WARNER ROBINS, Ga. – John Ruffin, a former top NCUA executive who has been running Robins FCU the past five years, announced his retirement yesterday after 37 years in the credit union business.
Ruffin will be succeeded as president of the $1.1 billion credit union by Executive Vice President John Rhea on Jan. 1. Rhea started his career at Robins FCU in 1996 and has 30 years experience in the financial industry.
Ruffin was the former director of NCUA’s Austin, Texas-based Midwest Region and retired from NCUA in 1997 after 26 years with the federal regulator. He was hired in 1997 by then-Robins FCU President Buck Levins as executive vice president, while Levins, who was then chairman of CUNA, helped coordinate the Credit Union Campaign for Consumer Choice which culminated in the 1998 passage of HR 1151, the CU Membership Access Act.
In December 2003 Ruffin was promoted to president and CEO of Robins FCU after Levins was dismissed.
During Ruffin’s time at Robins FCU, the credit union has more than doubled its assets. The credit union, which was founded to serve Robins Air Force Base, converted to a community charter in 2000 and since has added eight additional branches to serve its nearly 130,000 members.
