By William J. Mellin, President/CEO

This year’s International Credit Union Day theme, “Empower Your Financial Future with a Credit Union,” aims to raise awareness and celebrate what makes credit unions unique and looks toward empowering members and the community to build a better financial future with their credit union. 

This year’s theme is especially poignant as credit unions are uniquely positioned in their communities to empower their members as they navigate today’s economic challenges. While we are all working to move on from the pandemic and its devastating effects, the ultimate goal of International Credit Union Day is to raise awareness about the positive work that credit unions and other financial cooperatives are doing around the world to empower member opportunity and financial hope. As we put a spotlight this week on the good that credit unions do, I want to extend my congratulations to our credit union leaders, both volunteers and paid staff, for the amazing work you do in helping your members get to a better place financially.

International Credit Union Day is also an important time recognize and thank all our business partners that assist credit unions and the Association in carrying out our mission. I especially want to thank CUNA Mutual Group, our principal partner, for its support, both for the Association and New York’s credit unions.

CUNA Mutual Group sponsors many of the Association’s events and regularly provides valuable resources that allow us to enhance our support to credit unions. Their commitment to the credit union system plays a key role in our movement and in helping consumers build a better financial future through credit unions.

On this International Credit Union Day — and every day — let’s celebrate what makes credit unions unique and continue to be an empowering force to members and the community as we work toward our collective mission of improving financial well-being for all.