The Difference Making a Difference Makes

Strengthening their communities and living a philosophy of people helping people – that’s one of the “Seven Cooperative Principles” on which the credit union movement was founded, as well as one of the differences that sets credit unions apart from other financial institutions.

Like most credit unions, Vizo Financial Corporate Credit Union has been making a significant commitment to help the communities it serves. From donating thousands of dollars for hurricane relief and hosting an annual hot dog eating contest, to raising funds for a children’s hospital and volunteering at financial reality fairs to promote financial education, Vizo Financial employees and their families have donated their time and money to improve the lives of others in their communities. The crowning achievement in 2018 was collaborating with our credit union members to sponsor the Pay 4 Play radiothon that raised more than $265,000 for Penn State Children’s Hospital.

Tips for a Successful Community Involvement Program

Through the years, Vizo Financial has learned a thing or two about how to make community involvement activities successful:

1. Communication is paramount. Emails, newsletter articles and social media posts with event details and specific directions are necessary to ensure participation, especially for off-campus activities. To further encourage involvement among employees, consider taking a few minutes during meetings to pass around signup sheets or arrange carpools.

2. Provide paid time off for volunteering. Show that your organization wants employees to be involved in the community by allowing them to spend company time on worthwhile activities. Vizo Financial gives employees 16 paid hours every year of community volunteer leave (or CVL), to spend on community involvement activities.

3. Make it fun. Friendly competition between departments can help boost involvement. A few years ago, Vizo Financial held a food drive to support local food banks. To motivate employees, two department heads challenged each other to a water balloon fight with the number of available water balloons dependent on the pounds of food the team had donated. The result was 3,987 pounds of food donated, almost 47 pounds of food per employee, as well as some memorable pictures in the employee newsletter.

4. Provide opportunities for staff to get involved with a charity. Raising funds and collecting needed items are important ways to support charities. But, finding ways for your employees to personally interact with the recipients raises community awareness of your credit union; it’s also a good team-building activity. Vizo Financial actively seeks volunteer opportunities to get employees more deeply engaged in hands-on work that directly benefits communities. In addition, each year at the Corporate’s fundraising hot dog eating contest, a local Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals “Miracle Family” shares their personal experience with the children’s hospital that made such a difference for them and their family.

5. Think about variety in the types of activities selected. If all the opportunities involve physical strength and labor, some employees will be unable to participate. Also, consider different work schedules and family situations by planning a mix of daytime, evening and weekend events.

6. Track and reward employee participation. Recognizing employees’ volunteer hours will not only show appreciation for their efforts, it will encourage others to participate. Some credit unions recognize a Volunteer of the Month and donate to that employee’s favorite charity. Rewards or prizes don’t have to be financial, though. Recognition in the company newsletter or at a special celebration for all the volunteers works well too.

In addition to helping fund worthwhile projects or providing necessities to people in need, community involvement projects are also a great way to help employees develop skills and show they can handle responsibility.

Find Out What Other Credit Unions Are Doing

While building an impressive list of charitable activities each year, Vizo Financial knows it is not alone. Every day, credit unions engage in activities to improve the lives of people in their communities.

To highlight the community involvement efforts of credit unions, the Corporate launched a quarterly video series called “Difference Makers.” The premiere episode features the community-building efforts of various credit unions, as well as a review of upcoming charitable events that credit unions might want to get involved in. The second episode, released in June, chronicled even more of that charitable spirit from credit unions far and wide.

Our aim is to promote the real-life stories of “people helping people” that credit unions are involved in every day. New episodes will be released quarterly and can be viewed on the Videos page under the Learn tab on Vizo Financial’s website, vfccu.org.

Beyond producing the warm, fuzzy feeling of doing something good, community involvement is a mission for credit unions and an integral component of the credit union movement. It means promoting financial literacy and helping people in need. It means becoming a pillar in the community and seeking ways to strengthen it by improving people’s lives. It means making a difference. For credit unions, making a difference makes all the difference.

Erin Doan is Administration and Community Relations Director for Vizo Financial Corporate CU. She can be reached at marketing@vfccu.org.