THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, March 3, 1996 TAG: 9603010198
SECTION: CHESAPEAKE CLIPPER PAGE: 12 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JENNIFER C. O'DONNELL, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 82 lines
In 1965, when the Ford assembly plant in Norfolk needed a volunteer to head its newly formed credit union, they turned to Palmer L. Stillman, an industrial engineer at the plant.
The responsibilities at the beginning were hardly overwhelming.
``Ten Ford employees started the credit union. Each of us invested just $5 each,'' Stillman said.
The initial $50 investment may have been small, but it paid for the application for a federal charter. And, as the saying goes, tall oaks from little acorns grow.
The credit union that Stillman and nine of his colleagues started more than 30 years ago now is known as N.A.E. Federal Credit Union, with two branches in Chesapeake. N.A.E's membership today tops 7,500, including Ford employees, workers from other businesses and organizations such as Volvo America, U.S. Gypsum, Southland Corp., and members of civic organizations, baseball leagues and PTAs.
The credit union's original $50 investment has grown to more than $52 million in assets.
``We've come a long way,'' said Bob Cormier, a safety engineer for Ford and the 1,000th member of the credit union.
``We went from the trunk of a car to our own buildings,'' Cormier joked.
Stillman, who retired from Ford a few years ago, now works full time as the president and chief executive officer of N.A.E. His wife, Katy, is vice president. Their son and son-in-law also are employed by the credit union.
Under Stillman's management, N.A.E has received high honors from financial rating services. For the past three years, N.A.E. was awarded the highest rating available from the National Credit Union Administration, the governmental agency that regulates and insures credit unions. Bauer Financial Rating System gives N.A.E. a five-star rating, their highest.
What was once a small, family-run business has grown to one of the largest credit unions in Hampton Roads.
Before the first branch was opened on Indian River Road in 1978, the Stillmans ran the business from an office in their home, where Katy would open new accounts and balance the books.
Once a day, she'd travel to the Ford plant to pick up and drop off withdrawals, deposits and receipts.
``We didn't keep business hours,'' Katy said. ``We were open whenever someone needed us.''
While Katy opened and managed accounts during the workweek, Palmer continued at his job at the Ford plant. But at night and on the weekends, he'd spend time managing the credit union and meeting with board members, tasks that became time-consuming as the membership flourished.
In many ways, the credit union became a family business for the Stillmans. When it was time for the account statements to be mailed, Katy and Palmer often would enlist the help of their three children to assist with inserting and mailing.
Then there were the phone calls.
``We'd get calls at all times of the day and night,'' Palmer said. Late-night calls often came from swing-shift workers.
``If they had questions about their account or about a loan, they'd call when they got off their shift,'' he said.
Now, members of N.A.E. receive their computerized account statements monthly and can drop off their deposits and withdrawals and apply for loans at either of the two N.A.E. branches in Chesapeake. The newest branch, located on Battlefield Boulevard across from Chesapeake General Hospital, opened its doors in November of 1994.
Although the credit union has grown, the Stillmans still know many of their customers by name.
``We keep our office doors open all the time,'' Katy said. ``Our customers would be insulted if they felt they couldn't just walk in and ask a question or chat.''
But unlike the early days, the Stillmans now keep regular business hours.
``We still occasionally get a call or two at home,'' Katy said. ``But we'd prefer members call us at the office.'' ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by MORT FRYMAN
Palmer and Katy Stillman started the N.A.E. Federal Credit Union in
1965. Now it is one of the area's largest credit unions.
by CNB