International Credit Union Day in retrospect

Mark Twain once said, “The two most important days in your life are the day you are born and the day you find out why.”

For me, that day was Thursday, October 16, 2003. It seemingly started out like just like any other day – get up, go to class, go to work, etc. What I would soon realize was that it would become a holiday to me and one of the most important days of my life. On Thursday, October 16, 2003 I experienced my very first International Credit Union Day.

I was a college student, working full-time at a CU in Jefferson, Wisconsin. That year, we celebrated ICU Day by sharing snacks and playing games with our members. I also attended my first CU Chapter Meeting that evening. It was auction night where all money raised was donated to the Children’s Miracle Network. I had never seen so much positive collaboration, concern for community, camaraderie among competitors or genuine goodness in one day. I began reflecting on the day’s events. I thought about my CU and how we endlessly gave back to members, local businesses and small communities. I thought about my co-workers who were passionate, extraordinary people, and whose mission it was to improve our member’s financial lives. At that point, I knew credit unions were my future and that ICU Day was something special.

Each year, CUs spread love on this special day, and they ought to. We have so much to be proud of and all share a common goal: to raise awareness about the good that CUs do throughout the world and the support they provide to our local communities. Generally, we celebrate with open houses, contests, picnics, etc. These are all wonderful ways to promote and honor CUs, however, we’re celebrating within our own walls. Awareness today, requires a more noticeable avenue to market. It requires us to step out of our offices and into our communities. CUs across the world are considering new and innovative ways to remember and celebrate ICU Day. Below are a few fun and memorable celebration ideas from ICU Day 2013:

• CU Cash Mobs – In 6 areas throughout Wisconsin, a group of young CU professionals (including myself) organized CU Cash Mobs to stimulate their local economies, provide recognition for small, local or family owned businesses and to raise awareness about ICU Day. There were over 180 participants in WI, who infused over $3,400 of their own money back into their communities. These cash mobs received a lot of positive attention in CU news and local news.
• Random Acts of Kindness – A credit union in Neenah, Wisconsin organized a group of employees to visit local businesses to pay for purchases of random customers. From gas stations to restaurants, the reactions were priceless. Whether they were CU members or non-members, these experiences were memorable and talked about often throughout in the community. Word of mouth is still a huge proponent to our industries success.
• Facebook/Twitter Fun – Thousands of CUs had trivia contests, quirky ICU Day posts or giveaways via social sites to increase CU awareness. Drawing attention to your Facebook and Twitter page allows members and their friends to connect with you in a whole new way.
• Viral Videos – a CU in Texas made a popular TV commercial parody video and posted it onto YouTube. It’s been viewed over 1000 times!

For a decade, I’ve been promoting CUs and enjoy taking extra action on ICU Day. I’m glad to see that many others are collaborating to do the same. We’ve got to think differently about our members, future members and their awareness of the credit union movement. There are very few industries as collaborative, efficient and caring as ours. Encourage others to celebrate BIG and in new, fun, exciting ways! This is our industries greatest holiday – if we don’t throw the party, who will?