AUGUSTA, Maine — A former board member of the KV Federal Credit Union has written in a local paper to urge fellow CU members not to vote to convert the CU and merge it with a mutual bank.

The credit union and a local thrift, Kennebec Savings Bank, announced a plan where each would convert their charters and merge with the bank being the surviving institution. KV would convert to a federally chartered thrift and merge immediately afterward. KSB would convert from a state charter to a mutual charter and must complete its conversion before KV converts in order to facilitate the merger.

Writing in a letter to the Kennebec Journal from his winter home in North Point Florida, Gerald Poulin, a former board member and volunteer urged members not to sacrifice the unique role KV has played in the community.