Twenty one credit unions were among the 195 Community Development Financial Institutions to receive a share of more than $202 million in grants from the U.S. Treasury Department's CDFI Fund, the CDFI Fund announced.

“Today's awards highlight how much the CDFI program has contributed in its 20-year history toward building a strong network of CDFIs across the country,” CDFI Fund Director Annie Donovan said. “These important community partners are not only on the frontlines of economically distressed communities providing needed capital and credit, they are building a more inclusive economy which benefits the nation as a whole.”

The credit union recipients included the $96 million, 14,000-member Carolina Foothills Federal Credit Union, which won a grant totaling more than $1.3 million.

The Spartanburg, S.C.-based cooperative will use the money to shore up its allowance for loan losses, freeing up money to support its already existing loan programs, according to the credit union's vice president of business development and community engagement, Terri Hendrix.

“We're still a little numb,” Hendrix said. “It hasn't quite sunk in yet. This was our first time to apply and we're still kind of shell shocked really.”

Hendrix said Carolina Foothills FCU has already implemented a number of programs geared toward helping their lower-income members, including a credit rebuilder loan and used auto loans specifically for older-model, high-mileage cars.

“We know our membership,” she said. “We know they drive to get to work and need a car to do that but can't afford a lower-mileage used car or much less a new car.”

According to the NCUA, Carolina Foothills FCU had a delinquency ratio of 0.50% in June 2015, half of its peer average of 1%, and a return on assets of 0.41%, four percentage points over the peer average of 0.37%.