Contact:
Christopher Morris
608-231-4374 | cmorris@ncuf.coop
Madison, Wis. -- The National Credit Union Foundation (NCUF) recently received a donation of over $2,300 from Gulf Coast Community FCU in Gulfport, Miss. The donation was the result of the credit union’s employee payroll deduction program throughout last year.
The staff initiated the ongoing contributions in 2006 as a way to show their appreciation for the support they received from credit union employees across the country in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Including the most recent donation, they have raised over $16,000 for NCUF since 2006.
“It is incredibly humbling to receive support like this from Gulf Coast Community FCU,” said Bucky Sebastian, NCUF Executive Director. “Both the support from credit unions after Katrina and Gulf Coast’s kindness make me proud to work in the credit union movement.”
“Many of our staff lost their homes during the storm and were incredibly thankful for the outpouring of support,” Debbie Pidek, EVP, Communications/CCO at Gulf Coast Community FCU. “We will be forever grateful for the generosity shown by so many credit union employees through the National Credit Union Foundation.”
Credit Unions Helping Credit Unions During Disaster
Soon after Katrina made landfall, NCUF activated its Disaster Relief Fund. State credit union leagues, state foundations, individual credit unions, and NCUF Corporate Sponsors worked with NCUF to coordinate the largest disaster relief effort the movement has ever seen. Credit union supporters across America answered with an overwhelming outpouring of donations.
Rather than moving dollars out of the credit union community, all donations to the NCUF Disaster Relief Fund benefited credit union people. The first wave of donations helped hundreds of credit union employees and volunteers pay for emergency shelter, food, water, and many other essentials they needed to survive each day. Donations through NCUF also helped credit unions get up and running more quickly. Within days after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, credit unions were able to reopen from makeshift offices and serve members who needed emergency assistance.
Even after meeting emergency needs, the Foundation recognized that credit union employees continued to need assistance of their own. They were using every ounce of energy to try to recover their homes, replace lost property, and rebuild their lives.
In less than a year, the credit union community donated more than $3.3 million to the NCUF Disaster Relief Fund – a record for the credit union movement.
CUAid
To better prepare for future disasters, the National Credit Union Foundation launched CUAid in 2006 as a national online disaster relief fundraising center for credit unions. Through cuaid.coop, credit union organizations are encouraged to offer employees and members an online giving option to support NCUF’s Disaster Relief Fund, the only disaster relief fund dedicated to helping credit unions, their employees and members recover from major disasters.
Resources:
- CUAid – http://www.cuaid.coop
- NCUF Hurricane Katrina Overview Video (see and hear directly from some of the people the credit union system helped) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lj_JF61-BwY
- Gulf Coast Community FCU - https://www.gulfcoastcommunityfcu.com/index.html
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About the National Credit Union Foundation (ncuf.coop):
The National Credit Union Foundation is the US credit union movement’s primary national philanthropic program provider, fundraiser and grant-maker. Through NCUF grants and programs, credit unions provide widespread financial education, create greater access to affordable financial services, and empower more consumers to save, build assets, and own homes.
NCUF is funded primarily by investments in the award-winning Community Investment Fund (CIF) and by generous Supporters led by the Credit Union National Association, CUNA Mutual Group, Harland Clarke, CO-OP Financial Services, STAR, California & Nevada Credit Union Leagues, Card Services for Credit Unions, and VISA. All NCUF donors provide support that empowers NCUF and state credit union foundations to make a real impact in the credit union community.
The National Credit Union Foundation is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt charitable organization and continues to earn the Better Business Bureau seal of approval as an “Accredited Charity” for meeting all 20 BBB Wise Giving Alliance Standards for national charities.