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In the most recent issue of Mainebiz, the state's leading business publication, there is a front page article on the growth of The County FCU. The article also puts significant focus on the growth and strength of Maine's credit unions, as well. In May, your League met with Mainebiz' Senior Writer, Lori Valigra, to discuss credit union issues, and potential topics for future publications. At the meeting, your League provided a number of potential story ideas, and provided Mainebiz with a lengthy list of credit unions to speak with, and Mainebiz' staff selected The County FCU as the first one to profile. This article is the first of what your League hopes is an increase in the frequency of CU-related articles in Mainebiz.
While the first part of the article is focused on The County FCU and its President/CEO, Ryan Ellsworth, who assumed the position a year ago, the second half of it spends considerable time highlighting many of the key facts and figures provided by your League. Among the points noted in the article are the fact that there are 655,000 credit union members in the state, making it the fifth strongest credit union state in the country; the convenience of Maine's credit unions with the largest surcharge-free ATM Network in Maine, and the shared branch network, which is the largest financial institution branch network in Maine and third largest nationwide; and the economic benefits that credit unions provide to members. "Maine credit unions give members benefits of $38 million annually related to better loan and savings rates and lower and fewer fees," the article states, citing data from the last independent study conducted by former state economist, Chuck Lawton.
"We were pleased that the article portrayed the many strengths of credit unions and also highlighted good things happening at credit unions in all parts of the state. The County FCU has been a solid credit union for many years, and Ryan's experience and background made for a nice focus of the story, especially being a relatively new CU leader, and he did a nice job explaining the differences between credit unions and other financial institutions. We appreciate the opportunity to tell our story, and to do so in different ways and that was one of the reasons for meeting with Valigra in the spring. We wanted to update her on what is happening at Maine's credit unions, and to make her aware that there is are a lot of good credit union stories waiting to be told," explained your League's President John Murphy.
For his part, Ellsworth appreciated the positive exposure for The County FCU, and the opportunity to speak for and about credit unions. "Credit unions are owned by our members, and our structure is different. That's why we're treated differently. Our profits don't belong to us. They belong to all of our members; therefore, it's their money and we don't get taxed on it because it's their profit, not ours."
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