Mike Lee believes working at a credit union has been a blessing.  “You can have a great career while helping people and giving back.  You get to embrace servant leadership.  We are all wired to give back,” he said.

Mike’s career began in Kansas working in the insurance industry.  He began his career in the credit union movement as SVP, Marketing and Member Service at Corporate One FCU in Ohio during 1995.  He worked at U.S. Central FCU, a mortgage CUSO, a start-up in the credit union space, and Alloya Corporate FCU before taking on his role as CEO at Kane County Teachers (KCT) CU in 2013.

During his time at KCT, Mike focused on improving the credit union’s balance sheet, which moved from a negative ROA to one of the best ROAs in the state.  “In my first year, I had 18 initiatives to accomplish, including financial performance,” he said. “I immediately learned the community wants us to be successful because they need us.”

He introduced affinity cards to benefit schools and opened a branch at a library.  The affinity credit cards raise money for schools and give members an opportunity to show their school pride.  He told the schools, “If you help me make money, I will share it with you.”

Mike’s focus is taking care of people and helping them live better financially.  “I believe the credit union cooperative model will help retain our tax-free status.  Credit unions fill a niche and provide people with financial education along with access to products and services to suit their needs.”

KCT CU offers members “financial health check-up” where they can meet with credit union staff to review their credit reports, loans, and savings.  “If a member’s credit score has improved, we can offer new loans, including rewriting our own loans at a lower rate to put money back in the member’s pocket,” said Mike.

Mike recalls meeting a member who was a seasonal worker who had a loan from a payday lender at 300% interest rate.  He is proud of being able to provide the member with a loan to replace the predatory one at an interest rate of 20%. “This change literally put food on the person’s table,” he said.

KCT staff members “witnessed credit union philosophy isn’t just talk,” said Mike.  “Over time, the organization’s culture changed.”

Mike is looking forward to having more freedom and flexibility in his life when he is retired.  He and his wife, Sharon, are moving to Colorado to live closer to their children.  Three out of four of their children live within two miles of each other in Colorado, while the fourth lives in Kansas.  They have 5 grandchildren.

Spending time with children and grandchildren, travel, fishing, learning something new, and continuing to serve others are all on Mike’s list of how he will spend his time during retirement.  “Sharon and I went on a mission trip to Peru in June this year.  I hope we are able to do more of these,” he said.

“What did you do today to help someone else?  At the end of the day, this is all that matters,” said Mike.