Community involvement is easy to claim and harder to prove.
On Monday, October 12, three credit unions answered that with work gloves, serving spoons, and a few hundred volunteers.
Vizo Financial held its annual Day of Service across Central Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh, Greensboro, N.C., and Columbia, S.C. The tradition started in 2019, and this year more than 100 staff and family members took part. They assembled craft kits for hospitalized children, sorted donations, spruced up neighborhoods, served meals, made blankets, helped with farm activities, and prepped for events. The beneficiaries were the American Cancer Society, Caitlin’s Smiles, Cocoa Packs, Family Room, Harvest Hope Food Bank, Hospice of Central PA, Leg Up Farm, Love the Hill, Midwest Food Bank, Open Door Ministries, and The Cracked Pot. “People helping people is part of our mission,” said Fred Eisel, president/CEO of Vizo Financial, adding that the event gives the team a chance to share in that mission. He called it uplifting to see what the credit union movement can do through simple acts of service.
In Kansas City, nearly 150 Mazuma Credit Union team members spent the afternoon working with 14 nonprofits at 21 locations for the credit union’s 9th annual Give Back Day. The event grows out of Mazuma’s purpose, “Making Kansas City a Better Place to Live, Work, and Bank,” and sits within its 40 Hours for Good program, which gives employees 40 hours of paid volunteer time each year. Mazuma also maintains more than 75 Community Partnerships with local nonprofits, which benefit from its time, space, or resources. Several of those partners now bank with Mazuma through its growing Nonprofit Banking services. President and CEO Deonne Christensen said the deep relationships came first, and conversations about the financial challenges nonprofits face revealed a natural fit.
The nonprofits saw the difference. Kelly Phelps, Volunteer Coordinator at Operation Breakthrough, said the volunteers made Halloween possible for hundreds of children whose families might not be able to afford costumes. Rose Shotwell of Veteran’s Community Project said the group couldn’t do its work without community partners, and she was glad Mazuma volunteers were willing to get their hands dirty. Other participating organizations included Hillcrest Thrift Store, KC Shepherd’s Center, EarlystART KC, Cleaver Family YMCA, and the Heart of America Humane Society. Graphic Designer Jeremy Morton, who has joined all nine years, has built an animal shelter enclosure, prepared a community garden, sorted costumes, and packed food donation boxes. He called Give Back Day a boots-on-the-ground expression of the credit union’s purpose. Nonprofits interested in Mazuma’s services can visit mazuma.org/nonprofit-banking.
In Minnesota, the day had a statewide name: CU Kind Day. Coordinated by the Minnesota Credit Union Network, the state trade association, it brought together more than 3,000 credit union employees, members, and partners. TopLine Financial Credit Union, based in the Twin Cities, has taken part since 2016, making this its 10th year. Nearly 190 TopLine participants volunteered more than 560 hours and reached nearly 3,265 Minnesotans. They worked with ACBC Food Shelf, Advent Lutheran Church, Avenues for Youth, Family Alternatives, Hope 4 Youth, Keystone Community Services, Mobile Hope, MORE, Union Gospel Mission Twin Cities, and YMCA Youth and Family Services, and they cleaned up local parks too.
TopLine President and CEO Mick Olson said the credit union believes in supporting communities beyond affordable financial services, and that volunteering on this day and throughout the year builds stronger connections. He said CU Kind Day brings the “people helping people” philosophy to life and shows what Minnesota credit unions and their partners can do side by side.
Different cities, different projects, same idea: a credit union that shows up with its hands, not just its checkbook, earns trust that lasts.