Fed Up, Church Leads Drive To Form Its Own CU

Jefferson Community Development FCU here has been granted a charter by NCUA and can now serve persons who live, work, worship, or attend school in communities of Jefferson County. It is the first federal credit union granted a charter in Alabama since 1996. The credit union was organized by Guiding Light Church to help people in the surrounding communities to overcome their debt and to fight predatory lenders. "We began this process over two years ago, because we grew tired of predatory lenders taking advantage of our church members and people in the community," said Pastor Jim Lowe. "We wanted to offer our members and the community a financial institution that would assist and educate them on how to reduce and eliminate their debt. We plan to offer our members...options that will assist them with financial planning."