BROCKTON, Mass. – HarborOne CU’s groundbreaking MultiCultural Banking Center has won the Herb Wegner Memorial Award for Outstanding Organization.
Believed to be the only one of its kind in the U.S., the MultiCultural Banking Center opened in September 2007 when Brockton was suffering an economic, employment, and housing crisis. The Center is aimed specifically at helping immigrants and other minorities who often are most vulnerable in troubled times. The center has a network of free computer terminals and classrooms to provide everything from housing assistance and financial education programs to special products and services.
Hailed by Brockton Mayor James E. Harrington for helping more than 1,000 people move into mainstream banking products and away from predatory lenders, the Center has opened more than $2 million in deposits, saved low-income tax filers more than $100,000 in fees, and secured more than $20 million in first mortgages. And Brockton’s foreclosure mitigation success rate has improved from less than 5% in 2007 to over 50% in 2009.
This will be one of four awards presented at the 22nd Annual Wegner Awards Dinner hosted by the National Credit Union Foundation on Feb. 22 in conjunction with CUNA’s 2010 Governmental Affairs Conference.
