SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. - Arrowhead CU announced a new partnership with area energy providers to promote energy conservation at 16 of its area branches.

WEST VALLEY CITY, Utah - America First Credit Union will be holding daily drawings for $100 Visa gift cards until March 1 to celebrate the opening of its newest facility here–the credit union’s 76th branch.

OMAHA, Neb. - A man who allegedly robbed the same branch of Creighton FCU two times before he was arrested Tuesday is on his third strike.

The credit union industry has not addressed the potential value of the elusive younger demographic in a long time. Instead, the discussion implicitly assumes the market is still attractive, skipping ahead to focus on market penetration. Industry analysts, journalists and outside experts reiterate the value of attracting younger members, providing anecdotal sound bites on the habits of young consumers as suggestions for ways to reach them. Credit union executives should reassess the return on investment (ROI) potential of the younger demographic for their specific market; the potential of this market diminished for the majority of the country over the past 20 years and will continue to decline modestly through 2015.

SAN DIEGO - An armed man jumped over the counter at First Future CU, scooped money from the teller drawers and dumped it in a trash can before making his getaway.

WARREN, Mich. - Ten mid- to small-sized Michigan credit unions are finding there’s strength–and buying power–in numbers. CU Partner Solutions, LLC, was formed two years ago to help CUs fight shrinking margins by reducing expenses and creating the kinds of efficiencies of scales usually reserved for larger credit unions.

I think NCUA’s proposal for more disclosure of credit union executive compensation it is a bad idea. The board is responsible for such decisions and I feel that there is plenty of oversight both internally and externally.

SOUTH JORDAN, Utah. - As more banks move away from small business loans, Member Business Lending LLC (MBL) is helping 28 credit unions across the U.S. cost-effectively enter the SBA market.

ARVADA, Colo. - Small credit unions in Colorado and Wyoming have turned to CUSOs to address rising employee healthcare expenses and to cost-effectively provide and expand IT.

ROCKVILLE, Md. - Are small- to mid-sized credit unions giving collections services – especially now – the attention it deserves? One CUSO dedicated to doing just that believes that many are not.

HAGERSTOWN, Md. - Three years ago a group of credit unions near Washington, D.C., knew they needed business continuity and recovery solutions, but were unable to find anything affordable or customized to their needs.

WASHINGTON - Lawmakers renewed their efforts last week to get the Bush administration to pump liquidity into the student loan market, and major lenders are continuing their departure.

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - The Xtend Financial Services, a multi-owned CUSO, reported that more than three-dozen credit unions are now using its SRS (Shared Resources and Staff) Bookkeeping Services business unit for a variety of daily balancing and reconciliation services.

WASHINGTON - NCUA Chairman JoAnn Johnson who may or may not be heading the federal agency much longer, said last week she wants to be remembered as the transparency chairman.

WASHINGTON - Expenses for CUNA’s “Little Guy” lobbying campaign helped cut net income for CUNA to just $500,000 last year, form $2.9 million in 2006, the trade association announced last week at its annual Governmental Affairs Conference.

WASHINGTON - Applications for mortgage refinancings plunged in February after a January spike had raised hopes refi’s could come to the rescue of the market.

Mobiloil Federal Credit Union, Beaumont, Texas, named Marie Guillory-Flippen corporate communications director.

ALLENTOWN, Penn. - A local man jailed for his role in last year’s armed robbery at First Class FCU here was connected by his DNA to another hold up at Paragon FCU in nearby Bethlehem a year earlier in which $150,000 was stolen.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - Credit Union 24, the credit union-owned point-of-sale (POS) network, and San Dimas, Calif.-based Financial Service Centers Cooperative, Inc. (FSCC), the operator of a national shared branch network, said they have entered an “alliance to explore collaborative approaches to help credit unions maximize services and service delivery.”

WASHINGTON - Credit unions were told by both CUNA’s president and outgoing chairman to make sure they spoke with “one voice” while in Washington for GAC. CUNA President Dan Mica and Allan Kemp McMorris, who finished his term as chairman while at GAC, said that a consistent message was the best way to ensure being heard in Congress.