CU Donations Support Healthy Living, Academics & the Arts

From left to right, John J. O’Brien, president/CEO for the $706 million Leominster Credit Union in Leominster, Mass.; Lorrie Brodeur, activities volunteer coordinator for the Sunrise Senior Living Center and Rachel Terrell, Leominster CU executive assistant stand next to some of the 74 blankets the credit union donated to area homeless shelters across the state. Twenty-four Massachusetts credit unions and the Cooperative Credit Union Association participated in the 2019 Blanket Drive during the month of January. The credit unions donated a total of 1,481 blankets to the Massachusetts Coalition for the Homeless and other local agencies across the state. Leominster CU has participated in the Cooperative Credit Union Association’s initiative since 2011.

Employees from the $694 million LAFCU in Lansing, Mich., hold a $14,100 check donation that will be used to improve communities served by the credit union. Credit union employees raised the money by donating $2 to participate in Casual Dress Day Friday. LAFCU’s Casual Dress Day charity program began in 1994 and has resulted in an estimated $200,000 benefiting Greater Lansing and Shiawassee County. Selection of recipient organizations and people in need is based on employee suggestions. This ensures the program benefits causes that employees truly care about or people who have a connection with an LAFCU employee. For 2018, the committee contributed the $14,100 to 33 not-for-profit organizations, and individuals and families in need. This supports a variety of community needs including youth development, food security, health, treatment and prevention services, social services and animal welfare.

Employees from the $2.8 billion SAFE Credit Union in Folsom, Calif., present a $25,000 check to the Aerospace Museum of California to benefit the museum’s efforts to promote hands-on STEM education through aerospace science. The credit union’s donation will help serve the Greater Sacramento community through STEM education exhibits at the museum. The Aerospace Museum has been in operation for more than 30 years and houses more than 40 historical aircraft. It showcases educational exhibits ranging from interactive presentations to ride simulators. The vision of the Aerospace Museum of California is to provide an interactive STEM experience to every child, school, and family who participates in the museum’s exhibits. Because students need inspiration and opportunities to learn about space, the STEM programs at the museum are specifically designed to introduce students to aviation and aerospace through engaging hands-on learning.

Employees from the $345 million GCS Credit Union in Madison, Ill., show off the donation results of the credit union’s February jeans day campaign. In exchange for a donation of $15 or more, employees are allowed to wear jeans on Fridays and Saturdays each month. The $985 donation will benefit St. John’s Community Care. St. John’s Community Care offers many free or low-cost programs, support groups and a medical equipment loan closet for aging and disabled people. Most of the loved ones they care for are suffering from dementia and Alzheimer’s.

A Bridges volunteer (left) provides a Baltimore, Md., student (right) with individualized academic assistance. The $766 million Point Breeze Credit Union in Hunt Valley, Md., recently donated $20,000 to two non-profits focused on supporting young people in Baltimore – Bridges and Arts Every Day. Bridges, a project of St. Paul School and Gilman School, provides long-term support to motivated Baltimore city youth ages nine to 22, and plans to underwrite two new students in its program with its $10,000 gift from Point Breeze. Bridges provides students with formal summer and school-year programs, individualized academic assistance, and school placement support. Arts Every Day – a driving force in helping city public school students embrace creativity, art and culture – will use its $10,000 donation from Point Breeze to support various programs, including its Impact Fund, which gives financial awards to schools for large-scale visual art projects impacting students and the surrounding community, and its 10×10 Exhibit, an avenue for artistic expression, which this year is centered on the Baltimore Ceasefire movement.

Employees from the $4.5 billion Desert Financial Credit Union in Phoenix, Ariz., present a $3,000 check to Linda Landwehr for the purchase of a specialized chair for her granddaughter, who has cerebral palsy. The donation was part of Desert Financial’s Year of Giving effort, which included random acts of kindness, such as donations and surprises for local individuals and families. The Year of Giving mission to spread kindness didn’t stop at help for individual families. In addition to raising $700,000 for Phoenix Children’s Hospital and $300,000 for Valley of the Sun United Way, Desert Financial awarded nearly $500,000 in grants, sponsorships and donations to nonprofit organizations including the Association for Supportive Child Care, the Center for Neighborhood Leadership, Free Arts for Abused Children of Arizona and the Arizona Animal Welfare League, among many others. As part of the Year of Giving, the credit union also continued its pledge to education by contributing $120,000 to Valley educators.

Please send your Community news items to Tahira Hayes at thayes@cutimes.com.