As a not-for-profit credit union, GTE Financial is dedicated to prioritizing people over profits by giving back to the Tampa Bay community and its members throughout the year. For the tenth consecutive year, the credit union is accepting member story submissions for its Make Hope Real initiative, an internal philanthropic effort to help families in need during the holiday season. GTE will choose five families to fulfill their wish lists. The credit union will accept member submissions until November 17 and will then select recipients on November 27.

"At GTE, we believe we can make a huge difference with small charitable acts and programs that give back to our local community," said Brian Best, President and Chief Executive Officer at GTE Financial. "Make Hope Real is one of our favorite philanthropic efforts, and we are proud to celebrate our tenth year bringing holiday cheer to member families in need during the holidays."

This year, the credit union will take the five selected families to a celebratory dinner on December 8. During the dinner, the GTE team and special guest, Santa Claus will deliver the gifts on the wish lists to the families. A few days before the dinner, GTE will offer the selected families a Holiday shopping experienceand GTE employees will wrap all gifts that will be delivered during the December 8 dinner. To submit your story for the Make Hope Real Initiative, please visit gtefinancial.org/hope.