The work we do with credit unions allows them to make real differences in the lives of their members and communities. This could be through CDFI certification or grant writing, strategic planning, product design, partnership creation or any of our other many services. And as part of this work, we get to hear the wonderful member impact stories that illustrate what credit unions are doing to unlock opportunities in the communities they serve. We will be highlighting some of these stories here.
This story is about New Orleans Firemen’s FCU, which happens to be the third oldest federal credit union in the country.
A member had come into the credit union branch to make a deposit, and was chatting with the member service representative. Over the course of the conversation she mentioned that she was having some financial difficulties. The rep suggested she speak to one of their financial coaches, and the member agreed.
New Orleans Firemens’ has a dedicated Financial Inclusion team, and one of the reps reached out to her. The member explained she had recently gone on permanent disability due to an illness, causing her income to drop significantly. She had a car loan, signature loan and credit card through the credit union. They were able to refinance her car loan and consolidated her other loans, including three credit cards held elsewhere.
The member was originally paying more than $1,000 a month between all her loans, and after consolidation it dropped to nearly half that amount. She was so grateful that the member service rep really listened during their friendly chat over a routine deposit, and arranged for her to work with someone who could both consolidate her loans and offer financial coaching.
CDFI-certified credit unions have countless stories like these to share; we’re proud to highlight a few from our clients.
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