With the financial backing of Edward Filene, Roy Bergengren, originally a proverty lawyer, began in 1921 to travel the country charged with getting state credit union acts passed. At the time of his hiring to lead the Credit Union National Extension Bureau there were just 199 credit unions in the U.S., and Bergengren would spend the next 13 years traveling by train and automobile around the country. His reputation for being energetic and idealistic served Bergengren well in the role, but he often knocked heads with the more pragmatic Filene.
Operating from an office in Room 23 at 5 Park Square in Boston, Bergengren studied the four state credit union acts already in place (Massachusetts, New York, Rhode Island and North Carolina) before setting out on what he called a "crusade." He was often joined by his wife, Gladys, on his tours, and in each locale he would search out someone with a deep interest in cooperative credit who could also act as an organizer. Bergengren visited factories, fields, church parishes and any other organization that might be able to sponsor a credit union. From 1921 to 1926, the number of credit unions grew to more than 900, representing more than 200,000 members.
Bergengren observed that his goal was to "prove in modest measure the practicality of the brotherhood of man."
Bergengren, who helped to get Credit Union Acts passed in 26 states and helped drive passage of the Federal CU Act in 1934, was named the first president of CUNA when the Credit Union National Exension Bureau reorganized itself. He died in 1955.
