"I think this country is finally going to have a positive savings rate. I don't see consumers going back to their old ways for at least five to ten years. But the further you get out on the timeline people will tend to forget about this recession."
— Greg Smith, CEO, $3.4-billion Pennsylvania State Employees CU, Harrisburg
"I think it will be a while before consumers go back to living on credit, because this is the worse economic conditions that anyone has seen in our lifetime. Maybe my young kids won't notice it. But any young adult that has had to live through this won't forget it. However, I have been in this business since 1985, and I am flabbergasted as to how few people save money. I am almost 50 and I am shocked that people my age that don't have 10 cents in their savings. If anything, this was a wake-up call."
— Theresa Malone, CEO, $131-million St. Paul FCU, St. Paul, Minn.
"It's always a strong possibility that people will fall back on their old ways. But we are trying to do a lot of education and work one-on-one with members to help them understand the value of getting ahead of the curve — like putting down large down payments so they don't have to borrow as much money. It's an ongoing process. Some people will take heed after this recession, but the vast majority will never learn."
— Paul Bohlman, business development officer, $42-million Ohio Healthcare FCU, Dublin
"To some extent this has opened everyone's eyes that we need to put away a little more for a rainy day. I think there will be people even after this downturn who will have new savings habits that they just can't break. As a whole, I think people will be a little more conservative for quite some time."
Pam Case, CEO, $18-million Jack Daniels Employees FCU, Lynchburg, Tenn.
