Bill Sterner To Be Presented With Wegner
BOULDER, Colo.-The National Credit Union Foundation said it will posthumously present a 200 Herb Wegner Memorial Award for Lifetime Achievement to Bill Sterner, a long-time credit union pioneer who died earlier this year. At the time of his death, Sterner, 66, was CEO of Elevations Credit Union. During his credit union career, which followed a stint in the Peace Corps, Sterner helped to save the Credit Union Development Education (DE) program from elimination in the face of severe budget cuts and later helped provide additional financial support, was a vice president of CUNA, headed up CUNA's Project Moonshot (launched in 1990 with a goal of building CU membership to 100-million Americans by 2000), and spent the last eight years of his life leading growth at Elevations FCU, including the development of an innovative mortgage down payment assistance program for University of Colorado faculty and 0% bicycle loans for students. Sterner was also active in the state league and SunCorp Credit Union.
Penn. Program Saves Consumers $3.2M
HARRISBURG-Pennsylvania's credit unions are estimating that consumers in the Keystone State have saved more than $3.2 million in interest and fees since the 2006 launch of the Credit Union Better Choice program, which is an alternative to payday loans. The figures, generated by the Pennsylvania Credit Union Association, are based on loans made by 66 of the participating credit unions, which have made nearly 9,500 loans totaling $4.47 million dollars in volume. A typical $500 payday loan costs consumers $15 for every $100 borrowed for two weeks, or approximately $450 over 90 days.
By contrast, said the PCUA, a $500 Credit Union Better Choice loan costs consumers approximately $42.50 for the same 90 days and at the end of the loan term, the consumer has $50 in a savings account, which allows them to develop a savings habit.
UFCU Finalizes Help For Scammed Borrowers
AUSTIN, Texas-University FCU here said it has finalized home purchases for 11 Hispanic families victimized by local home purchase fraud. UFCU reported the mortgage loans it made will allow the homeowners to retain residences they bought earlier this decade in what turned out to be a scam according to Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott. The scam targeted Hispanic home buyers who do not speak English, some of whom lacked Social Security identification or other documents normally required of purchasers.
UFCU mortgage lending officer Yvonne Lopez-Noack helped many of the families to gain financing of their homes through conventional means with a legitimate title. UFCU stepped in after another UFCU employee, Monica Muñoz, became aware of the situation in the fall of 2006 and suggested that the credit union investigate how it could help.
UFCU will now provide fixed rate mortgages and a property deed to the homeowners and will escrow funds for taxes and insurance for timely payment. Closing costs for the new mortgages can be added to the loans to avoid any cash expense to the borrowers. The homeowners will pay only the balance actually remaining owed to the original lender on their individual homes following foreclosures.
MPG Translates Into Better APR At TFCU
WINSTON SALEM, N.C.-Truliant FCU here has become the latest to offer a "Fuel Efficient Auto Loan." The program is available on any new or used vehicle, not just hybrids, that get 29 miles per gallon or more on the highway according to Fuel Economy.gov or the manufacturer's sticker and offers a .50% rate discount allowing individuals to save on financing. TFCU said members can finance up to 135% of the vehicle's total value, allowing members who own SUVs on which values have plummeted to get out of their current loan.
37 Graduate From Harvard Leadership Prgm.
MADISON, Wis.-Thirty-seven CU executives and directors graduated from Harvard's Advanced Leadership Institute, offered in partnership by CUES and the California league.
The graduates of the five-day program are: Michael D. Armstrong of CUNA Mutual Group; Dennis Bowker of ORNL FCU; John Breslin of Power Financial CU; Frank Cardile of Andrews FCU; Richard P. Casey of Affinity FCU; Falph Cheplak of Tropical Financial CU; Bodgan Chmielewski of Polish & Slavik FCU; Malchy T. Coghlan of FAA First FCU; Leo Costello of Dupaco CU; Barbara Cruit of Tropical Financial CU; John Cullum of E1 Financial CU; John Dwyer of New England FCU; Harry M. Edwards of Randolf-Brooks FCU; William H. Farley of CUNA Mutual Group; Brian Flynn of CUNA Mutual Group; Brent Gifford of Northwest Community CU; RashinderPal Gil of Michigan First CU; Wayne N. Grosse of Bethpage FCU; Derek J. Guerra of Eastern Credit Union (West Indies); Dave Hanko of Tower FCU; Deborah Isenhour of Local Government FCU; Lucy Ito of California/Nevada league; Maxine Joe of HawaiiUSA FCU; Robin Kolvek of CUNA Mutual Group; Ruth Korotzer of Seattle Metropolitan CU; Steve M. Largent of CUNA Mutual Group; Mahlon McCaleb of Boeing Wichita CU; Mark Mitchell of FORUM Credit Union; Larry Palochik of South Bay CU; John Pamer of Diablo Valley FCU; Michael J. Parsons of First Source CU; John C. Rawls of Florida Credit Union; Kaja Sawczuk of Polish & Slavik FCU; Lisa Taylor of ORNL FCU; E. M. Veale of Carolinas Telco FCU; James M. Wagy of Tropical Financial CU, and Karl K. Yoneshige of HawaiiUSA.
CU Spreading Its 'Wings' In Orlando
APPLE VALLEY, Minn.-The $2-billion Wings Financial FCU, which earned notoriety last year for its so-called "hostile takeover" bid for then-California-based Continental FCU, is expanding into Orlando, where it will open its 18th branch. In a released statement, CEO Paul Parish said, "Our newest branch office is well-positioned to serve one of the busiest travel destinations in America. Orlando draws visitors from all over the world and with them come the air crews who fly them and the ground staff who support those flights. In addition, Orlando is a major aviation center with numerous aviation-based businesses including AirTran's corporate headquarters and a JetBlue training facility."
Wings Financial has a TIP charter for the airline industry and has established partnerships with AirTran, JetBlue Airways; Sun Country Airlines, and Colgan Air, and has been named the official financial institution of aviation organizations such as the Organization of Black Airline Pilots and the Airforwarders Association.
Florida CUL Part of 'Financial Action Team'
TALLAHASSEE, Fla.-The Florida Credit Union League said it will participate in a statewide "Financial Action Team" created by the state's Chief Financial Officer, Alex Sink.
The goal of the team is to identify federal assistance available to Florida in an effort to increase the amount of aid to Floridians facing economic crisis. "The team will analyze the recently passed Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 to maximize Florida's share of the billions in available federal dollars to help taxpayers weather a range of economic challenges," according to the league. The FCUL noted that RealtyTrac's July 2008 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report stated that Florida had the second highest number of foreclosures in the nation, posting 45,884 foreclosures in July 2008-a 14% increase from the previous month.
The Florida Bankers Association, along with other groups, are also part of the Financial Action Team, which will meet for the first time in early September.
Service CU Named Army Credit Union of Year
CHICAGO-Service Credit Union received was named winner of the 2007 Army Credit Union of the Year Award during the Defense Credit Union Council's conference here. The Portsmouth, N.H.-based CU was recognized for standing "above their peers in support of our soldiers through special programs to combat predatory lending, classroom and online financial education, 24/7 worldwide access and a full range of high quality, low-cost financial products and services."
Online Fraud Attacks Down 50% During July
BOSTON-July saw a sharp decrease in online fraud against federal credit unions and banks nationally, according to new analysis from the RSA Anti-Fraud Command Center. RSA's analysis found a 50% decrease in attacks during July from May of this year. RSA's Anti-Fraud Command Center reported that regional banks were attacked in July more than the combined number of attacks on credit unions and banks, with the the rate of attacks against nationwide banks in July proportional to June. Overall, the total number of phishing attacks fell in July to the lowest rate since February, RSA said.
RSA also announced that "Neosploit," a malware infection kit used by scammers to infect computers at financial institutions, will no longer be made. But there was some bad news. While the overall number of attacks was down in July, first-time attacks against new entities increased by roughly 30%, with more than 29 new financials targeted during the month.(c) 2008 The Credit Union Journal and SourceMedia, Inc. All Rights Reserved.http://www.cujournal.com/ http://www.sourcemedia.com/
