Scott Runke is a senior mortgage loan representative at Marine Credit Union (MCU). He lives in Green Bay and covers the Green Bay and surrounding areas, “Basically Northeast Wisconsin,” he explained. “We are the mortgage lenders for the MCU field representatives.”
Scott explained that he is able offer services to members with no minimum credit score or debt ratio. “We can kind of work through those scenarios,” he shared.
Scott has lived in the Green Bay area for 22 years. He was born and raised in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and ended up in Green Bay somewhere between the ages of 8 and 10. After High School, Scott enlisted in the military at 17 years of age and served in the U.S. Army for 4 years. Scott pursued law enforcement in and out of the military and gained an associate degree in criminal justice from NE Wisconsin Technical College. But at the prospect of patrolling the streets in much less favorable places than in Green Bay, Scott’s career direction turned and he found his way to MCU.
Much earlier, Scott’s dad was a branch manager for MCU in North Fond du Lac. “My dad got me interested,” Scott shared. He started as a “teller” and worked his way up to consumer loans and has been in the mortgage area for 10 years now. “I always knew I loved helping people,” he shared. His father told him that if he wanted to help people, he should consider the credit union. “I think he knew,” Scott said of his father. “I was in a factory working doing the same thing day after day. He could see I was destined to do other things and to help people. I’m thankful. And the rest is history,” he added smiling.
Scott said the reward in his work is “helping somebody.”
“When I was younger, my mom’s side of the family were farmers,” he shared. I worked on the farm, summer after summer. Everyone was willing to help. People didn’t hesitate to give a helping hand.” He said they were always helping each other and their neighbors. “My grandfather influenced me a lot,” Scott added.
“I want to help people,” he continued. He said it’s ingrained in him from his family and his work and previously as a public servant in law enforcement.
The culture at MCU serves Scott well in his desire to help people. “There’s been changes,” he said of the culture at MCU since he started his career there. “But, at the end of the day, the message hasn’t changed much. Putting members in a better financial place. The root is to try to help people.”
“Building relationships,” Scott shared, is what takes up his time at work. He said that when he is interacting with members, he is building and developing those relationships. “I gather information and get their story,” he explained.
“I never say ‘no’ to anyone,” Scott said. “I haven’t for 13 years. I can say yes, but I can also say ‘not right now,” he added. He said he can help put members on a journey to where they want to be, “home ownership. The American dream,” he added.
Often, he will help members look at where they are and what he can do to help them get where they want to go. “More often than not,” he continued, “after handling x, y, and z,” he said they are able to say yes. It’s about “helping themselves help themselves even more. They are the ones who are going to put themselves where they want to be with my help.” Scott explained, “our loans are designed to be a stepping-stone. As they improve their scenario, we want to graduate them into the next level products.”
“The reason I do what I do,” he shared is that often members he serves are told ‘no’ at other places. “After they had been approved,” Scott shared that one member “screamed and cried. She felt so good that someone was giving her a chance.”
“I get cards at Christmas time,” he added saying that one said, “You are the reason for Christmas in our home.”
“It’s a relief giving them a fresh start,” Scott shared. “It’s overwhelmingly awesome.”
Scott and his wife Kelly have one son, Noah (12). They enjoy being outdoors, basketball and football and he said his wife got him “hooked on fishing.”
“We have a plethora of pets,” he added including, “two dogs, a cat, fish, rabbit, guinee pig and laying chickens.” He shared they are on their second flock of chickens and they are turning a year old. “They spend time in the house when I’m not home,” he added with a laugh.
Scott explained that it’s his “wife’s thing. She’s an animal lover. This is our eighth year of fostering a variety of different animals. So far, he said, about 30 dogs and a dozen cats. “We have a whole petting zoo. It is so rewarding to see an animal with a troubled past to go to a family that will care for them. It’s the way it is supposed to be.”
“Sometimes we want to keep them,” Scott added. “We can’t keep them all because then we can’t help as many.”
“I love what I do,” Scott said, “for my family, my God and my country. My motto is ‘One day at a time and seize every day.’”
“My grandfather influenced me a lot,” Scott added. “He molded me into the person I am today. I thank him to the heavens and back for it.”
