BEN STEIN SLATED TO OPEN UPCOMING CUES MEETING
MADISON, Wis.–Actor, economist and author Ben Stein will be the opening speaker at CUES’ CEO Network 2008, Nov. 2-5 at the Four Seasons Hotel Las Vegas. CUES said Stein will deliver? his inspiring, bipartisan presentation, “Ben Stein on Life,” using his “smart, deadpan delivery to dissect the economy and help attendees balance life’s priorities.”
For info: cues.org and select Conferences.
FANNIE MAE CEO MUDD IS FEATURED AT NAFCU EVENT
WASHINGTON–Fannie Mae CEO Daniel H. Mudd will be among the speakers when NAFCU hosts its Congressional Caucus Sept. 14-17 here. Mudd will join numerous members of Congress who will also speak. Keynote speaker is NBC White House correspondent David Gregory.
For info: www.nafcu.org/caucus.
NEW JERSEY CUS HONOR LEGISLATOR OF THE YEAR
NEWARK, N.J.–New Jersey CUs named U.S. Rep. Donald Payne Credit Union Legislator of the Year. The award recognizes the help Payne has given to credit unions on such key issues as: CURIA, Financial Services Regulatory Relief Act of 2004, Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act, Check 21 and the FDIC Refor Act.
In other news, the New Jersey CU League has opened a satellite office in Trenton just blocks from the state capitol to facilitate its lobbying efforts. The league’s new digs in a three-story Victorian building built in 1897 that was awarded the 2001 Preservation Award for historic buildings in Trenton. The building features conference space that the league plans to utilize in a number of ways, including meetings with lawmakers, key credit union leaders and others.
RADDON FOUNDER PASSES AWAY
LOMBARD, Ill.–Gary Raddon, founder of the well-known consultancy to credit union, has died. Raddon, 72, formed Raddon Financial Group in 1982 and was a frequent speaker to credit union and bank conferences.
He served on the faculty of a number of state banking schools and authored the book “Developing New Financial Products.” “We are deeply saddened by Gary’s passing. He was an inspiration, mentor and friend to us all. Gary’s integrity, pursuit of knowledge and dedication to client service guide us still today,” said Bob Dye, RFG’s general manager and chief operations officer. In 2006, Raddon Financial Group was acquired by Open Solutions, Inc.
$1.9-MILLION LOSS DRIVES FIREFIGHTERS FCU TO MERGE
LAWRENCE, Mass–Lawrence Firefighters FCU is merging with the NESC FCU of Methuen. LFFCU cited financial losses of $1.9-million in 2007 as among the drivers of the merger, telling local media that a decision to get involved in indirect auto lending had led to “significant losses.” After the merger, one branch will be known as the Lawrence Firefighters Branch of the NESC FCU. The combined credit union will have $80-million in assets.
NAFCU’S SANCHEZ TAPPED TO CHAIR MILITARY SAVES
WASHINGTON–Javier Sanchez, NAFCU’s associate director of legislative affairs, has been elected chairman of the Military Saves National Partners Committee. Sanchez, a former U.S. Marine who joined NAFCU in 2007, specializes in defense credit union issues and provides advocacy on behalf of credit unions on financial services and other issues.
The National Partners Committee supports the Military Saves program through the active involvement of Military Saves National Partners.
Meanwhile, NAFCU’s Regulatory Compliance Director, Anthony Demangone, received a bronze EXCEL award from the Society of National Association Publications for his “BSA dating” Compliance Central column in The Federal Credit Union magazine.
COMMUNITY ONE FCU NOW ACCEPTING MATRICULA ID
LAS VEGAS–Community One FCU is now accepting the Matricula Consular as a primary form of identification, which will help Mexican nationals who wish to open a savings account at the CU.
Noting that the Hispanic market is one of the fastest growing groups in the U.S., Community One said the move is part of the CU’s overall effort to reach out to this market.
MECU OF BALTIMORE PAYS $2M BONUS
BALTIMORE–MECU of Baltimore has paid its members a cash bonus consisting of a loan interest rebate and an extraordinary dividend. Loan interest rebates totaling $1,140,000 were posted to members’ accounts on June 27 and extraordinary dividends totaling $983,000 were posted to members’ accounts June 30. The total cash bonus paid to members for the first half of 2008 was $2,123,000. MECU said it plans to pay members a cash bonus again in December, after paying June/December bonuses in 2007, as well. The $870-million MECU has 90,000 members.
WESCORP’S MATT MORRIS SUFFERS FATAL STROKE
SAN DIMAS, Calif.–Matt Morris, member relationship manager for WesCorp, has died. Mr. Morris, 59, died in Boise, Idaho after suffering a stroke. He had more than 30 years experience in financial services, including the last 11 with WesCorp, where he handled investment and portfolio management with more than 250 credit unions. In lieu of flowers, family has asked that donations go The Wounded Warrior Project.
EDUCATION TAKES ATHENA NAME AFTER FOM CHANGE
SPRINGFIELD, Ohio–Sixty-seven-year-old Education CU has changed its name to Athena CU after expanding its FOM to all of Clark County, Ohio in 2005.
CUES OFFERS BOARD GOVERNANCE STUDY
MADISON, Wis.–A newly revised version of The Board Building Cycle, authored by governance expert Dr. Berit Lakey, Ph.D., of BoardSource, is being made available free of charge for CUES and CUES Director members. The manual outlines the nine critical steps of board growth.
For info: www.cues.org.
ACUMA REACHES OUT TO MAINSTREAM MEDIA
LAS VEGAS–The American CU Mortgage Association (ACUMA) sent a press release titled “America’s Credit Unions Rescue American Homeowners” to news media outlets across the country. The release cited the role CUs are playing in lending for mortgages and assisting homeowners at a time many are finding other lenders have made borrowing difficult.
For info: www.acuma.org.
FILENE SELECTS 13 CU EXECS TO SERVE ON I3
MADISON, Wis.–The Filene Research Institute has selected 13 new credit union executives to join its i3 (Ideas, Innovation, Implementation) Group, which aims to foster the development of new ideas and innovation.
Each member will serve a three-year term and participate in semi-annual meetings arranged by Filene. The next meeting will be held October 1-3 in Portland, Ore. The new members: Jenny Casselman, Greater Nevada CU; Jeanne Denton, Nikkei CU; Eric Dillon, Common Wealth CU, Linda Garboczi, AmeriCU; Earl Hodgkins, Carter FCU; CJ Meyers, Teachers FCU; Bob Morgan, NorthCountry FCU; Kelley Parks, Call CU; Jason Peach, West Community CU; Jon Reske, UMass Five College FCU; Brandon Riechers, Royal CU; Charles Roberts, State Department FCU, and Ginger Salt, Truliant FCU.
For info: www.filene.org.
TRULIANT FCU HONORED WITH TWO NATIONAL TELLY AWARDS
Winston-Salem, N.C.–Truliant FCU won two national television awards in the 29th Annual Telly Awards competition that honors outstanding television commercials.
Truliant’s two Telly Awards recognize television commercials produced by its North Carolina-based advertising agency, Jennings. The winning commercials featured real Truliant member-owners telling true stories highlighting Truliant’s many points of differentiation. The commercials can be viewed on online at www.youtube.com/user/TruliantFCU.
CU TAX EXEMPTION BILL HEADS TO GOVERNOR’S DESK
ALBANY, N.Y.–The Special Additional Mortgage Recording Tax (SAMRT) state-chartered credit union exemption legislation is on its way to the governor to be signed into law after having passed both the assembly and the senate, according to the New York State CU League.
Under current law, state-chartered CUs are required to pay the special additional mortgage recording tax, but it is not imposed on their federal credit union counterparts.(c) 2008 The Credit Union Journal and SourceMedia, Inc. All Rights Reserved.http://www.cujournal.com http://www.sourcemedia.com
