Last week we told you the story of one of the 8.5 million credit union members we helped protect this year from unforeseen setbacks to payments on vital resources like cars and homes.
To us, putting a face to what we do, to really know the members we serve, is so important to us. So much so that following her claim, we invited Helen Agnew, a member of CU Community Credit Union in Springfield, Missouri, to visit our CUNA Mutual Group headquarters in Madison, Wisconsin. She had a chance to tell her story in person and meet many of the employees who made a difference for her.
 |
| Click image to watch Helen meet the people who serviced her claim |
We recognize stories like this because we know we can't exist without our customers, without the credit unions, without the members. Helen shared a similar sentiment about the work we do when she said, "it really was the safety net we needed at a time that we really didn't have any other options. If my story touches one person who can repeat it, it is worth it." We really hope Helen's story can spread and can help others' as well.
It truly is a team effort, and we would never have been able to have this impact on Helen's life if it wasn't for the care that her credit union took when providing her the loan and debt protection to cover her in case of the unexpected.
Carolina Decker, VP of Lending at CU Community Credit Union told us they see themselves as partners with their members. "All our products are designed to help members when they get into a pinch. They are designed to take over loan and car payments so that’s one less thing the member needs to worry about if and when something unexpected happens, like a job loss or a medical emergency."
Helen's credit union said they find the debt protection products like this and also for disability and life to be the most valuable offerings to their members from a lending perspective. Carolina said they recommended Helen sign up for the unemployment insurance because "unexpected circumstances happen, things you can’t
control, and CU Community Credit Union wants to be sure that our
members successfully make it over the bumps that life throws at you. Financial stress doesn't need to further
impact the stress of losing a job."
Thank you to partners like CU Community Credit Union and to members like Helen Agnew for sharing their stories -- this is our purpose!
