Rough Waters Worth CU's Launch: Guest Opinion

We had three missions of serving the under and ­unbanked that are left out of the financial mainstream, changing the age make-up of credit unions by attracting the Internet community and to be the open source and share any successes to help stem the decline in credit unions.  

I’m not sure how many of you have ever tried whitewater rafting but chartering and starting a credit union is like a class four whitewater rafting trip. Our quest began in January 2011 and at first, it was all paddling up stream. We had determination, financial backing and a belief in the credit union community but no idea how to actualize our dream. So we paddled like crazy, filling out charter forms, doing three major surveys and engaging with anyone who would give us free advice.