AUSTIN, Texas — More than 200 Texas credit union representatives, along with 100 Texas legislators and staff, witnessed a 75-minute "no-pulled punches" debate between two top political pundits during the Texas Credit Union League's Signature Dinner here.

RED LAKE FALLS, Minn. — What politics teaches at the local levels is often forgotten by the time political leaders take a seat in Washington, observed Joyce Kalbakdalen, who suggests senators and congressmen can benefit by looking back on their roots.

WASHINGTON — For U.S. Rep. Mike Michaud (D-ME), Congress and credit unions aren't that dissimilar: in both, he said, it all boils down to relationships.

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho — Think your commute is tough? Try making Casey Wheeler's monthly trek.

REXBURG, Idaho — When people talk about the joys of small town living the topic usually turns to how nicely folks treat each other. Jon Weber says Rexburg is no exception.

LEWISTON, Idaho — Technically, Dennis Ohrtman is retired-but you'd never know it from the kind of hours he works.

AUSTINTOWN, Ohio — A simple philosophy guides Mike Kurish in his work both as CEO of Associated School Employees CU-22,000 members and $150 million in assets-and as fiscal officer for Austintown, Ohio.

CAMBRIDGE, Minn. — The upside of being in politics is meeting a lot of people, learning their needs, and making changes that improve lives. The downside: listening to a lot of complaints.

ROHNERT PARK, Calif. — A long and winding road that started in Africa and culminated in this Wine Country city north of San Francisco has led to long hours for little pay-and Amy Ahanotu could not be happier.

DEER RIVER, Minn. — Of all the advantages that come with being mayor of Deer River, John O'Brien's favorite perk is reading to kids at the local grade school each year.

LEWISTON, Idaho — The way Chris Loseth sees it, running a school board and a credit union aren't vastly different: both, after all, are deeply concerned with the long-term welfare of their constituents, and both have to find a way to accomplish their respective goals while working with regulations set at the national, state and local levels.

WASHINGTON — Looking back on his bid for a 14th term in the House it's clear that Democrat Paul Kanjorski, the long-time champion for credit unions, lacked a certain enthusiasm that helped secure his previous 13 two-year terms.

CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand — New Zealand's credit union community is rallying to support CU members throughout the small island nation who were affected by last Monday's 6.3-magnitude earthquake, centered here.

NEW YORK — Municipal Credit Union has launched a series of TV commercials this week featuring John Franco, the longtime relief pitcher for the New York Mets, as the credit union's new spokesperson.

SALEM, Ore. — The bankers have reignited a tax fight with credit unions here, succeeding in getting lawmakers to introduce a bill that would extend the state's corporate excise (income) tax to credit unions.

FAIRFAX, Va. – Apple FCU will rename its 60,000-foot headquarters after its long-time volunteer Virgil Harris, Jr., who served the past 50 years a director, vice president and is currently chairman of the board of the credit union. His career included more than 30 years with Fairfax County Public Schools, the main sponsor of the $1.3 billion credit union. The 10 year-old Apple headquarters building features the full-service Fair Oaks branch and houses Apples executive team, core operations staff, and Apple Financial Services LLC.

DUPONT, Wash. – Community 1st CU opened its new main offices and branch here, a few miles from its current home in Tacoma. The 17,000 square-foot building houses the administrative staff and management team of the $120 million credit union, and a new branch. Community 1st was chartered in 1925 as Seattle Postal Employees CU and is the state’s first and oldest credit union.DUPONT, Wash. – Community 1st CU opened its new main offices and branch here, a few miles from its current home in Tacoma.

WICHITA FALLS, Texas – Union Square FCU signed with Diebold to provide it with monitoring, remote services and enhanced security for its network of 21 ATMs. The agreement also includes the addition of Diebold's deposit automation technology to six of the credit union's ATMs. The $220 million credit union selected Diebold to provide several integrated services, including Advisor ATM status monitoring, OpteView remote services, endpoint protection monitoring, software subscription management and help desk support. The combination of these services will enhance Union Square's ATM uptime and security, while enabling the credit union to minimize its operational infrastructure and equipment investments. Automated note and check verification at the deposit automation-enabled ATMs will allow Union Square to evolve from posting transactions the next business day to real-time posting, giving members immediate access to their deposited funds. In addition, Union Square will now collect deposits for those ATMs weekly instead of daily, which reduces the frequency and cost of ATM deposit collections.WICHITA FALLS, Texas – Union Square FCU signed with Diebold to provide it with monitoring, remote services and enhanced security for its network of 21 ATMs.

BRILLION, Wis. – Best Advantage CU said it has implemented Xtend’s Xtension Contact Center to assist its staff following its recent core data processing conversion project. The credit union recently converted to the CU*BASE application suite from CU*Answers, Inc., and signed with Xtend to help handle an increased volume of basic member service and online banking calls that typically accompanies a core system conversion. Xtend is a CUSO based in Grand Rapids, Mich.BRILLION, Wis. – Best Advantage CU said it has implemented Xtend’s Xtension Contact Center to assist its staff following its recent core data processing conversion project.

TEAGUE, Texas – Freestone CU has signed with Fifth Third Processing Solutions for electronic funds transfer services including ATM and debit card processing services, card production, fraud protection, debit marketing, rewards programs, and gateway services. Fifth Third Processing is a joint venture owned by Cincinnati’s Fifth Third Bancorp and Boston venture fund Advent International.TEAGUE, Texas – Freestone CU has signed with Fifth Third Processing Solutions for electronic funds transfer services including ATM and debit card processing services, card production, fraud protection, debit marketing, rewards programs, and gateway services.