Kerry Carrasco

When North Shore Bank acquired nine Maritime Savings Bank branches in September 2010, Kerry Carrasco didn’t know if she’d have a job. She had been with Maritime since her high school’s student co-op program, when she started part time at Kinnickinnic Federal Savings & Loan in July 1982. That office eventually became a Maritime branch, and when she went full time she grew, learned and advanced, gaining broad experience.

Kerry had ascended to vice president of loan services, and she will never forget the ominous day when all employees were instructed to stay after work for a meeting. “We all suspected it was coming, but we didn’t know when,” she remembers. “Federal authorities were there, and so was Mr. McKenna. I didn’t know if I’d have a job in another two weeks.”

The thought of being out of work after so many years was shocking to Kerry. But as things turned out, her mortgage loan experience served her well. She was one of the Maritime employees who made a successful transition. “When I first came over, I was a liaison between the FDIC and North Shore,” she says. “I took care of the loans that the FDIC retained from Maritime.”

Early mentor prepared Kerry for lifetime career
Kerry was fortunate to have had an early mentor at Maritime. “My first boss didn’t just teach the duties specific to your job. He wanted you to know how everything worked together — how depositing a check or making a new loan affected other areas of the general ledger and how it affected the bottom line for the bank,” she explains.

She credits this early on-the-job training with enabling her to serve in a variety of banking roles. Kerry still deals with mortgage loans, now in our collections/loss mitigation area, helping borrowers in difficult financial straits get relief with their mortgage payments.

Considering all of the changes in banking, watching the tightening of the mortgage market has been the most difficult for Kerry. “It was nice to work in a time where it seemed that almost everyone could own a home,” she says. “It’s difficult to see some of those same people struggling.”

Having come so close to being out of work herself, Kerry has empathy for borrowers who find themselves in trying circumstances. “It’s rewarding when we can get a borrower into a relief program,” she says.

Changes in personal life parallel changes in work life
Kerry used to be intimidated by the thought of powerful federal government workers going through records at her Maritime location. “But when you’re in the trenches with them, you find that they’re human,” she says.

There have certainly been changes in Kerry’s work life since she joined North Shore, but the most significant change has been in her personal life. “I actually have a life outside of work now!” she exclaims. “The last couple of years at Maritime were chaos. We were in survival mode, which meant a lot of 10–12 hour days. It’s nice to work for a reputable bank that is so well staffed that employees have time and energy for their families, which I think is essential to keeping positive, productive employees.”

“Unless you have a crystal ball, it’s pretty hard to know what banking will be like in five years, but I think it will be survival of the fittest,” she says. “There will continue to be changes, and banks that want to be contenders have to gear up, never let their guard down — and enjoy the ride!”