The most wonderful time of the year: How CUs celebrate the season

December 22, 2017 1:50 PM

KCCU partners for Angel Tree toy drive

Kellogg Community CU in Battle Creek, Mich., partnered with the Salvation Army, Marshall Area Community Services, Inc., and the Three Rivers Fire Department to collect nearly 630 toys and gift cards for needy children as part of its 14th annual Salvation Army Angel Tree toy drive.

Not your ordinary Christmas tree

Each year, employees at Christian Financial CU, Roseville, Mich., create art sculptures each year from non-perishable food items to be donated to local church food pantries. The winning entry for 2017 can be seen here.

Symitar makes the season one to remember

Symitar donated 119 bicycles to needy children through participation in Toys for Tots this year.

American Heritage adopts for the holiday season

American Heritage CU, Philadelphia, Penn., hosted an Adopt-A-Family program for the holiday season, raising more than $20,000 thanks to the efforts of members and staff. The credit union received “wish lists” from 18 families across the region, providing them with gifts and necessities such as scarves, hats, gloves, grocery gift cards and more. The CU also “adopted” 30 children from Ridge Crest Pediatric Services in Sellersville, Penn., a non-profit home for children with intellectual disabilities, providing the kids with items such as neck pillows and toiletries.

Advantage One's after-hours wrapping party

Advantage One, Brownstown, Mich., has participated in the Holiday Assistance Program for 10 years, which provides hundreds of local families and individuals in need with gifts and financial assistance during the holiday season. For 2017, Advantage One adopted eight families – 31 people in total – and raised funds throughout the year by allowing employees to donate to wear jeans on casual Fridays. Those efforts enabled the CU to raise more than $6,000 to be spent on families. Staffers shopped for gifts on their own time and the credit union had an after-hours wrapping party to ensure a happy holiday season for members of the community.

Peach State helps the hungry

Peach State FCU President and CEO Marshall Boutwell regularly tells staff that “Hunger doesn’t just happen during the holidays,” so the credit union collects and donates non-perishable food items throughout the year. Donations are made quarterly and another is expected to be made shortly after the holidays.

Wish Tree

Georgia United CU, Duluth, Ga., held its 27th annual Wish Tree program to collect new toys and clothes for foster children. The event is conducted in partnership with the local Division of Family & Children Services and other organizations, and runs from Nov. 15 through Dec. 15 so deliveries can be made in time for Christmas. This is one of the credit unions longest-running community service programs, and this year more than 23,000 gifts were donated to DFCS offices across multiple counties.

IMCU goes Angel Tree shopping

Indiana Members Credit Union partnered with CBS4 and the Salvation Army for an Angel Tree program, providing the less fortunate with clothing, special-needs gifts and wished-for items for the holidays. The credit union adopted 26 “Angels” from across Central Indiana and shopped from their holiday wish lists to help make the season brighter for them.

City & County stuffs the sleigh

Representatives from City & County Credit Union, St. Paul, Minn., made an on-air donation to “Stuff the Sleigh” during the 5:00 P.M. broadcast of KSTP Channel 5’s Eyewitness News. Credit union staff and members donated more than $1,000 in toys, including stuffed animals, action figures and art sets for young kids, along with gift cards, clothing and other items for teens.

HRCU's Christmas Caring Campaign

Holy Rosary Credit Union, Rochester, N.H., continued its fourth-annual Christmas Caring Campaign with donations to five local non-profit organizations: the Homeless Center for Strafford County, Friends of Hyder Family Hospice House, Rochester Community Recovery Center, Sole City Dance and My Friend’s Place. Photos from some of those donations can be seen here.

Season's greetings (at the gas station)

Paul Gentile, president and CEO of the Cooperative Credit Union Association – which serves CUs in New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Massachusetts and Delaware – recorded a holiday greeting on behalf of the region’s CUs to be featured on Gas Station TV during December. The promotion is part of CCUA’s “Better Values – Better Banking” consumer advocacy campaign.