Former NAFCU president/CEO and retired U.S. Marine Corps Major General Kenneth L. Robinson died Sunday, the trade association confirmed with Robinson's family Tuesday.

“General Robinson was an extraordinary leader, a compassionate man and consummate credit union advocate,” NAFCU President/CEO Dan Berger said. “Throughout his 16 years leading NAFCU, he was a true champion, and his efforts culminated in one of the most important legislative campaigns ever waged for the industry – preservation of multiple-group charters through passage of the 1998 Credit Union Membership Access Act.”

”Ken laid the early groundwork for much of credit unions' growth in recent years, and he did it by keeping his eye on what was important to credit unions and to their future,” he said. “His contribution to the industry and to NAFCU has been enormous, and he will be greatly missed.”

Prior to completing his active duty with the Marine Corps, Robinson was a commanding general at Camp Pendleton in California.

After he retired as a major general in 1983, he briefly worked at the NCUA assisting troubled credit unions. Robinson also served on the board of directors of three credit unions.

During his tenure at NAFCU from 1984 to 2000, he was active with the White House, U.S. Treasury, the Federal Reserve, the NCUA and with key committees on Capitol Hill.

He was profiled in Forbes magazine, as well as American Banker, which also included Robinson among the top 40 most influential financial people in Washington. He was also honored in CU Times' 25^th anniversary Final Four list of most influential credit union leaders.

“There are few folks, if any, that I respected – and truly liked – more than Ken Robinson,” Dennis Dollar, president/CEO of Dollar Associates Inc., said. “He left a lasting legacy in credit union land, contributed greatly to this industry and will be absolutely missed by everyone who knew him. Ken was not only a credit union champion, he was a great American patriot who loved his country and served it with distinction.”

After Robinson retired from NAFCU in March 2000, the national trade organization renamed its boardroom the “Kenneth L. Robinson Room.”

“I must tell you when Gen. (Douglas) MacArthur retired, he said, `Old soldiers never die; they just fade away,'“ Robinson said in his farewell address at NAFCU's 33rd annual conference and exhibition in Honolulu during the summer of 2000. “Let me tell you, this Marine ain't fading away. In the Corps, we say, `Continue to march.' I'll find a way to get where you are.”

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Former NAFCU CEO Ken Robinson Dies: In Memoriam

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