"With all the obstacles life throws at you on a normal day-to-day basis you don't really stop to think and appreciate what you possess and have accomplished. In fact, you tend to take things for granted.
Then comes along an unforeseen natural disaster that knocks you down and says, 'Now get back up and rebuild.' A tightness in the chest, a fear of 'where do I begin' overwhelms you. People you barely know shower you with empathy and selfless generosity. Words cannot express the joy, relief and love to those who struggle with you.
Thank you, thank you … thank you for what you have done. I am so proud and grateful to be a recipient of your generosity and love. Just another reason to be a part of the credit union family. This is what makes us strong and proud."
Those words of thanks come from Ann-Marie, a credit union employee in Texas who received grant funds after Tropical Storm Harvey. That is just one of many notes received after thousands of credit union staff and volunteers were impacted, then given funds through the National Credit Union Foundation's CUAid disaster relief fundraising platform to help get their lives back together.
At the Foundation, we are humbled to be the movement's focal point for disaster relief, working with state credit union leagues and foundations at an unprecedented rate the last few months, helping those affected by Harvey, Hurricane Irma, Hurricane Maria and wildfires in California.
The response by the credit union community to help people like Ann-Marie has been truly amazing. More than $2.9 million has been raised to assist our credit union brothers and sisters. Credit unions and credit union organizations have truly put the "people helping people" philosophy to work by sending tens of thousands of dollars to help those in need. They are also holding casual days and bake sales to raise funds, collecting money in lobbies from members, raising awareness of CUAid on their websites and social media, matching employee contributions and much more.
While most of the $2.9 million is from organizations, it's inspiring to know that most of the contributions come from individuals, more than 65% in fact. Whether it was $5, $50 or $5,000, your donations have helped more than 2,100 credit union people receive aid in areas affected. Every dollar makes a profound difference. Here are some more notes of thanks from your credit union family:
"Thank you for the gift of survival for me and my family."
"It is people like you that give hope when there is or was very little hope to have."
"I can say thank you a million times and it still wouldn't be enough to show how much I appreciate what you did for my family. You gave us hope and the financial help to make our rebuild process possible."
You did that. We did that. How many industries do you know of that stand together like this when times are tough? We are a movement that puts philosophy in action by helping more than members, but each other too.
We are people helping people.
Gigi Hyland is Executive Director at the National Credit Union Foundation. She can be contacted at 202-824-6282 or [email protected].
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