Not So Fast John, Your Legacy Lives On

Just a few short months ago, we lost a major player in our credit union movement.

John Arnold was a giant in the construction of our corporate system for our credit unions. In the last half of the 1970s, John and a few others were selected to head the “centrals” (as they were called in those days) in our respective states under the guidance of the leagues. John, in Texas, may have had more credit union experience than the rest of us new guys. He knew about credit union needs and, more importantly, knew how to get things done in the league hierarchy. Jim Jukes, the Kansas Credit Union League president, had started this system in his home state. Jim, one of the original “good ole boys,” convinced his league counterparts that this was a worthwhile venture. And so “centrals” were started in many of the states. Bill Broxterman in California, Will McKenna in Texas, Gene Farley in Virginia, Gary Wolder in Alabama, and others opened centrals in their states. Each of them hired someone to get this new idea for a credit union off the ground. Boards were formed of experienced credit union leaders to offer guidance to this new person in charge.