The president and CEO of Burnsville-based Firefly Credit Union announced Monday that he plans to retire his retire at the end of the year.
Bill Raker, who has served as CEO for 20 years, grew the company's assets from $250 million to over $1.2 billion during his tenure.
Raker began at Firefly in 1985 as a volunteer member of the board of directors, served as board chair, and became president of the company in 1997.
Championed by Raker, Firefly's student-run credit union branch at Burnsville High School was started early last year and has since received national recognition. Raker also serves on the Inver Hills Community College board of directors, the Prepare+Prosper bard and is the chair for the Burnsville Chamber of Commerce.
Raker's work with credit unions began in the 1970s when he taught mathematics at Fort Knox High School in Kentucky and was the faculty advisor for the first student-run credit union in the U.S.
In addition to working with high schools, Raker has been awarded for industry efforts in Paraguay and Cambodia. In 2009, he was awarded the Minnesota Credit Union Network's Outstanding Credit Union Professional of the Year, and in 2015 was inducted into the Credit Union Hall of Leaders. In 2016, Raker was added to the Credit Union Executive Society's Hall of Fame.
