On June 2, McCarthy spoke of Frank De Mita's 50-year history in the credit union community and his involvement with many community groups. De Mita recently retired from the Board of Directors of the National Association of Federal Credit Unions in Washington, DC.
He began in 1954, when as a member of the Central High School faculty, he was asked to serve on the credit committee of Nassau Educators Federal Credit Union, formerly known as the Valley Stream Teachers Federal Credit Union. He was elected to the NEFCU board in 1967 and became chairman in 1971, a position he held for 30 years.
Among his accomplishments during his tenure was recommending that the credit union staff begin participating in community activities, De Mita said. His suggestion led to the creation of the NEFCU Involvement Committee. In 1990, De Mita proposed implementing a scholarship program that has since awarded 75 scholarships every year to outstanding high school seniors in Nassau County. To date, more that $500,000 has been awarded to more than 1,000 college-bound seniors. In 1994, De Mita proposed and initiated a similar program for learning disabled youngsters attending the BOCES Rosemary Kennedy School in Massapequa.
Over the years De Mita has received a number of awards including being named Director of the Year in 1981 by the National Association of Federal Credit Unions, Director of the Year in 1989 by the Credit Union Executives Society Director, and the PBS-TV Channel 21 Excellence Award for Community Service in 1996.
In a national election in 1998, De Mita was elected to the Board of Directors of the National Association of Federal Credit Unions in Washington, DC. This organization represents millions of members and thousands of credit unions throughout the country in legislative and regulatory issues. He retired after completing two three-year terms. During the past six years, De Mita worked to enhance the federal credit union charter, working with Congress for regulatory relief legislation for credit unions.
De Mita's career also includes three years he taught in New York City, 37 years as a math teacher at Central and 33 years he worked as an adjunct professor of mathematics in the City University of New York.
He has been married to Lois for 47 years and the couple has two children, Frank Jr. and Michael. He credits his family with offering him continual support, caring and understanding.
Always active, De Mita keeps himself busy by serving on 10 non-profit boards including North Shore/LIJ Health System, NEFCU, Friends of the Arts and the Franklin Hospital Medical Center Advisory Board.
