DECATUR, Ill. - For a $91 million institution, Staley Credit Union pulled out all the stops to celebrate its 75th Anniversary, hosting a weeklong celebration of special events. Throughout the week, members bid in a silent auction on a variety of high-dollar items donated by credit union vendors. Auction items included the popular giveaway iPod Shuffle, a digital camera, an all-in-one printer, St. Louis Cardinals tickets, a gift basket featuring fan items from current NCAA Men's Basketball Champions, the University of Illinois Fighting Illini, a "Summer Fun" package featuring an above ground swimming pool, and more. The credit union donated $3,000 in proceeds from the auction to the Children's Miracle Network. Members conducting transactions during the week were also eligible to enter a drawing for three large gift packages, including a resort stay. As if the celebration wasn't enough to draw members to the credit union, the institution ran a certificate special, featuring a 5% yield, 5-year term and a minimum deposit of $500. Brown said the promotion resulted in about $1 million in certificates, a combination of new money and maturing Staley Credit Union reinvestments. Brown said the promotion also resulted in several new members, although it's too early to know exact numbers. The highlight was the grand finale on Saturday, July 9, kicking off with an invitation-only luncheon honoring members who have been with the credit union 50 years or more. According to Staley President/CEO Karen Brown, at least 300 long-time members attended the event. The credit union created commemorative pins for honorees to keep as mementos, and local politicians recognized the members' contributions to the institution and community. Saturday's festivities continued throughout the day, featuring an antique car show, musical performers, a local golf pro known for trick shots, inflatable kid's bouncers, karate demonstrations, and free hot dogs and soda. Further supporting the concept "if you feed them, they will come," the credit union also hosted a members' breakfast outdoors on July 7, providing entertainment by a local barbershop quartet, and offering a wellness clinic that included bone density screenings and blood pressure checks. "Since it was during the work week, we mostly saw retired members on Thursday, which we expected," Brown said, "so we planned things they would enjoy." Staley Credit Union was chartered in 1930 to serve employees of the A. E. Staley Company. The Staley Company was a pioneer in the development and refinement of soybeans and corn-based sweeteners, and was bought by London-based Tate & Lyle Global in 1998. The company is now known by the Tate & Lyle name, but the original manufacturing plants are still in operation, including facilities with credit union branches in Decatur, Lafayette, Ind. and Loudon, Tenn. Football fans know the Staley name as one of the founders of the present-day National Football League. The company sponsored the Staley Bears, one of the original teams that founded the American Professional Football Association in 1920. The Bears later moved to Chicago, and became the current day Chicago Bears of the NFL. The credit union expanded its charter in 1987 to include residents in a five-county area in Central Illinois. It has 13,000 members. -

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