Nicholas M. Lacetera
People's Alliance Federal Credit Union
Website: www.pafcu.org
If Nick Lacetera and his wife Margaret keep moving east they are going to run out of Island soon. That's not a problem though because the new home they just had built in Hampton Bays is going to be their retirement home. No more moves, he said. Born and raised in Elmont, Nick, who is the C.E.O. of People's Alliance Federal Credit Union, was a member of the last large graduating class at Sewanaka High School. With over 1200 in his class, he agreed that the decision to divide the district into six high schools was overdue at the time. On the plus side, over 300 turned out for their 40th class reunion several years ago -- that's more than many of us had in our entire graduating class. Nick went right to work after high school at National Security and Research Corp. in New York City, while attending Pace University at night. He put his college studies off briefly when his daughter and twin sons were born in the early 1960s. He had joined the Williamsburg Savings Bank by then. In 1964 Nick switched from traditional thrifts to credit unions, and went to work for the Pan American Airlines Federal Credit Union as a loan counselor. His youngest son was born in 1969, while the family still resided in their first home in Copiague. By 1974 his daughter was entering her teens and the family headed east to Islip Terrace where the children grew up and finished school. The Laceteras now have six grandchildren, with the seventh due in a week or two. After 26 years in their previous home, Nick said they are looking forward to planting grass-seed and decorating the new house in Hampton Bays which was just completed three months ago. It's only a block from the water, which suits them both fine since boating is one of their favorite past-times. "We keep the boat in the Shinnecock Canal," Nick said. The twin engine cruiser has taken them on many fine vacations over the years including short hops to Nantucket and Marthas Vineyard. When they lived in Islip they became very familiar with the waters off Fire Island and are now looking forward to charting new territory, exploring the east end this coming summer. We do a little fishing, but mostly we use the boat as a place to relax and get away, he explained. No cell-phones. No fax machines. Just family and a few good friends. All they want is clear sailing to help clear their minds. One of his most memorable vacations was a trip to the U.S. Virgin Islands two years ago, when they and two other couples leased a 40 foot marine trawler for a week's private fishing cruise. "We toured St. Martens, St. Thomas and the British Virgin Islands," he said. They piloted the vessel themselves, chartered their own course and stopped at smaller islands that caught their eye. Nick became CEO of Pan Am Federal Credit Union in 1980 and helped govern its transition when the airline folded in 1991. "That was a difficult transition period," he recalled. "When it was Pan Am there were over $200 million in assets and within two months it dropped to $100 million." He's proud that assets have risen back up to about $140 million in the eight years since it became People's Alliance Federal Credit Union. "We serve 40,000 members and have members in 49 of the 50 states," Nick said proudly. They're waiting for someone in North Dakota to sign on and complete the map. Nick was on the advisory board for Control Data for their credit union electronic systems and Merrill Lynch's advisory board for credit union investments. He is currently on the political action committee for the National Association of Federal Credit Unions, a lobbying group that represents all credit unions in Washington. When his children were growing up, Nick served as President of the Copiague Youth League and worked for 10 years as an umpire for the Stan Musial Semi-pro baseball league. He coached both Little League baseball and Little Conference football teams for his twin sons. While living in Islip, when his youngest son developed an interest in soccer, he served as a coach for a traveling soccer league for five years. He now does his coaching from the sidelines at his grandsons' Little League games on weekends. That is, of course, when he's not out on the boat, cruising Long Island's coastline.
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