, Vision Bank
• 2020 - Megan Hanson, Goose River Bank

Scholarship Requirements:

• Be a current staff member of a UMACHA-member organization
• Complete the Fred Laing II Navigating Payments Scholarship application
• Submit the application by Friday, August 22, 2025

For questions about the scholarship, please contact info@umacha.org.

Scholarship Acknowledgment Reminder:  The Navigating Payments Scholarship is reserved for staff of organizations with active UMACHA membership.  UMACHA reserves the right to choose a winner based on internal criteria using the data provided by applicants.  The scholarship grant is applicable to the registration fee for the Navigating Payments conference and may include up to $500 for travel to or from the conference.  UMACHA may request a photo or head shot of the winner of the scholarship.  To view our Photo Release Notice, please visit our Services Policies page.