During the last five and a half years I have had the opportunity to see the good works that credit union people are capable of doing outside of their offices. I am not talking about the service to their members, low loan rates, financial consultation or going the extra mile to help an out-of-work struggling parent.
The good that I see is the countless hours of volunteer work, hundreds of thousands of dollars raised, and tens of thousands of lives made better because of the caring of credit union boards, management and staff.
Each week I read in the Credit Union Journal about the individual efforts of credit unions all across the country to help a whole host of charitable organizations: the local children's hospital, food banks, Toys for Tots, the Salvation Army, scholarships, wounded warriors, and disaster victims. The list is endless.
As with most volunteers and other people who take joy in helping others in need, credit union people are happy and satisfied just knowing that they were able to make someone's life a little better. They neither expect nor want any reward or recognition. And I respect that.
However, the good deeds that they are doing every day cannot and should not go unnoticed.
The work credit unions do for their members is widely known; the tremendous work they do for those in their community must be widely known, as well.
Credit unions have taken the philosophy of people helping people and have extended the good they do well beyond the walls of the credit union.
This work for others personifies what credit unions are. The help credit unions provide and the tremendous impact they have in their communities and on the people who live there is a story that must be continually told.
I urge all credit unions to take the time to share the good that they are doing so that the real story of what credit unions are all about is known.
Public awareness is critical in making consumers aware of the good deeds that credit unions do day in and day out to help people. Do not stop spreading the news.
After all one good deed does deserve another.
Michael Fryzel, Board Member
NCUA, Alexandria, Va.
