November 1, 2012- Pensacola, Fla. --- Nearly 2,000 pounds of information were taken to Pen Air Federal Credit Union on Saturday to be shredded. This was in response to National Protect Your Identity Week- an annual partnership the credit union shares with fellow sponsors, Consumer Credit Counseling Service of West Florida, Cintas, and Pensacola Recycles. The annual Shred It event provides a safe way to dispose of any papers, electronics, and other devices that could contain personal or sensitive information.
The day was a huge success, measured by the more than 100 vehicles that came to dispose of their documents and equipment. The Cintas shredding truck was on hand, as well as Pensacola Recycles to make sure everything was disposed of properly and securely.
The purpose of Pen Air FCU’s Shred It Day was to recognize National Protect Your Identity Week and bring light to the reality of crimes in identity theft. Identity theft is a form of stealing someone's identity, typically in order to obtain credit and other benefits in that person's name. The victim of identity theft can suffer adverse consequences if they are held accountable for the perpetrator's actions. Identity theft occurs when someone uses another’s personally identifying information, such as their name, Social Security number, or credit card number.
“Pen Air FCU continually tries to educate and raise our members’ awareness about identity theft, and through this event, we also provide them with an avenue to safely dispose of personal documents. It was great to see so many people take advantage of Shred It Day,” said Pen Air FCU VP of Marketing, Patty Veal.
Consumer Credit Counseling Service Special Events Coordinator, Betsy Watson, was on site to oversee Shred It Day. Betsy Watson commented, “It’s a pleasure to do this for the community we serve. Many folks get into credit issues because of identity theft. This is one of the main reasons we sponsor this event. I appreciate the great help from the folks at Pen Air, Cintas and Pensacola Recycles for their help to make this event possible.”
About Consumer Credit Counseling Service of West Florida, Inc.:
Consumer Credit Counseling Service of West Florida is a nonprofit organization offering debt management, housing counseling, and various educational programs to their clients on the wise use of credit, preventive and rehabilitative financial counseling, and debt reduction services. They are located at14 Palafox PlaceinPensacola. Their phone number is 850-434-0268.
About Pen Air Federal Credit Union:
Pen Air Federal Credit Union is the largest and oldest local credit union headquartered inPensacola,Floridawith $1.2 billion in assets, and more than 100,000 members. Pen Air FCU currently has 19 branches in Northwest Florida andSoutheast Alabama, including four student-run credit unions at area high schools. Pen Air FCU is a not-for-profit, member-owned financial institution originally chartered in 1936 to serve civil service and military employees assigned to our military bases in the area; it now serves over 1,000 other workforces and their immediate families. To learn more about Pen Air FCU, visit www.penair.org.
For more information, please contact Libby Morris at 850-505-3200, Ext. 4151 or morrli@penair.org.