Press
Travis Credit Union brings holiday joy to the community
VACAVILLE, CA (November 29, 2013) — This holiday season, Travis Credit Union members and employees are reaching out to the community and people in need by taking part in the Solano and Contra Costa Food Banks annual food drive, The Festival of Trees, Christmas Wish 2013, Toys for Tots, and the 2013 Children’s Miracle Network Holiday Stocking Campaign.
Each year Travis Credit Union helps the working poor, seniors, single parents, and the homeless in Solano County through their annual food drive. Credit union employees, members and the general public are encouraged to bring non-perishable foods to all Travis Credit Union branches in Solano, Yolo, and Contra Costa Counties Monday, November 14 through January 31, 2014. Specially printed grocery bags for the drive will be inserted in several local papers including the Dixon Tribune, Fairfield Daily Republic, Contra Costa Times, East County Times and the Vacaville Reporter. Donations will go directly to the Food Bank of Solano, and Contra Costa and the Yolo County Food banks where they will be distributed in the counties that they are received.
Another way Travis Credit Union is helping others this holiday season is through the 2013 Children’s Miracle Network Holiday Stocking Campaign. Travis Credit Union employees and members can purchase and sign as many paper stockings as they want for $1 each to support the health needs of children. The stockings are available for sale and will be displayed at Travis Credit Union branches from November 14 through December 24, 2013. Proceeds from this year’s campaign will go to UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento and Valley Children’s Hospital Central California in Madera County. Last year members and employees donated more than $3,500.
Additionally, Travis Credit Union has been the number one corporate sponsor for the Christmas Wish program for the past twelve years. In 2012, through chili cook-offs, an on-line auction and bake sale, employees raised more than $10,289 and donated 357 gifts to the program. This year, employees are determined to match or beat that donation. Their generous giving ensures that less fortunate children are granted the one wish that they have made for Christmas. How does it work? Children place their wishes on ornaments so that sponsors may buy an appropriate gift for them. Sponsors may also make a cash donation that will be used to purchase gifts. This year, Travis Credit Union will again help children on AFDC/Cal Works, which includes local children of the working poor as well as foster children.
This is the tenth year that TCU has participated in the Festival of Trees, which benefits The Opportunity House. What started out as a labor of love years ago has become a special holiday tradition in the Vacaville community, one that represents families, fun, giving, and the spirit of the holidays. Churches, businesses, organizations, and individuals, working together for a common cause, have made this all-volunteer-supported festival – the shelter’s primary fund-raiser – extremely successful. Each year the festival presents a forest of beautiful Christmas trees, which are auctioned off to the highest bidder. This year will feature 95 elaborately decorated trees, each with its own unique theme. TCU donated a themed tree entitled “On Angels Wings” for auction.
Additionally, inn Concord, Travis Credit Union branches will act as a collection site for Toys for Tots. Members and non-members can drop off unwrapped toys between November 25 and December 16 to benefit children in the community.
On November 14, 2013 employees conducted their eighth annual Employee Craft Fair. The public was invited to browse through unique, handmade items crafted by talented TCU employees and to enjoy a light dinner of hamburgers and hot dogs. Many beautiful items are raffled off and proceeds benefit the Heather House directly. Last year, employees raised more than $1,000 for the Heather House Homeless Shelter.
To show respect and appreciation, employees will be coming together with the community to honor our fallen Veterans at the Annual Wreath Laying event in Dixon on Saturday, December 14, 2013, at the Sacramento Valley VA Cemetery in Dixon.
“Through these programs and others like them, we are reaching out to people in need,” says Patsy Van Ouwerkerk, president and CEO of Travis Credit Union. “We are proud to be helping the community and at the same time making a difference in people’s lives.”
Headquartered in Vacaville, California, Travis Credit Union is a not-for-profit cooperative financial institution serving those who live or work in Alameda, Colusa, Contra Costa, Merced Napa, Placer, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Solano, Sonoma, Stanislaus, and Yolo Counties. Currently, Travis Credit Union is the 11th largest credit union in California with more than 180,000 members and more than $2.2 billion in assets. As one of the leading financial institutions in Solano, Contra Costa, Yolo, Napa and Merced Counties, Travis Credit Union’s strength lies in its faithful commitment to its members and the community; its solid, secure history; and its long-standing track record of dedicated service.