Three state leagues and their credit union members are supporting an inaugural campaign to raise funds for and renovate the homes of aging veterans.
The new campaign, Operation Veteran Home Renovation, is sponsored by the Purple Hearts Homes, the Statesville, N.C.-based national public charity announced last week.
Since the Cornerstone Credit Union League initially announced its support of the Purple Hearts Home initiative in April, the Georgia Credit Union Affiliates and the Southeastern Credit Union League also agreed to support the program that identifies a veteran whose home needs a ramp, grab bars, railings, a yard cleaned up or a fresh coat of paint.
Recommended For You
Credit unions will raise the funds for the projects, most of which can be completed by credit union staff and community volunteers in a day or two. The average cost of a project is $5,000.
Operation Veteran Home Renovation officially kicked off the week of Aug. 8. Participating leagues and credit unions will have until Nov. 12 to complete a project or make a donation directly to Purple Heart Homes.
"In Georgia there are 304,270 veterans that served in Vietnam, Korea, and WWII. Older veterans are oftentimes overlooked and ignored," Georgia Credit Union League Affiliates President/CEO Mike Mercer said. "They live on fixed income and face increased taxes and a higher cost of living. Many times, because of age and disability, older veterans are not able to keep up with the maintenance on their homes, which is why we joined forces with Purple Heart Homes to do something special for them."
Cornerstone President/CEO Dick Ensweiler said the league and its staff are going to help renovate a home for 99-year-old Santiago Diaz, a WWII veteran living in Fort Worth.
"We have reached out to all of our credit unions to urge them to either help renovate a home or donate directly to Purple Heart Homes/Credit Unions Care so they can help more veterans remain safely in their own homes," he said.
The $3.4 billion Tinker Federal Credit Union in Oklahoma City hosted a Wild West Casino Night fundraiser, which netted more than $26,000, to help renovate four approved veterans' homes.
"We worked with the Veterans Corner to help us locate and identify veterans that met the criteria developed by the Purple Heart Homes team," Dave Willis, EVP and COO for Tinker, said. "Veterans that need help don't self-identify and usually say 'someone else needs more help than me.'"
Tinker plans to hold another fundraiser this fall.
"It is going to take a movement to thank the nine million military U.S. veterans age 65 and older, but we'll do it, remembering their sacrifice by helping renovate veterans' homes," John Gallina, cofounder and executive director of Purple Heart Homes, said. "This is why we are launching this campaign with participating credit unions and their state associations."
© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
Peter Strozniak
Credit Union Times reporter covering credit union operations, fraud, M&As, leagues, business continuity, and breaking news.
