LANCASTER, Penn.—Another small but unique page in credit union history is turning here.
The tiny Lancaster Press Employees FCU, run by 89-year-old Treasurer Kathryn Shultz for the past 32 years, is about to merge into Lancaster Red Rose FCU. One big reason: the “federal people” and their regulatory burden.
Shultz told LancasterOnline.com that “it’s time to quit” a job that she was first asked to fill in 1983 when she was working at what was then Sperry New Holland, because she had a knack for numbers. Even today she knows many members’ account numbers by memory.
“It’s everything the federal people want,” Shultz told LancasterOnline. “It’s getting to be too much.” Shultz operates the credit union from her home.
Shultz said she spends four to five hours every day on credit union business, much of it dealing with compliance. “It all depends on what reports need to be given to the federal people,” she told LancasterOnline.
Shultz has volunteered in the position throughout her entire tenure.
The credit union was founded in 1954 to serve Lancaster Press, and at one point had as many as 500 members. It now has about 190 members and $800,000 in assets. According to the Pennsylvania CU Association, despite the limited size it is actually just the 45th smallest CU in the state.
Lancaster Red Rose has 7,900 members and $66 million in assets. The merger, according to LancasterOnline, was suggested by an NCUA examiner.