Press
Vermont F¬ederal Credit Union Had An Active End Of 2011 And Beginning Of 2012
Contact: Lori Crowley
V.P. of Marketing
Vermont Federal Credit Union
80 Midas Drive
South Burlington, VT 05403
(802) 658-0225 x 1312
lcrowley@vermontfederal.org
Burlington, VT – During the months of November and December the staff members of Vermont Federal Credit Union joined together to collect over $22,500 for the United Way Campaign, showed they were “Vermont Strong” in an effort to raise funds and awareness surrounding the continued need following Hurricane Irene, gathered holiday gifts for 5 families, and helped collect over 4,000 pounds of food at the annual Feed Your Neighbor event. Vermont Federal also began 2012 by making numerous charitable contributions to local organizations.
Shortly following the flood in August, Vermont Federal made a donation to the Vermont Foodbank and helped to provide members information on their website, Facebook page, as well as communicated internally to staff about various opportunities to get involved and help the community. The Community Involvement Committee (CIC) at the Credit Union wanted to do more, and quickly realized that the need would be long lasting.
One of the creators of the Vermont Strong shirts, Eric Mallete, gave the CIC at the Credit Union the idea for a Vermont Strong Day when he stated in an article published by WCAX, “we’d love to see ‘Vermont Strong Day’ – a day when banks, offices, supermarkets and other employers supply their staff with a Vermont Strong shirt in one giant display of solidarity”. CIC member and Community Development Coordinator at the Credit Union, Kylie Webster,
explained, “for us, wearing the shirts was about continuing to spread the Vermont Strong message to members
and all Vermonters, the message of people helping people, and that’s a message we believe credit unions know well”. Webster continued to say, “the CIC’s decision to purchase staff members the Vermont Strong shirts was not only because we believe in the message they represent, but also because we wanted all staff to be able to get involved in relief efforts”. Staff members were also encouraged to volunteer throughout the week.
The idea of staff members getting involved in the community is not a new one for the Credit union. In addition to the $4,500 raised through the purchase of the Vermont Strong shirts, 50/50 raffle tickets, staff and Vermont Federal donations, Vermont Federal also collected over $22,500 for the United Way Campaign, gifts for five local families working with Chances for Christmas, and 4,028 pounds of food during their 4th year as presenting sponsor of the Feed Your Neighbor Campaign. An additional $308 in cash was also collected at the annual event, which equates to an additional 924 pounds of food for a total of 4,952 pounds donated. The Credit Union also began the year by making numerous in charitable contributions to local organizations. Recipients of the donations were selected based on their support and contributions to the Credit Union’s field of membership. This is the Credit Union’s fourteenth year working with the United Way Campaign, and their 3rd year with Chances for Christmas. Webster commented, “Each year these events and sponsorships are important to the credit union, but this year was especially important to us given that Hurricane Irene depleted many Vermont Foodbank’s supplies, and left many families in need”.
Throughout the year the Credit Union held book drives which collected over 400 books for local students grades K-12, sneaker drives to support the local King Street Center, blood and food drives, organized our continued participation in Relay for Life, sponsored events such as Restaurant Week, Summervale, Lake
Monsters Student Athlete Program, Middlebury’s Festival on the Green, Addison County Fair and Field Days, Flynn Center Stage and has made donations to numerous not-for-profit organizations.
Vermont Federal is a $335 million plus financial institution, currently serving over 32,000 members. Members are part of a cooperative, meaning that they share ownership in the credit union and elect a voluntary board of directors. Vermont Federal Credit Union provides membership to anyone who lives, works, worships or attends school in Chittenden, Grand Isle, Lamoille, Franklin, Washington, or Addison Counties in Vermont. Vermont Federal Credit Union is committed to providing support to the communities that it serves and to make a decided difference in the lives of its members and other Vermonters. For more information about Vermont Federal Credit Union, call 802/888 252-0202, visit www.vermontfederal.org, or find us on Facebook.