Route 31 Credit Union

History

"One of our founding members was John “Red” Kennedy. John worked for Continental Motors and spent many evenings getting the credit union started. He was on the board and various committees for the credit union over the next 30 years. John and his wife Helen lived in East Muskegon near Getty and had 5 children. One son was special needs, John’s daughter attended Muskegon Public School, and his other 3 sons attended Muskegon Catholic. John said his boys needed the nuns to keep them in line. His son, Charles, had an account as a child and saved money earned from cleaning the credit union, delivering newspapers, and working as a gas station attendant. He planned to buy roller skates with the money he had saved, but his father convinced him to take out a loan for the $18purchase. He paid $1/week until the loan was paid off. That taught him a valuable lesson about money responsibility and credit management. Charles is still a member today and speaks fondly of the friendly employees he has met over the years. His father, John, passed away in 1970, but his legacy lives on through his children, grandchildren, and this small credit union he helped create.

We changed our name in2022 to better reflect the community and members that we serve and give us a fresh new look. We also added a full suite of Business Account Services for our small and medium-sized businesses here along the lakeshore. Some of those Business Accounts now include interest-earning checking options for both for-profit and non-profit organizations. Our CD rates for Businesses also follow our personal CD rates so they remain some of the most competitive in the area. This year we hired a designated Business Development Officer, Nick Green, who can come to your business to help determine what products and services may benefit you the most and guide you along the path of prosperity.

We have over 74 years of serving our members and our community along the lakeshore with authenticity and respect. Even though our name and signs have changed we are still the same great non-profit community financial institution you trust and have continued to provide the service you love. We hope that “Red” Kennedy would be pleased to see the credit union he started thriving.
"