After 24 years as president of Oregon State Credit Union, Rick Hein will retire this spring.

According to Oregon State Credit Union’s website, Gary Schuette II, who will be replacing Hein, has more than 19 years of experience as chief financial performance officer for Vystar Credit Union in Jacksonville, Florida and vice president of financial risk management and strategy at Local Government Federal Credit Union in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Before Schuette started his professional career, he received his Bachelor of Science degree in finance and management from Virginia Tech University. 

“I look forward to working with Oregon State Credit Union’s Board of Directors and employees as the credit union continues to grow and provide outstanding products and services for its membership,” Schuette stated on the Oregon State Credit Union’s website.

“Gary is coming from a credit union background and he has researched Oregon State Credit Union,” Hein said. “He knows we have a rich history of competitive products and services, providing the member unsurpassed service is the main strategy of the organization, being very conservative in our investments, having solid accounting and underwriting standards and a culture of compliance to do things right.”

Credit unions are not-for-profit financial cooperatives, according to Hein. Compared to banks, which use shareholders and have a for-profit business model, a credit union works for its members and the community it serves by allowing members to be part-owners. 

As for specific financial needs and decisions, he encourages people to research differences and decide what is best for them. 

Hein expressed that Oregon State Credit Union has a rich history in Corvallis on campus in its 70 years of existence. It was built and created at Oregon State University by Bob Coyle, an associate professor of agriculture, in 1954 to meet the needs of underserved community members, according to Hein. Coyle ran the credit union from his desk in Snell Hall in its early days, when the credit union membership was small.

Hein said he plans to counsel Schuette to be passionate, honest and focused in his new role and he encourages him to engage with the community team and industry. 

“It’s been a great career. Thank you for supporting your credit union and the team that has worked hard to serve your needs over the past 70 years,” Hein said. “It’s by all of us working together that has made Oregon State Credit Union the organization it is.”