CANTON, N.C. — Champion Credit Union has made a $100,000 donation to local schools to reflect the amount of money it said members have saved through a loan refinancing program.
In 2015, Champion CU kicked off its Schooled on Savings campaign, which was designed to show their members how borrowing with their local credit union can help their community. Champion Credit Union said it set a goal to save their members at least $100,000 in loan interest by refinancing with them.
“We were saving our members thousands of dollars sometimes,” said Brooke Scott, financial service specialist with Champion Credit Union, in a statement. “It was so exciting to be able to show them that.”
Saying it was seeking to take things a step further, Champion Credit Union decided to take the $100,000 in savings and roll that directly into the communities it serves in an impactful way.
“We wanted to illustrate how borrowing with your local credit union helps your community,” said Noralynn Gudger, marketing and communications manager, in a statement. “What better way than to take the money that we saved our members by borrowing with us and give it directly back.”
President and CEO Jake Robinson suggested the school systems and it immediately seemed like a natural fit, according to CCU. “The schools are struggling with the support given on a state and federal level,” said Robinson. “While we can’t fix it with this, we certainly want to try and do what we can.”
On Feb. 25, Champion Credit Union will welcome superintendents and school personnel from the nine counties that they serve in Western North Carolina at The Imperial of Canton to present them with their portion of the $100,000, which is based on the number of students in each of the public school systems.