Overall Credit Union Membership exceeded six million

While they didn’t have any direct financial experience, One of the men suggested starting a credit union. There were more than 10,000 federal credit unions in the United States The founding members in front of the credit union’s first office, located in a corner of the Naval Air Station’s Recreation and Welfare League office inside of building V-60.Īs seven individuals stationed at the Norfolk NavalĪir Station talked about ways they could help families, MEMBER COSTS FOR THE CREDIT UNION INCLUDED: Minimum member investment = $5 Passbook fee = $.25 Credit Union charter = $30 We had to go to finance companies and pay high interest rates if we needed to borrow money to buy things like a washing machine.”Īccording to the Sedition of The Virginian-Pilot, one finance company, Eastern Finance Corp., advertised loans with “no collateral…special service to military personnel…” loans, the fine print revealed annual interest rates between 26 – 31 percent. “Back then it was very difficult for a 20 year-old man to borrow money,” said Mason. Yet, as former credit union board member and civil service employee Terri Mason explained, obtaining credit was nearly impossible. Thousands of military personnel and civil service workers had moved to the area because of World War II, strengthening the economy and making employment easy to obtain. N the 1950’s, business in Hampton Roads was booming. Most importantly, I want to thank our members, who are the reason we exist and why we come to work every day. In closing, I’d like to thank our credit union family – both past and present – for their energy, their expertise, and their passion for serving our members and our communities. It is this focus that has driven consistent and dependable growth, and it is this commitment that has helped us withstand the test of time, making us one of the strongest credit unions in the country. Although they had no formal training, what they did have was good old-fashioned common sense and an unwavering admiration for the credit union philosophy of “People Helping People.” With the credit union values in their pockets, they pooled their money, obtained a charter and established a “place to save, a place to borrow, assuring all a bright tomorrow.” Throughout the many decades, we have continued to make consistently meaningful decisions that allow us to make life affordable for our members, to serve our communities, and to strengthen the member experience. So, as these seven individuals watched their peers struggle to gain access to financial opportunity, they knew they needed to do something. And so, many were forced to seek the help of finance companies that charged exceedingly high interest rates. Banks refused to loan money to the average person. Even though business in Hampton Roads, Virginia, was booming and jobs were plentiful, obtaining credit was nearly impossible.

You see, when our seven founders decided to form a credit union in 1959, they knew the solution seemed nearly unattainable. It is at once an intriguing tale of adversity, triumph, courage, and persistence. C H A R T W AY F E D E R A L C R E D I T U N I O NĭEAR MEMBERS & FRIENDS, Chartway’s history is remarkable.

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