Credit Unions for Kids projects over $450,000 in donations through their Shop for Miracles campaign, benefiting Children's Miracle Network Hospitals®
WASHINGTON, DC (December 15, 2014) -- “Shop for Miracles”™, the one-day Credit Unions for Kids (CU4Kids) fundraiser, which took place in coordination with the Credit Union National Association (CUNA) and the World Council of Credit Unions as a new, innovative way to celebrate International Credit Union (ICU) Day®, was an overwhelming success. CU4Kids is projecting over $450,000 in funds raised through the one-day event, wherein credit unions pledged to donate $0.25 (or other designated amount) to their local Children’s Miracle Network (CMN) Hospital each time members used their credit union issued credit and/or debit card on October 16.
“We far exceeded our expectations for the inaugural year of this program at a national level — we had over 100 credit unions from 33 states participate!” shared Joe Dearborn, senior director of CU4Kids with Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals. “We are beyond grateful for the support of our credit unions as well as for the generosity of CO-OP Financial Services.” Included in the $450,000 projection is over $100,000 from CO-OP’s Miracle Match program, which provides matching dollars for approved credit union applicants.
Desert Schools Federal Credit Union (Ariz.) saw transaction volume increase 33% over their projections for a normal Thursday in October. “We promoted Shop for Miracles with an online banking banner, a social media post, Take Ones and Print on Demand documents for our branches to hand out to members in advance of the actual day,” explained Ron Amstutz, executive vice president at Desert Schools FCU. “Our members responded! They understand how important giving back to Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals is, and they embraced this fundraiser enthusiastically!”
An increase in transaction volume was not unique to Desert Schools FCU. Of the 54 credit unions that responded to CU4Kids’ survey about the event, only 14% of credit unions that promoted the fundraiser to their members said they did not see an increase in transaction volume.
Employees were engaged too. Kenja Purkey, marketing manager at The People’s Federal Credit Union (Texas), shared that her favorite part of “Shop for Miracles” was “personally going to a store and having them do separate transactions for each of my items to rack up as many transactions as possible using my credit union MasterCard debit card!”
“Shop for Miracles” involved credit unions both large and small. Florida Customs Federal Credit Union (Fla.), a small credit union with approximately 125 debit cards issued, does not issue credit cards. “Florida Custom FCU chose to donate $1.00 per debit card transaction, and we raised $50 through Shop for Miracles,” said CEO Leianne E. Harden. “Even though we are a small credit union, we know every dollar makes a difference, and we are proud to support our local CMN Hospital.”
With a $60,000 donation, SchoolsFirst Federal Credit Union (Calif.) made the largest contribution through Shop for Miracles, donating almost $0.10 per member. “We were thrilled to be able to support CU4Kids through the Shop for Miracles program,” offered Bill Cheney chief executive officer at SchoolsFirst. “We also received a CO-OP Miracle Match for $12,000 bringing our total for this single event to $72,000 for the kids.”
“Shop for Miracles was a great way to get our members involved and showcase the credit union spirit. A perfect fit for ICU Day!” said Pam Palotas with Erie Community Credit Union (Erie, Pa.).
This is exactly what Brian Branch, World Council of Credit Unions president and CEO, hoped he would hear from credit unions after announcing the 2014 ICU Day theme, "Local Service. Global Good.™" The theme embraced credit unions' positive impact in their communities and around the world. “To help spread awareness,” urged World Council’s electronic newsletter eCommunique, “World Council invites all credit unions and their national associations to celebrate ICU Day with a fundraising campaign in support of a local or national charity!”
“We are thrilled that credit unions worldwide and in the U.S. embraced this year’s ICU Day theme with such enthusiasm. CU4Kids is a wonderful example of the credit union movement’s support of and involvement with their communities; it was exciting to collaborate with them on this initiative,” Branch said.
“It was exciting to see credit unions integrating Shop for Miracles into their ICU Day celebrations this year. Both ICU Day and CU4Kids are integral ways credit unions ‘Unite for Good’ to ‘Create Awareness’ about our industry,” said Jill Tomalin, executive vice president and chief operating officer of CUNA’s Madison office.
Redwood Credit Union, which participated in a pilot test of Shop for Miracles in 2013, returned this year and enjoyed even greater success. “Shop for Miracles is the primary focus of our International Credit Union Day efforts, and we’ve heavily promoted the program through our website, newsletter, email, print ads, branch displays and social media platforms,” said Brett Martinez, president and CEO.
“For the second year in a row, our actual card transactions exceeded projections by 38%. We are so grateful to our members for their participation. Thanks to their support, Redwood’s participation in ‘Shop for Miracles’ resulted in a LOT of miracles for local kids,” concluded Martinez.
About Credit Unions for Kids
Credit unions, fundraising under the Credit Unions for Kids brand, have partnered with Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals since 1996 and in that time have raised almost $130 million. Today, individual credit unions throughout the United States collaborate with chapters, leagues/associations and business partners to raise much-needed funds for 156 CMN Hospitals. Fundraising programs range from golf tournaments, runs, walks to wine auctions, online giving campaigns and paper balloon icon sales. In 2013, credit unions raised $10.2 million ranking the movement third among CMN Hospitals’ corporate partners in annual giving. Contributions help fund new facilities, research, patient services, equipment, special patient needs, charity care and health education programs benefitting 10 million children annually. For more information, please visit www.cu4kids.org
About Children's Miracle Network Hospitals
Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals® raises funds and awareness for 170 member hospitals that provide 32 million treatments each year to kids across the U.S. and Canada. Donations stay local to fund critical treatments and healthcare services, pediatric medical equipment and charitable care. Since 1983, Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals has raised more than $5 billion, most of it $1 at a time through the charity's Miracle Balloon icon. Its various fundraising partners and programs support the nonprofit's mission to save and improve the lives of as many children as possible. Find out why children's hospitals need community support, identify your member hospital and learn how you can Put Your Money Where the Miracles Are, at CMNHospitals.org and facebook.com/CMNHospitals.