Kansas City Credit Union is proud to celebrate the retirement of one of its most dedicated team members, Kevin Welp! Kevin has been helping KCCU members and growing the institution for over 37 years.
Kevin Welp
Kevin, who is originally from Indiana, graduated from Indiana State University in 1980 and began a career in financial services soon after. He moved to Kansas City in 1982 to take a banking job. Turbulence in the banking industry during the late 1980s led Kevin to pivot and take a job at the Kansas City Credit Union. It was an opportunity for him to work for an institution focused on helping people.
When Kevin first started at KCCU, it was in a newly created role – Credit Manager. His primary job was to help streamline the loan process. At the time, members would have to wait for a committee to meet bi-weekly to approve loans. His role as Credit Manager cut down on wait times and provided credit union members with faster access to the loans they needed. His role eventually evolved into Solutions Manager, where he supports lending and collections while continuing to serve KCCU’s members with his decades of financial expertise.
Career Highlights
Over his 37 years, Kevin has seen KCCU grow significantly. “The milestones we reached as a credit union are some of the high points of my tenure. When I first started at KCCU, we only offered savings and loan programs; we didn’t have checking accounts yet. Each new service or update took us to the next level in what we could provide for our members.”
At the time of Kevin’s hiring, KCCU only had one location on the 9th floor of City Hall. Since then, the credit union has opened two new locations, first in North Kansas City and then the new headquarters on Ararat Drive in 2001. Expanding locations allowed KCCU to better serve members closer to home.
What Kevin enjoyed most about working at KCCU was getting to help people. “Whether it’s on the lending side or the collections side, we are here to assist members and help them reach their goals. Especially those members that banks would normally not work with.”
What Makes KCCU Special?
“I would say our longevity is what sets us apart from other financial institutions. We just celebrated 85 years, and I think that is a testament to KCCU’s stability and consistency. Even through industry changes and different challenges throughout the years, KCCU has remained a trusted partner to its members.”
What’s Next?
Kevin is looking forward to retirement. Two of his passions outside of work are classic cars and boating, both of which Kevin will be enjoying much more of now. He plans to use his new free time to go boating on Table Rock Lake in Branson, participate in more classic car clubs, take more trips, and travel to visit family in different parts of the country.
