ABERDEEN, S.D.(Press Release) — Pete Mehlhaff, President and CEO of Great Plains Bank, has been elected to the Board of Directors of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Des Moines (FHLB Des Moines) following a statewide election for South Dakota’s seat. FHLB Des Moines is a $185 billion, federally chartered, government-sponsored enterprise regulated by the Federal Housing Finance Agency and registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Mehlhaff will begin his four-year term on January 1, 2026.

FHLB Des Moines is a member-owned cooperative supporting more than 1,200 financial institutions across a 13-state district and the U.S. Pacific territories. The Bank provides liquidity, housing-finance tools, and community development funding to strengthen local economies across the region.

“I’m honored to represent South Dakota on the FHLB Des Moines Board,” Mehlhaff said. “The Bank plays a vital role in supporting community lenders, expanding access to housing, and strengthening the economic health of our region. I look forward to contributing to that mission.”

A fourth-generation banker, Mehlhaff began his career 46 years ago. He served as a lending officer with U.S. Bank and Wells Fargo in correspondent and business banking roles in Aberdeen and in the Minnesota communities of Minneapolis, St. Paul, Redwood Falls, and Bloomington. He returned to South Dakota in 1990 to become President and Chairman of Great Plains Bank, a $150 million community bank with offices in Eureka, Aberdeen, Eden, and Gettysburg.

Mehlhaff is active in statewide and local civic leadership. He currently serves as Chairman of the South Dakota Bankers Association and has previously served as chairman of the Presentation College Board of Trustees, president of the Aberdeen Area Catholic Foundation, and a founding director of the Eureka Area Community Foundation. He is a Deacon for the Blessed Sacrament Pastorate and a member of the Northern State University School of Business Advisory Board.

He holds graduate degrees from the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minn. (MBA), and Mount Marty University (MA), as well as an undergraduate degree from Northern State University. He is also a graduate of the Colorado Graduate School of Banking.

The FHLB Des Moines Board is composed of member directors—elected by shareholders within each state—and independent directors elected at-large across the district. The Board provides oversight, strategic guidance, and governance for the cooperative.

Mehlhaff and his wife, Paddy, have been married for 44 years and have five children.