District Manager Lauri Lunde celebrates 35 years with North Shore Bank this month.

“Well, I was either going to be a nurse, or maybe work in banking,” remembers District Manager Lauri Lunde, who marks 35 years with the bank this month. She ended up interviewing at what used to be Southeastern Savings because her boyfriend’s mother — now her mother-in-law — worked there. “The person who hired me — her husband was a teacher at my high school — she made me want to be a banker. She showed me why we’re here: to help people.”

What part of your 35 years at North Shore Bank are you most proud of?
I have been able to help customers achieve their financial goals, and now I’m able to help the branches do the same.

Do any particular times you helped someone stand out?
Fifteen or 20 years ago, this couple came in, and he had been downsized, so his income was way less, so they were going to lose their house. We were able to come up with a plan and refinance so that they were able to keep their house and had some excess funds. Helping people when they don’t feel like there’s any way to get out of the mess they’re in makes this job pretty great.

And then there was a couple — I’d gotten their home for them, I’d refinanced it; and then their son bought a house, and then their other son came in and bought a house! So I did four different loans for that family — or actually, more than that, because one son came in again and bought a duplex. Getting to know families and getting to help them is pretty cool.

What would you do differently if you could change anything?
I’ve had such a great experience here, I don’t think I would change anything.

How have you balanced your career with your life outside of work?
North Shore has been great with helping to balance work and my home life. I can focus 100 percent on what I’m doing at work, and when I’m home, I’m home — unless of course, one of the branches calls me, although that doesn’t stop me from doing things with my family. We have it set up so that there are others who can help the branch if I’m not able to. This works very well.

Who taught you something really important, and what was it?
The biggest thing that I learned was to concentrate my efforts on helping people with no expectation of getting anything in return. By doing this, I’ll get more than if my motivation was only to help myself. I learned this from many people, starting with my first manager, Dorothy Olson, and that idea was supported throughout my career by Kathy Storck, Steve Arps, Sue Doyle, Craig Witz, and many others.

Actually, it’s funny because I didn’t really like Dorothy at first, and after a couple of years, I went to another branch to work under someone else. She was always — not yelling at me, but giving me lots of direction. And I was like, “Why are you making me do all of this work when those other people don’t have to?” At the time, I didn’t realize she was pushing me because she knew I could do more. Later, we opened a new branch, and she transferred there to manage it, and I had worked my way up to a Personal Banker position there. When she retired, I ended up managing that branch.

What are you glad you didn’t know?
I’m glad I didn’t know that I would spend my entire career here. When I first started, I thought this would be a stepping-stone and I’d be on to other things — at the time, I didn’t know what. I’m sure glad I stayed here. It has been a great place to work and meet great people.