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CU*NorthWest to exhibit at the 2017 MAXX Conference

LIBERTY LAKE, WA – October 13, 2017

CU*NorthWest, the 100% credit union-owned cooperative CUSO, announced today that they will be attending the Washington, Oregon and Idaho Credit Union Leagues’ 2017 MAXX Conference in Spokane, Washington, as an exhibitor.

This is the first time all three states have combined their annual meeting. Elizabeth Evans, business development, will be in booth #30 representing CU*NorthWest. The tradeshow, which will be attended by more than 400 credit union professionals, will provide an opportunity for twelve-year-old CU*NorthWest to talk about the CUSO and the cooperative network behind the CU*BASE® software platform. Roughly a third of CU*NorthWest’s existing clients come from Washington/Oregon, and of which many will also be attending the two-day event.

Greg Smith, CEO of CU*NorthWest stated: “It’s fantastic to have three states coming together in one location. It’s a tremendous opportunity for everyone to be able to learn, network and collaborate. The financial industry has many new and evolving challenges and it’s important for credit unions to know what resources are available to help them navigate their way.”

About CU*NorthWest, Inc.

CU*NorthWest was founded in 2005 as a part of the cuasterisk.com network of credit unions and CUSOs. It is a 100% credit union-owned cooperative CUSO located in Liberty Lake, Washington. CU*NorthWest offers a wide variety of services for credit unions including its flagship CU*BASE® processing system (online and in-house) and Internet development services featuring It’s Me 247 online and mobile banking. Additional services include web site development, network design and security, project implementation and execution services, and a complete eDocument solution. CU*NorthWest provides expertise in implementing technical solutions to operational needs, and helps credit unions form strategic alliances and partnerships. For more information, visit www.cunorthwest.com.

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Which Way? 3 Ways to Prioritize Your Options for Growth

By John Dearing, Managing Director, Capstone

The possibilities may be endless, but your resources are not. For many CUSOs with limited time and money, deciding which ideas to pursue can be a challenge. Here are three ways to prioritize your options for growth:

  1. Start with your vision

The best way to make sure you’re moving in the right direction is to take a step back from all of your ideas and begin by looking at your vision for your CUSO. Who do you want to be as an organization? When you have a clear picture of your goal in mind, it will be easier to visualize what steps you need to take in order to achieve it. Without a clear vision you could end up pursuing options that actually drag you in an opposite direction.

  1. Use tools to stay objective

While it’s natural to be somewhat subjective, after all growth is exciting, you don’t want to make decisions based on emotions alone. Try bringing objectivity into your decision-making process by using tools to evaluate and compare your options. When it comes to external growth, CUSOs can use the Market Criteria Matrix to evaluate the best markets for and the Prospect Criteria Matrix to evaluate acquisition or partnership prospects. These tools can be adapted to evaluate any opportunity for growth.

Continue reading Which Way? 3 Ways to Prioritize Your Options for Growth

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Hurricane Harvey: A Week of Hell in Houston and How You Can Help by Jack Antonini, NACUSO CEO

It is such a strange feeling, as you prepare for a Hurricane, hoping it will not be as strong as predicted, praying for everyone in the path of the Hurricane, getting supplies to help you survive if you lose power or sustain damage … and all the while worrying about friends and family in the forecast path.  It’s a little bit excitement, since it is so unusual, combined with anxiety about the impending disaster, while trying to calm and convince those you love that everything will be okay.

One mile from Jack’s house in Conroe, TX

Last minute checks with our son and his family to be sure they were prepared, only to learn that the first 4 gas stations he went to were completely sold out of gas, and after an hour of searching and waiting in line he was finally able to fill up his vehicle at the 5th gas station the day before Hurricane Harvey made landfall in Texas, added to the feeling this might be bigger than we thought.

Finally we gathered around the TV to watch as the storm approached Texas and were amazed at how strong it became, reaching category 4 hurricane status with 130 mph winds and 938 mb of pressure, indicating it was one of the 20 strongest hurricanes of all time.  As we watched the weather people being beaten by wind and rain, and saw coastal cities record wind speeds of 120 – 132 mph, an ominous feeling crept into our subconscious.  Our reactions to what we were seeing went from “Wow, look at that!” to “Oh my God, that is terrible.”

We stayed up all night, watching the storm coverage, wincing every time we received a new Tornado Warning … the Emergency Notification on our phones would alert us, and then we would have to wait to see where it was impacting on TV.  As of 45 minutes after Harvey made landfall, 86,400 homes were without power.  We imagined how helpless we would feel in the dark, with no information about the raging storm right outside our door, and we prayed for the people who were going through this.

Finally relieved that the hurricane was not coming close to our house, and making sure our son’s family was safe, we collapsed in to bed Saturday morning.  A few hours later, when we got up to check on the storm, we discovered that Houston was experiencing severe flooding and Buffalo Bayou was expected to set a record flood depth and vehicles were already stranded in flood waters, and that over 1,000 high water rescues had taken place.  That ominous feeling grew stronger, and we were more acutely aware of the potential to be negatively affected by Hurricane Harvey.

An abandoned Houston Hobby Airport

After another sleepless night, reassuring my family that we would be okay, exhausted from worry and the weight of watching mother nature wreaking havoc on Texas, we went to bed.  When we awoke, we immediately got a storm update, only to learn that Houston was experiencing “massive flooding and torrential rains.”  After a drink to steady our nerves, we watched storm updates throughout the day and night, despite losing power several times, along with our internet connection.

By Monday, August 28th officials announced that both Houston airports would be closed through at least Wednesday, as the highways around Houston were flooded or the exits were impassable.  Forecasters were calling for another 15 inches of rain where we live, north of Houston, and another 20 inches of rain in Katy where our oldest son lives.  The high water rescues, which are occurring in areas that never previously flooded, are unbelievable, including:

4,000    Houston Fire Dept

2,000    Houston Police Dept

2,200    Harris Country Sherrif’s Dept

 1,500    U.S. Coast Guard

9,700    Total High Water Rescues reported as of Noon 8/30/17

People came from as far away as San Antonio and Louisiana with their personal boats and watercraft, bringing cases of water and other supplies, to help with rescues!  One “convoy” of 5 pick-up trucks pulling boats was spotted following Harris County Sherriff’s Deputies to areas where flood waters were rising and people needed to be rescued.  When the local news reported talking with the drivers in the first two trucks, the first was from Austin (165 miles W of Houston) and the second was from Carthage (220 miles NW of Houston), and they literally had no idea where they were or where they were going, they were simply following the Sherriff’s Deputies to locations where people needed help.

Over 30,000 people were in shelters in the greater Houston area on Monday evening, after their homes were flooded.  Thousands of cars and homes are under water, and over 350 areas in greater Houston are impassable due to dangerous high water conditions, making it very difficult to go anywhere.  Our friends from the east returned the favor of Texas providing shelter to hurricane Katrina victims, and over 200 members of the “Cajun Navy” came to Houston to help rescue flood victims with their personal boats.

By Monday, we were also finally seeing the heart-breaking pictures from Rockport, Fulton, Victoria and other areas that had suffered through hurricane Harvey’s 130 mph winds.  As one astonished reporter explained, there was not a single building in Rockport or Fulton that was not damaged, with most damaged beyond repair that would require tearing them down and rebuilding.

Late Monday or early on Tuesday, August 29th we learned that several rivers were going to exceed their historic flood levels, several by as much as 10’-12’ which will cause unimaginable damage.  On top of that, Lake Conroe (near where we live) was 5’ over “full pond” and in danger of going over the dam, which could cause significant damage to the dam itself and resulting damage to homes and business along the West Fork of the San Jacinto River, so they had to release record amounts of water flooding entire neighborhoods, especially since it was still raining.

Two large reservoirs (Addicks & Barker – 26,000 acres) had completely filled with water from the massive rains in Houston, and the Army Corps of Engineers were forced to use a controlled release after water began to “overspill” the Addicks reservoir, adding to the flooding along the Buffalo Bayou.  On top of the downstream flooding, 3,000 homes west of Addicks reservoirs flooded and another 1,000 west of Barker reservoir, where no prior flooding had ever occurred.

The County Judge in Galveston County said that they had received 43 inches of rain so far on Tuesday and their annual total is 49 inches, so they have received nearly a year of rain in 5 days, causing extensive flooding.  He was going through areas on an air boat that had been hard hit, and in Dickinson they were going OVER cars and trucks, since the water was 10′-12′ deep above the street they were going down.  He said that he was looking at some apartments that didn’t appear to be too damaged until he realized that it was the 2nd floor apartments he was looking at!!

Literally thousands of homes will have to be completely rebuilt from the flood damage, removing the flooring, replacing appliances, rewiring the electrical systems, tearing out the ruined drywall and insulation and replacing it, and some business owners had said it would be a year before they will be able to reopen, since they will have to tear down what’s left of their business and rebuild it.

On Wednesday August 30th over 32,000 people were in shelters and they are opening more, expecting victims from east Texas communities of Beaumont, that received over 20 inches of rain on Wednesday, after Tropical Storm Harvey made landfall again.

The amazing thing is the people who are volunteering to help.  I saw a truckload of food and supplies being unloaded at a Conroe ISD high school that good Samaritans sent down from Dallas.  They announced that a shelter in Fort Bend County needed clothing, bedding, cots, etc. for people who had to flee the rising water that was flooding their homes and had nothing but the wet clothes on their backs, and within an hour they had sufficient blankets, clothes, sleeping bags, pillows, etc. for the 500 people in the shelter from people who lived nearby and brought what they could to help.

We have watched amazing rescues, and two that really touched my heart included:

  • Saving a baby deer from Barker reservoir (it was happily snuggled in the fireman’s arms)
  • Two people who brought their canoe to help rescue people, went to the neighborhood early and discovered a man who was laying on his back with a young man doing compressions on his chest … they loaded him into their canoe, then got him to a pontoon boat that had 2 fireman on it, who continued the compressions, and by the time they got him to an ambulance, his heart was beating, and they had saved his life!!

I have to admit I was feeling very uneasy when I was finally able to venture out of our house and went to the grocery store only to see empty shelves, and gas stations closed with no fuel.  As of Wednesday, August 30th at Noon, there were:

  • 278,000 people without power in Texas
  • 32,000 people in evacuation shelters
  • 200 high water areas making highways and other thoroughfares impassable, down from 450 such blockages a on Monday

I honestly cannot imagine losing my home, and things most precious to me such as family photos, and winding up sleeping on a cot in a shelter with 500 to 5,000 other people … but that is exactly what thousands of people in Texas have experienced over the past 5 -6 days as Hurricane Harvey and the rain it brought devastated home after home, town after town.

With some areas receiving 52 inches of rain in Houston, this is one of the strongest and wettest hurricanes in history, causing such extensive flooding that the waters won’t recede until Labor Day in most of the rivers and bayous that are overflowing their banks into neighborhoods and people’s homes.  It will take months to recover, but in the credit union tradition of people helping people, we have seen incredible acts of love and compassion as people from all across the region, and from areas as far away as NYC, CA and FL have come to help the people of Texas.  Despite losing everything, we have seen people express their appreciation to their rescue teams, whether first responders or simple volunteers, who saved their lives.

We can make a difference in the lives of thousands who are facing the biggest, most stressful experience of their lives.  Contribute to Red Cross or CUAid.coop and you will have the satisfaction of knowing you are making a real difference in the lives of people who are truly in need of help.

Thank you to CO-OP Financial Services, PSCU and CU Direct, all NACUSO Platinum Partners for making significant donations to CUAid.  Your dedication to the credit union movement is inspiring.

 

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$10,000 Being Donated to Tropical Storm Harvey Disaster Relief by CO-OP Financial Services

Donation Made In Addition to Business Continuity Relief Through Nationwide CO-OP Shared Branch And CO-OP ATM Networks, Available to Members of Participating Credit Unions

RANCHO CUCAMONGA,Calif. – CO-OP Financial Services is donating $10,000 to CUAid, organized to help credit unions and their members in Texas impacted by Tropical Storm Harvey. The donation augments the nationwide CO-OP Shared Branch and CO-OP ATM networks used extensively in credit union business continuity and recovery during times of disaster.

“Tropical Storm Harvey has dramatically reminded us that natural disasters can come upon us with amazing speed,” said Todd Clark, President/CEO, CO-OP Financial Services. “We have been proactively contacting clients in the impacted areas to assess needs and determine where we can help. The $10,000 donation on behalf of our client credit unions is one expression of that outreach, and available at all times to members of participating credit unions is our vast networks of branches and ATMs, ensuring access to accounts for those displaced by the flooding.”

 CUAid is an online disaster relief system organized by the National Credit Union Foundation. Money raised is for credit union employees, volunteers and members affected by the powerful tropical storm. 

To donate, CUAid can be found at www.cuaid.coop.

CO-OP Financial Services manages two industry networks that can service credit unions members throughout the country whenever they are away from home. The CO-OP Shared Branch network includes 5,600 credit union branches nationwide, the second largest branch network in the country, enabling members to enter any branch and conduct business as if they were right at home. In addition, CO-OP ATM provides access to 30,000 ATMs across the country, a network that includes 9,000 ATMs that accept deposits. In the state of Texas alone, CO-OP Shared Branch offers 293 branches and CO-OP ATM provides 1,522 ATMs.

To find a CO-OP Shared Branch or a CO-OP ATM, members can visit https://co-opcreditunions.org/locator; or, download the brand new CO-OP ATM and CO-OP Shared Branch mobile Locator app at Google Play and iTunes stores. 

About CO-OP Financial Services

CO-OP Financial Services is a payments and financial technology company whose mission is ensuring the success of the credit union movement – serving more credit unions than any other provider and 60 million end-members. CO-OP’s ecosystem of payments and engagement solutions help credit unions consistently deliver seamless, personalized multi-channel offerings in a secure environment. For more information, visit www.co-opfs.org.

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CO-OP Shared Branch Network Surpasses Chase – Takes Number 2 Spot Among Consumer Financial Institutions

More Than 1,800 Different Credit Unions Unite to Form Seamless and Secure Cooperative for In-branch Personal Banking 

RANCHO CUCAMONGA, Calif. – The CO-OP Shared Branch network has passed Chase in number of branch offices, making the credit union cooperative the second largest network of financial institution branches in the country.

 CO-OP Shared Branch now totals 5,671 physical locations. No. 3 Chase has 5,567 branches as of July 18, according to FDIC figures. The credit union network added more than 400 branches during the past two years, when CO-OP Shared Branch surpassed Bank of America. The network is less than 500 locations away from No. 1 Wells Fargo, which has 6,150 branches.

“Shared branching is to credit union members what Uber is to passengers looking for a nearby ride,” said Todd Clark, President/CEO, CO-OP Financial Services. “It’s the best example there is of why credit unions are different than banks – they share! Around 1,800 of the 6,100 U.S. credit unions share their branches. In addition, more than 3,000 are part of our CO-OP ATM network. When you couple-in digital services, credit unions offer a financial ecosystem that is convenient, accessible and a positive force in communities.” 

The shared branch network enables members to enter the branch of any participating credit union and conduct their business as if they were in their own home branch. In addition to member convenience when traveling, shared branching offers credit unions revenue streams and operational efficiencies, and a key means of retaining members who move. The resulting profitability translates to ongoing investments in member benefits by virtue of the not-for-profit structure of credit unions.

CO-OP Shared Branch is one of three networks that CO-OP offers credit unions to comprehensively provide account access to members. CO-OP ATM offers nearly 30,000 surcharge-free machines nationwide to members, a network larger than any bank. In addition, CO-OP is a credit union industry partner for Zelle, a financial institution-led digital payments network allowing members to send money to anyone with a U.S. bank or credit union account.

To find a CO-OP Shared Branch or a CO-OP ATM visit https://co-opcreditunions.org/locator; or, download the brand new CO-OP ATM and CO-OP Shared Branch mobile Locator app at Google Play and iTunes stores.

More information on CO-OP Shared Branch is available here.

About CO-OP Financial Services
CO-OP Financial Services is a payments and financial technology company whose mission is ensuring the success of the credit union movement by serving 3,500 credit unions and 60 million members. CO-OP payments solutions, engagement services and strategic counsel help credit unions optimize member experiences to consistently provide seamless, personalized multi-channel offerings, while delivering secure, sophisticated fraud mitigation service. For more information, visit www.co-opfs.org.