Michigan First-Detroit Pistons Partnership Leads to a Slam Dunk Play for Members

Seventeen members of the $1.4 billion Michigan First Credit Union are starting the New Year on a positive foot after receiving an unexpected early Christmas present from two players of the Detroit Pistons.

Not long after the Lathrup Village-based credit union signed a new partnership to become the official credit union of the Detroit Pistons in October, the NBA team reached out to Michigan First at the request of its then-power forward player Marvin Bagley III, who offered to help financially struggling members.

“We were so taken aback by the request, but we immediately jumped into it to figure out which members in our communities really deserve this kind of assistance,” Michigan First Chief Lending Officer Jeff Fitrzyk said. “So we went through a process of identifying members that had some really difficult stories on how they’ve been struggling financially over the past few years. We put those stories together and sent a big batch of them to the Pistons. Marvin agreed to help the majority of them but there was some that he couldn’t.”

Nevertheless, the credit union heard back from the Piston organization that one of Bagley’s teammates forward Alec Burks would help the rest of the members. On Jan. 14, Bagley was traded to the Washington Wizards.

At the credit union’s headquarters on Dec. 20, the selected members enjoyed a Pistons-themed evening alongside Michigan First leadership and Pistons staff, featuring bowling, food and a meet-and-greet with Bagley.

But the members were not told of their special surprise until Bagley took the spotlight to announce a generous gesture: Both he and teammate Burks would pay off the members’ loans, amounting to more than $80,000.

Members didn’t believe it at first, Fitrzyk noted, but after they were reassured by the Michigan First leadership team that their loans had been paid in full by Bagley and Burks, some of the members broke down in tears.

“The impact of these players’ actions on our members is immeasurable,” Michigan First Chief Marketing Officer Jennifer Glenfield said. “It’s a life-changing gift for them.”

Providing financial services and assistance to those in need has been part of the very spirit with which Michigan First approaches business — especially lending, as the credit union often takes on more risk with unsecured loans and modest-means members, according to the credit union.

“We’re one of the few financial institutions in our area that doesn’t look at the credit score of a member to decide whether or not we grant them assistance because we know bad things happen to good people,” Fitrzyk explained. “And so we make sure that we first determine a member’s ability and intent to repay. And if we can feel good about those two things, we’re going to give somebody an opportunity. It doesn’t matter if they’ve got a 800 credit score or a 400 credit score. And we do that every single day. It really makes us feel good about what we do.”

Michigan First’s partnership with the Detroit Pistons offers members access to a variety of special promotions, giveaways and opportunities to win Pistons game tickets and official team merchandise throughout the basketball season.

To further support Michigan First’s commitment to making a positive impact in the communities it serves, the credit union and the basketball team support financial literacy through a program called Pistons Math Hoops. The community initiative currently impacts more than 7,000 students across 40 schools using a basketball-themed board game and an in-classroom curriculum to improve students’ math proficiency, critical-thinking skills and overall academic confidence.