HILO, Hawaii - If Ron Keeler held up his pre-retirement andpost-retirement lives in a mirror, the two would not even distantlyresemble each other. This was Ron Keeler before he retired aspresident/CEO of Lockheed FCU in Burbank, Calif. - he lived about12 miles from the credit union and drove about 30 minutes(depending on traffic) to his job. He typically got up at 6:45 am,arrived for work at Lockheed at around 8:30 and left for home at6:30. Keeler also had to be in Washington, D.C. two out of everythree months for a NAFCU Board meeting or a meeting of theexecutive committee since by the time he retired in 2000, he wasalso chairman of NAFCU. His stays in D.C. usually lasted two dayseach. So what's Keeler's life like these days? He splits it betweenhis home in Las Vegas where he lives nine months out of the yearand his home on nine acres of land in Hilo, Hawaii about half wayup the active Mount Kilauea volcano. When he's in Hawaii, Keeler"wakes up when I get up" which is usually between 7:30 and 9 am.After breakfast, he gets on his tractor and rides around hisproperty, trimming palm trees and watching his coffee plants grow.Keeler has devoted one acre of his property to growing coffee. He'sraised two crops so far, and last year he even sold some at a localmarket. Is it any wonder that despite his lengthy credit unioncareer and service to the NAFCU Board - before being namedchairman, Keeler was first appointed to the board in 1991 to fillthe unexpired term of John Stanton, retired president/CEO ofContinental Airlines FCU. He subsequently was elected independentlythree times and served from 1991-2000 - that the 66 year old Keelerdoesn't miss working in the credit union world. "I love the people,but after 18 years as a CEO and being involved with Lockheed Corp.before as their corporate counsel, it was time to move on," saysKeeler. He also served on the Lockheed FCU Board from 1969-1982,when he was appointed president/CEO. "I saw Lockheed FCU grow fromits infancy to almost being a billion dollar credit union. I knew Ididn't want to work clear to age 65, but it became obvious to methat I'd accomplished everything I'd wanted to. That's when Iturned the reins over to my successor Dave Styler," says Keeler.Lockheed FCU currently has $1.9 billion in assets. In fact Keelerwas 62 when he retired. His first wife Diana died two years beforehe retired. Keeler has been remarried for four years to SusanLinnemeyer who used to work at Lockheed FCU as head of lending.Between living in Las Vegas and Hawaii, Keeler has come a long wayfrom Great Bend, Kansas where he grew up. He earned his B.A. fromUniversity of Kansas and his law degree from UCLA with a specialtyin commercial law. When he needed a car for his first job, hejoined a credit union and took out an auto loan. That was hisintroduction to the credit union world. Recalling his time spent onthe NAFCU Board, Keeler remembers that shortly after he came onboard, the environment for federal credit unions "began to worsen."Norman D'Amours had been named NCUA Chairman, and "he never had aclue what federal credit unions were about," says Keeler. Keelersays he was thrilled when he was named NAFCU chairman because "itmeant I had fulfilled one of my lifetime dreams. It seemed like ifyou were a federal credit union, that's where the action was." Hewas especially excited over the prospect of dealing withcongressmen and senators. "It was my first opportunity to deal inthe political arena and meet with federal elected officials. It wasone of the most exciting times of my life," Keeler says, pausing toadd, "But it was time to move on." He concedes though that asdifficult as it was to deal with the aftermath of the AT&TFamily FCU suit filed by the American Bankers Association includingthe subsequent appeals, the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to hearthe case, its eventual decision, and the successful push to passthe Credit Union Membership Access Act, "the whole situationappealed to the lawyer in me. You never really lose that," saysKeeler. The former president of Lockheed says he's gone to a coupleof the credit union's annual meetings since he retired and keeps intouch with some credit union folks he knows. "But I've pretty muchclosed that chapter of my life," Keeler says. "Susan and I like totravel and we get to do a lot of that." Asked if he'd considereddoing volunteer work for credit unions, Keeler said he's notinterested because, "I'd still have to make a commitment to thatwhich would mean I'd only be able to travel and do other things Ilove part-time." Since retiring, the Keelers have traveled toAustralia, New Zealand, South America and Mexico. They plan tovisit Ireland and the British Isles in September or October. Withone of his daughters living next door to him in Hawaii, anotherdaughter living about a mile from where he lives in Las Vegas, andhis son living in California, and splitting his time with his wifeSusan between their homes in Las Vegas and Hawaii, Keeler has nosecond thoughts that his decision to retire was the right one. "Iwas excited to work with credit unions, but this is my life now andit fits fine," Keeler says. Friends of Keeler who would like tocontact him can reach him at: skeeler1@ msn.com. -

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