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Banking pennies in heaven

Tim Willert

GLENDALE -- Michael Maluccio talks about cutting back, about reducing

his volunteer commitments, about handing over the reins of his company to

his only son. Easier said than done.

Hard work and a sense of community responsibility still drive the

longtime La Crescenta resident and multimillionaire businessman, who

turned 62 in May.

“I like to get things done,” he said recently. “To me, the busier you

are the more you can get done.”

Besides being president and chief executive of Verdugo Banking Co.,

his Glendale-based management and consulting company, Maluccio sits on

the board of directors for Glendale Memorial Hospital, the Glendale YMCA,

and the Verdugo Hills Council of the Boy Scouts of America.

“After about 12 years of heavy involvement, I’m trying to phase down,”

he said. “But when you like what you are doing it’s hard to back off.”

In April, Maluccio was named chairman of the board for Verdugo Banking

Co., the only locally owned and managed independent commercial bank in

the Glendale area.

He is now responsible for overseeing the board of directors and

guiding the bank, of which he is a founding member.

“Our plan is to expand,” he said. “Now that we’ve established

ourselves as a business bank in Glendale, people know that we’re going to

be around for a little while.”

Maluccio was 21 when he went to work for Southwest Industrial Supply,

a Glendale company he bought in 1975 and sold in 1990.

When he purchased the company, it was doing $3.5 million in sales.

When Maluccio sold it, the business was doing $32 million in sales.

“I truly enjoyed the business I was in,” he said. “When it started to

become not so enjoyable, I decided to sell it.”

Maluccio shifted his focus to his family and community service. At one

time he served on six volunteer and six business boards.

“When I sold my business I wanted to make sure I didn’t get bored,” he

said. “It’s kind of giving back because we love the Glendale community.”

Maluccio’s wife, Jean, is executive director of the Crescenta Valley

Chamber of Commerce, and daughter Julie volunteers at Verdugo Hills

Hospital. Son Michael is beginning to run his father’s business.

Despite his schedule, Maluccio still finds time to play golf and visit

his two granddaughters. Community service will continue to remain a focal

point of his life.

“I really am committed to the bank, Glendale Memorial and the Boy

Scouts,” he said. “Those are three things I hope to be part of for a long

time.”

THE MALUCCIO FILE

* WHO: Michael Maluccio.

* AGE: 62.

* RESIDENCE: La Crescenta.

* FAMILY: wife Jean, son Michael, daughter Julie.

* HOBBIES: Golf, fishing, mountain climbing, spending time with two

granddaughters.

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