Alec Everson explained that his primary responsibility at Marine Credit Union (MCU) as a Mortgage Loan Processor is to create initial disclosures; he creates paperwork for the preliminary terms of the loans. He began his career at MCU in 2019. He said his leaders realized early on that “I was not super big into automobiles” so he transferred to where he is now. “It’s been a little over three years,” Alec explained. “I couldn’t be happier.”
Alec started at MCU pre-pandemic. “I always wanted to work from home,” Alec shared with a smile. At the beginning he was told he could work two days a week from home. When the pandemic hit, he was approached and told they were all going to be working from home “until further notice.”
Alec continues to work from his home in the La Crosse area. He grew up and went to high school in Holmen. At one point, he shared that he and his wife Alyssa (who he met in high school) considered a move to Seattle, but after a visit there, said they preferred life in a smaller city.
Other than that, Alec said he didn’t really have a plan after high school other than making enough money to be comfortable. So, after a summer job he had ended, he went to work for Kwik Trip. His goal, he said was to “make a lot of money and be proud of himself.” But MCU, he added, “helped me to get into the right attitude for helping people.”
“During my Kwik Trip days, I worked third shift. It was a great job and company,” Alec explained. “I was so focused on making money that I severed relationships with friends and family and almost split from my wife (but we didn’t).”
Alec also, at one point, considered going into personal training and he followed in his sister’s footsteps training and lifting during high school. “I was 110 in high school. I’m 180 now. I’m in the best shape I’ve been in. I feel pretty awesome,” he added. Alec said that he continues to train, even though some days he doesn’t see results, because he does it for him. “If I have a bad day, I go work out. It will boost my mood. I can’t imagine not doing it,” he added.
But Alec’s career went in another direction. He explained that his wife’s aunt worked for MCU. “She said I should apply … that I would be a good fit.”
Since making the move to MCU, Alec said that he felt he was able to reconnect with people again. “I want to be there for everyone I can,” he shared. “I’m getting to an age where things are balancing out career and relationship wise.”
Alec said he felt he had been given a sense of purpose at MCU. “There is a sense of purpose in this department. It’s a pleasure working with the mortgage loan reps. They will reach out and tell me ‘thanks so much for doing this asap.’ They share their families’ stories. It makes me feel really, really great. It helps me to sleep at night,” Alec added, when he is able to help those families.
“I was kind of a jerk,” Alec admitted when he was younger. “My family was kind of hard on me. We don’t communicate well.” Alec explained that both of his parents “drank a lot” and he didn’t see his dad much. “I felt worthless. I struggled with self-identification,” he continued. “Working here, I feel successful. It’s my way of showing my family that I’m doing fine.”
In alignment with MCU’s core values, Alec said, “I believe in honesty and integrity. I wasn’t always truthful,” he said, when he was younger. “I felt lost. I used to be afraid to reach out.”
But, Alec shared that the MCU environment helped him shift his perspective on things and now he believes in being honest and upfront. “I’ve talked with quite a few people. Everyone I work with is so diverse and so interesting and super nice. My job can be pretty stressful. But at the end of the day, it’s a huge feeling to have helped people.”
Alec and Alyssa help animals too, having saved their three “rescue” dogs Addie, Audrey, and Ash. Addie was rescued from Aruba, Audrey from a puppy mill in Des Moines, Iowa and Ash was found “wandering the streets in Texas. I don’t know their breeds,” Alec explained with a laugh. “They’re all mutts. I love them to death.”
