First graduates purchase home through the MCU Foundation’s Finding HOME program
Program awarded grant from the Robert & Eleanor Franke Charitable Fund at the La Crosse Community Foundation to continue program
LA CROSSE, WI (September 24, 2019) — In September, Katye and Josh Sargent, along with their three daughters, became the first family to graduate from the Finding HOME program and purchase their home.
The Marine Credit Union Foundation launched its Finding HOME program in May 2018. Finding HOME is a financial literacy program for credit-challenged borrowers that grants home loans to participants upon successful completion of program. The program is free to participants. The program helps these individuals improve their current financial situation, achieve homeownership and develop critical skills and knowledge to maintain financial stability. View the Sargent’s full story here.
Majel Hein, Marine’s Financial Literacy Counselor in La Crosse, has counseled 65 families in the La Crosse area to identify their best path to homeownership. Twenty-two of those families have entered the Finding HOME program, and one has graduated and purchased their home. Hein has assisted 14 additional families in finding appropriate mortgage lending products or programs.
In June, Marine Credit Union’s Finding HOME program received a $5,000 grant from the Robert & Eleanor Franke Charitable Fund at the La Crosse Community Foundation. Bob and Eleanor Franke established this fund to benefit programs that improve the health and well-being of people in need. Some of the areas Bob and Eleanor were particularly passionate about was strengthening Northside La Crosse neighborhoods and affordable housing.
About Marine Credit Union
Marine Credit Union is a full-service, member-owned financial cooperative serving more than 78,000 members across Wisconsin, Iowa, Minnesota and Illinois. Headquartered in La Crosse, Wisconsin, Marine employs more than 400 people, operates 20 locations and holds over $1 billion in assets. Guided by its mission, “to advance the lives of people from a place of financial need to a life of ownership and giving back in our communities,” Marine looks at its members’ individual finances less as a number and more as a journey. The Marine Credit Union Foundation has donated more than $1.3 million to over 950 charitable causes since 2014. Marine earned Great Place to Work™ Certification in 2022 and Juntos Avanzamos designation in 2017 for its commitment to the Hispanic community. For more information, go to www.marinecu.com.
About the Marine Credit Union Foundation
The Marine Credit Union Foundation is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization committed to making charitable contributions and increasing the financial literacy in the communities Marine Credit Union serves.
