The gold standard | Ginnie Konan redefines “long-term employee” at cPort Credit Union
Photo/Tim Greenway
Ginnie Konan, IRA specialist at Portland's cPort Credit Union, has no plans to retire, despite logging 50 years with her employer. Work is "still a pleasure," she says.
Ginnie Konan doesn’t think it’s extraordinary that she’s worked 50 years for the same employer, or that at 66, she’s the go-to person for technology troubles at cPort Credit Union.
“I enjoy my job and it feels so good when I can help people,” says Konan. “It’s still a pleasure to come to work.”
She does admit, though, she can’t put in the hours like she used to. Caring for her ailing mother has meant cutting back to a 40-hour work week.
“I can’t work weekends like I used to, but I think I still get the job done,” she says.
And then some. Mary Fasulo, branch manager, says Konan, who is the company’s IRA specialist, was instrumental last fall when cPort abandoned its in-house computer network to tie into the Maine Credit Union League network. As with any computer conversion, there were glitches and Ginnie was there to help smooth the waters.
“She has such a terrific can-do attitude and is willing to mentor younger folks,” says Fasulo. “Plus her knowledge of the membership base is incredible.”
Konan began her long tenure at the credit union when her Portland High School accounting teacher, Sam Giftos, recommended her for a part-time opening at what was then Government Employees Credit Union, situated above the Forest Avenue post office. It was 1960, and Ginnie was glad for the opportunity to work the teller line and earn $40 a week with a $2.50 raise every six months. Since then, she has held nearly every job there, adapting to changes within the financial services industry and technology.
“When I started there were six employees and all transactions were recorded by hand in passbooks and ledgers,” she says with a laugh. “I remember we had a party when we broke $4 million in assets.”
Today the credit union’s headquarters in Riverside Industrial Parkway and its branch offices in Scarborough and Augusta employ 36 full-time staff serving almost 13,000 members. Assets top $126 million, making it Maine’s 16th biggest credit union based on 2009 assets. Management and staff honored Konan at the credit union’s annual meeting this spring, a warm recognition that Konan says is part of the reason she’s stayed so long with one employer.
“I think I’ve always been treated right, treated fairly,” she says. “To me, that’s what’s important.”
A former boss, John Greenlaw, put her on a technology track. “I remember when we got our first computer,” she says, rolling her eyes. “I was the assistant manager, and we had to back everything up on these huge disks and CPUs that looked like a side-by-side washer and dryer. John didn’t want to do it, so I did.”
The credit union recently rolled out a mobile phone app and offers several online banking options, all of which Konan says she has a passing knowledge of, even though she doesn’t own a smart phone herself. “Do I have one? No! Will I someday? Who knows, maybe. I just got a cell phone,” she says.
She doesn’t have much need for technology gizmos outside of work. At the end of her work day, she heads to St. Joseph’s Manor to have dinner with her mom, 93, and they spend time together watching TV or talking. On the weekends, Konan likes to putter in her garden, tending to the flowers that attract hummingbirds — her favorites — and is an active member of Portland’s St. Louis Roman Catholic Church and Sodality.
When she does eventually retire, Konan says she might enjoy traveling. Working in financial services, especially in retirement planning, has its benefits: By investing wisely, Konan says when she is ready to retire, she should be comfortable. But she doesn’t see that happening for a long while yet. “As long as I feel up to it, I’d like to keep working,” she says.
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