Gary Fukuroku has more than three decades of experience as a leader in the credit union industry, helming Maui County Federal Credit Union in Wailuku, Hawaii, since 1991.
So when wildfires began devastating large swaths of the island of Maui, he knew just how to respond to communities — which included Pulehu, Upcountry Maui and his childhood home of Lahaina — in need.
The fires began as isolated instances in early August, but quickly grew out of control as a combination of drought and high-speed winds from Hurricane Dora stoked the blazes. More than 90 people have been confirmed killed in the disaster and more than $880 million in damages were wrought to homes and businesses in the affected areas.
As president and CEO of the $430 million-asset Maui County FCU, Fukuroku rolled out a disaster relief fund for cash donations while simultaneously designating credit union branches in Wailuku and Kahului as drop-off points for necessities such as clothing and food. Members affected by the natural disaster also had access to low-interest personal loans for up to $50,000 and deferred payments for up to one year.
For Fukuroku's quick work supporting members both during and in the wake of the destruction, American Banker has named him as its Credit Union Executive of the Year.
"I grew up in Lahaina, so to see the whole town basically destroyed was just shocking," said Fukuroku, who noted that about a third of those killed by the wildfires were members of his credit union. He said that the news "was incredibly sad to hear."
"After that news, our immediate thought was what can we do for the members who are affected by the fire, whether it's loan deferrals or whatever help that we could provide," Fukuroku said.
Members of the Hawaiian Credit Union League's Valley Island chapter, which includes Maui County FCU and five other credit unions chartered in the county of Maui, established a larger donation fund in September to help the affected regions. Close to $1.4 million has been raised since its launch.
Fukuroku is currently working with Maui County officials to establish more long-term support by participating in a new initiative where $12.5 million of aid under the Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Fund could be used to fund grants for small businesses impacted by the fires.
"We have experience distributing grants from back during COVID, where we administered a couple of grants in partnership with Maui County and that also involved all six of the credit unions chartered to serve those throughout the county. … That was over and beyond everybody's workload, but we just felt that it was something good to do," Fukuroku said.
A rough transition
After graduating from the University of Hawaii in 1977, Fukuroku joined the McDonald's management training program where he handled all of the fast food chain's operations on the island of Maui. After 14 years in that role, Fukuroku came across a help wanted advertisement for what was then known as Maui County Employees Federal Credit Union.
"I was a member of several credit unions from a very young age, but I really had no idea what the background of working for a credit union was all about. … I had to do some homework before my interview about the credit union philosophy and not-for-profit status, but I was really attracted to being able to help the local community," Fukuroku said.
He took on the role of CEO for the institution in 1991. At that time, it had just $35 million in assets and a staff of six, including Fukuroku. He worked to expand both its field of membership and suite of financial products and services. At the time Fukuroku took charge, members only had access to basic savings accounts and simple auto and personal loans.
Fukuroku drew on the marketing and strategic planning skills he learned during his time with McDonald's to add checking accounts and real estate loans, while also launching marketing campaigns with local newspapers and radio stations to grow the credit union's reach across the islands of Maui, Lanai and Moloka'i.
As a result, he was able to add more than 150 small employer groups on top of the credit union's previous field of local, state and federal government employees. The institution eventually switched its charter to reach all who live in Maui County.
"It was rough going in the beginning, because it's a totally different industry from fast food and I needed to learn things like what's required when working with regulators," Fukuroku said. "I like to tell my wife that it probably took me a good two years to finally see that light, but I'm glad I stuck it out."
Maui County FCU has grown exponentially since then, merging with West Maui Community Federal Credit Union in 2017. It now employs more than 60 staff members — many of whom have been with Fukuroku since the beginning. "The majority of all my branch managers, as well as our operations manager, have come up through our ranks, so it's just good to see people grow with a company as we grow," he added.
The Ohana feeling of family still exists on the islands. Getting to know members is very, very important for us and for me, just getting to know my employees as we're continuing to expand, I still try to make it a point to get to know them as well as I can.
The hunt for talent
The small number of organizations within Maui's financial ecosystem means leaders often lean on one another for advice, even for the often opposed banks and credit unions. This, Fukuroku said, was hugely impactful when starting out as CEO.
"I know the banks don't really care for credit unions, but it seems like in Hawaii there's a really good relationship between the banking and credit union industries," Fukuroku said.
Knowing he could "just pick up the phone" and draw on the expertise of his credit union peers helped acclimate him in his new role and better understand the financial ecosystem across the islands, he said.
Alongside his executive roles with Maui County FCU, Fukuroku has also been the chairman of the Hawaiian Credit Union League's governmental affairs committee since 2014, where he has worked to preserve the tax-exempt status afforded to credit unions against legislative challenges.
"The philosophy of credit unions mirrors a concept for us in Hawaii that goes back long ago to the plantation days called tanomoshi, where people pool their money together and lend it out to each other," explained Paula M. Sumimoto-Matsushima, governmental affairs director for the HCUL.
Sumimoto-Matsushima, who has worked with the credit union CEO for more than nine years, explained how Fukuroku's "open-minded" approach to debating political issues that come up during meetings helps maintain productivity and makes him "a good advocate for the credit union industry," she said.
"The reputation that he's built in his community is unmatched. … He really was critical to the success of Maui County FCU as they're the biggest credit union in Maui," Matsushima said. "His leadership and vision fostered that."
But for all the advantages offered by the islands, Fukuroku also faced many challenges that persist to this day. He explained that for an island of more than 165,000 people, finding the right talent for staff positions and managerial openings was difficult in his early days of leading the institution and it remains a key hurdle when it comes to filling specialized roles.
During the height of COVID-19, the credit union reduced employee hours from 40 hours per week to 32 without decreasing wages and shifted its focus to training management for better employee retention. That's just one example of what Fukuroku has tried to help solve the issue.
Application volume last year declined significantly, in addition to staff turnover, creating "a very tough year staffing wise, and I don't know if it was because of COVID or something else, but it was really hard. … It's settling down now to the point where I think we're almost fully staffed, but that's always a challenge," Fukuroku said.
This challenge isn't unique to Hawaiian credit unions, as institutions nationwide are seeing an outflow of senior leadership due to retirement or pursuit of opportunities outside the industry.
Research conducted last year by Arizent, American Banker's parent company, polled 113 human resource experts and 486 top leaders across the finance sector. Insufficient wages, lack of career development options and cultural challenges were the top three cited reasons for employee resignations.
"Whatever the needs of the community or our members are, we're often required to shift sometimes. … Events like the recent wildfires, the pandemic and hurricane warnings all come into play, and we just need to make sure that we can adjust and make the best decisions on how we can continue to serve the members," Fukuroku said.
Besides hunting for talent, Fukuroku completed another monumental task this year by overseeing the construction of the credit union's new 26,183-square-foot headquarters in Kehalani Village Center, as growing membership and staff necessitated a larger building to support higher business volumes. He was able to get the two-year project across the finish line despite material shortages and overworked contractors.
This is actually the second time the institution's headquarters has moved under Fukuroku's watch — in 1998, the previous 10,800-square-foot location in Wailuku was built to house 25 employees. That move was necessitated because Maui County FCU's operations staff outgrew the previous structure and needed more space.
Now, Fukuroku is confident that the credit union will put down roots in the new location for some time and potentially remain there "past [his] lifetime for sure."
"The Ohana feeling of family still exists on the islands," Fukuroku said. "Getting to know members is very, very important for us and for me, just getting to know my employees as we're continuing to expand, I still try to make it a point to get to know them as well as I can."
Through all of the changes to the credit union, Fukuroku remained focused and passionate about one principle: his members accomplish their financial goals.
"There were a lot of sleepless nights during COVID, but the satisfaction from seeing how you can help the members, whether it's getting a home, getting a car or basic services, is worth it in the end," Fukuroku said.
But his work is far from complete, as Maui County officials continue to assess the full scope of damages from the wildfires and formulate action plans for disbursing aid to those most in need.
For instance, this month, Fukuroku purchased $50,000 worth of gas cards to help offset the cost of traveling for members with limited access to functional fueling stations. He is also working with a local food store to provide impacted families with cases of water and other nonperishable items.
"We're just trying to see where the needs are," Fukuroku said.
