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 It was so they would have a place to come and because so many employees and
 so many people when they needed money would go to finance companies.
 They still do it today. They [the finance company] would charge them
 astronomical rates of interest. They would come in to me and I would look at
 their credit. Back then, it was really wonderful, and I hate that I can't have as
 much direct member contact today because we're a lot larger. We still, today,
 know our members. That's the difference, I think, between a credit union and a
 bank. Banks have realized that and now they've started marketing that they're
 the bank with the heart and all this stuff. We've always been that way. These
 guys would come in, and they would have these loans with these finance
 companies and we would pay them off or they would come in and they wouldn't
 be able to buy a house, and we'd loan them the money for the house. We've
 got members that we loaned them the money for their very first house and
 they're still members. We know them. We know their families. We know
 everything about them. It makes it easier, too, because you do know the
 people. You know where their skeletons are. It makes it easier. It's nice.
 They trust us because we care what happens to them.

H: That goes along with the Sea Island culture of family that they talk about so
 much. It is like a family. Of course, the people that are members of the credit
 union, they exclusively work for Sea Island.

M: Yes, in the beginning it was that. Now, our field of membership is a little bit
 more diverse. It's still the core Sea Island Company employees and their family
 members. My aunt, who lives in California, can be a member now if you're
 related by blood. It doesn't have to be in the household. My family members
 can be members.

H: That's how you have 3200 members.

M: Yes. Well, if you've ever been an employee of Sea Island you can be a
 member. You don't have to be a current employee, too.

H: All the retired employees still have accounts here.

M: Certainly. Once you've been a member, you can always be a member.

H: You were trained on the job. You were just put there.

M: [I was just put there] and trained by the current person.

H: It's like an apprenticeship.

M: Sort of, if you will. Of course, over the years I've had other educational [things].