A Northwest Indiana Life in the Spotlight: Stephanie Calarie

While she works at a bank, life for Stephanie Calarie is far from transactional. Her days are built around people, problem-solving and helping others.

Calarie serves as assistant vice president of the contact center at Tech Credit Union, where she oversees the call center, works as a loan officer and assists with training across the organization. She has been in banking for about 12 years and has spent just over six years with Tech Credit Union.

Her path into banking started in a restaurant, where she first found herself drawn to the responsibility of handling money at the end of a shift.

“I was our head waitress. At the end of the night, I collected deposits from all of the servers and helped prepare deposits for Brinks and things of that nature,” Calarie said. “I really enjoyed doing that.”

That early experience led her into banking, where she started as a teller and worked her way up through supervisory and banker roles before joining Tech Credit Union in 2020. When the organization expanded its contact center, she moved into the role that eventually led her into leadership.

“My favorite part is when I really make a difference for our members. It’s not just about getting a loan done or opening an account, but working with people to make sure something fits their budget,” said Calarie. “I love doing debt consolidation and helping free up extra money for people, or waiving fees when someone is going through a rough time and short on funds. It’s really about making a difference in people’s lives.”

Those moments are what keep her grounded, especially in a role that can be emotionally demanding. Sometimes after a long day, she reflects on whether the work truly made an impact, until a call comes in that answers the question for her.

“There are days where you leave work and you’re exhausted, and you wonder if you did make an impact,” Calarie said. “Then you get a phone call from somebody that says, ‘I’m so happy I got you on the phone today. You helped me so much last time,’ and it really shows that you’ve made an impact.”

Still, she acknowledged the challenges that come with leading a contact center and handling escalated concerns.

“The most difficult part is that being the manager of the contact center, I handle complaints as well,” she said. “That can be challenging and draining, because you can’t make everybody happy, and I try to do that.”

Outside of her career, Calarie’s life revolves around her two children, ages two and seven, and the routines that come with raising a young family.

When she does have free time, she said it is usually spent with a close group of friends who are all in similar stages of life.

“We usually all try to get together and just hang out,” Calarie said. “I love game nights. I also listen to audiobooks and podcasts, and I’ll hang out with my husband, watch different TV shows, and sneak in a date night every once in a while.”

Balancing work and home life would not be possible without support from both sides of her world. Calarie is grateful to have a large family she can rely on. Her mother-in-law helps bring her son to baseball camp and watches her daughter when needed, providing support that helps make her schedule possible.

“I am extremely lucky and extremely grateful that I have a company and bosses that are very flexible and allow me to create my own schedule,” Calarie said.

Even with that flexibility, she said she still feels the push-and-pull of responsibility.

“I don’t like to let my team down, but my team knows I’m always here for them, and they give me reassurance that it’s okay to leave early sometimes too,” Calarie said.

A Crown Point resident, living in Northwest Indiana makes everyday life easier with family and activities nearby.

“We’re so close to so many things,” Calarie said. “There’s a lot going on in the area, and a lot for the kids to do. Everything is a quick drive away, and my family lives nearby as well.”

Looking back, her career path was not linear. She studied psychology at Indiana University Northwest for three years before deciding to pivot.

“I just realized that I didn’t want to go for psychology anymore,” Calarie said. “Rather than continuing through school without really knowing what I wanted to do, I decided to jump into my career in banking.”

Even so, pieces of that background still show up in her work.

“I’m basically an unpaid therapist,” Calarie said.

The responsibility that comes with helping members navigate their finances is something Calarie does not take lightly. Compared to her first job in the restaurant industry, the stakes are much higher.

“When you make a mistake at a restaurant, it’s very fixable,” Calarie said. “It’s not a life-altering or impactive mistake. Whereas in this world making a mistake is the difference between somebody having the money to pay their bills. It’s a very different world, and it had a little bit more pressure on it.”

With higher risk, comes higher reward. She hopes the work she does creates a lasting impact on the people she serves and the community around her.

“I hope that I’m giving a positive influence on my community through the work that I do,” Calarie said. “I strive to help people and make their lives better in my job. I hope that takes them to other places. I’m also raising kind individuals that will eventually, hopefully, have a good impact on their communities as well.”