GRANDVIEW, Ohio — Members First Credit Union is spreading out.
Recently the State of Ohio Division of Financial Institutions gave its approval for the credit union to expand its charter and serve anyone living, working, worshiping or attending school in Franklin County, Ohio.
"We're very excited because the charter expansion gives us a definitive avenue for future growth of the credit union," says MFCU CEO Greg Kidwell.
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The credit union was originally founded in 1957 to serve the employees and retirees of Big Bear Stores Company. In 1980, the credit union's field of membership was expanded to include family members of employees and a "lifetime membership" clause was added to the credit union's charter, allowing anyone who joined the credit union to remain a member for life, regardless of changes in employment or residence.
In 1998, the credit union began to diversify its membership by serving the employees of additional companies with the free employee benefit of membership. At the end of 2000, the credit union expanded its charter to serve anyone living, working, worshiping or attending school in the Grandview/Marble Cliff area of Northwest Columbus.
During the past six years, Members First CU has been very active in the Grandview/Marble Cliff community, providing scholarships annually to area high school students, actively participating in the Grandview/Marble Cliff Area Chamber of Commerce, and sponsoring the annual Lazy Daze Festival, the signature summer event in the community.
"We are highly cognizant of the fact that many of our members living in Franklin County choose to do business with us despite the fact that many other institutions may be more geographically convenient to them," Kidwell says. "They do so because of the high level of personal service we provide them with, and because the board is dedicated to providing extremely competitive rates on deposit and lending services."
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