Member Story: Ron Belleville

When Ron Belleville owned Belleville & Associates, a Tupper Lake insurance agency, he knew the importance of providing a personal touch. It’s one of the reasons why the lifelong Tupper Laker counts on Adirondack Regional FCU, instead of a banking institution based somewhere else.

Ron Belleville knows how local Tupper Lake businesses get a leg up on their big, national competitors: By providing a personal touch. By helping customers solve problems in person, rather than expecting them to call some far-off call center. By cutting through red tape and making transactions simple.

That’s how he treated clients when he owned his namesake business, Tupper Lake insurance agency Belleville & Associates. And those are the same reasons he says he’s been a member of the Adirondack Regional Federal Credit Union for 15 years.

“The thing I like with the credit union is they’re local,” said Belleville, who was born in Tupper Lake and returns every summer. “Not only do you get to know them, it’s fun because they get to know you. They get to know you by name, and it feels like home.”

Like any small business owner, Belleville faced occasional challenges. His relationship with the staff at the Tupper Lake branch—especially Sandy Churco, our senior loan officer—meant Belleville knew he could turn to us for solutions.

“Cash flow isn’t always the greatest this time of year—for anybody in the Adirondacks,” Belleville said. “There were times when I just needed a little bit of cash to make payroll, or do some other things. I would go to Sandy and say, I just needed to take out a short-term business loan. There were no ifs, ands, or buts. Those are the kinds of things that endear me to the credit union.”

In the insurance business, Belleville used to find that some people would go to a big, national competitor and be able to pay a little less. But they’d get less, also. When you stay local, he’s found, you’re more likely to get advice tailored to your personal needs. And responsiveness you just wouldn’t get from working with a stranger.

And now that we’ve expanded our commercial lending operation, Belleville has found—once again—that sticking with a local business has advantages.

“I did go to a couple of other banks, and they had hoops they wanted me to jump through,” he said. “But Adirondack Regional FCU made it so easy. They’re able to work around those.”

Now, Belleville has passed the reins of his insurance company to his daughter, Jess. She’s continued the relationship with the credit union. And so has he.

“Tupper Lake has been very good to me,” he said. “And the credit union has been a big part of that.”