BISMARCK, N.D.–The Credit Union Association of the Dakotas has announced the winners of its Professional of the Year, CUAD CU Social Good Awards and Marketing Awards.
The awards were presented at its recent annual meeting.
Chad Bartosh, Business Banking and Innovation Officer at Railway Credit Union in Mandan, N.D., was named the Credit Union Professional of the Year. The award recognizes a credit union employee from North Dakota or South Dakota that deserves commendation for their contributions to advance the credit union movement in their state and the nation. The award also acknowledges their efforts to help craft an environment that allows credit unions to grow and prosper in order to better serve their members.
The winners of the CU Social Good Awards are:
- $51 million to $200 million in assets: North Star Community CU, Maddock N.D.
- $201-million in assets and above: First Community CU, Jamestown, N.D.
The CU Social Good Award recognizes one credit union program per asset category that has positively affected the community and the North or South Dakota credit union movement, according to the CUAD. Any product, service, or project of a credit union is eligible for this award.
The league said some of the criteria that is considered includes the overall impact on the community; the commitment to working cooperatively with community partners; and evidence of the credit union philosophy of “people helping people.”
Why The CUs Won
The CUAD said North Star CCU was chosen because of the impact it has made with its Seeds-2-$ave program that teaches youth to plant, grow, harvest and sell their produce while saving or donating a portion of the profits. They also have made an impact with a backpack exchange that allows children to select a gently used backpack filled with school supplies, their Halloween costume exchange, and their financial literacy efforts in the classroom for students in elementary, middle, and high school.
The CUAD said First Community CU was chosen because of the money it has raised for 10 food pantries from the sales of a community cookbook they made. FCCU donated $3,500 and also collected more than 1,000 food items as part of this project that helped to feed hungry families at a time when local pantries were very low on supplies.
CUAD awards are judged by out-of-state employees at the Illinois Credit Union League, the Nebraska Credit Union League, and the Minnesota Credit Union Network.
Marketing Award Winners Announced
Meanwhile, the winners of its Marketing & Communication Awards were:
- $51M to $200M in Assets: Aberdeen FCU, Aberdeen, S.D.
- $201M and Over in Assets: Town & Country CU, Minot, N.D.
The Marketing & Communication Award recognizes a marketing communications piece or project that was used over the past year and proved to be a successful investment. Entries could include radio, TV, print or online advertisements, social media campaigns, websites, newsletters, or a specific marketing plan targeted towards membership or potential membership demographic. CUAD awards are judged by out-of-state employees at the Illinois Credit Union League, the Nebraska Credit Union League, and the Minnesota Credit Union Network.
Aberdeen FCU was chosen because of the success of their mortgage lending campaign, “We Make Owning a Home a Reality,” which increased membership and helped to grow their mortgage lending by $1 million during the campaign.
Town & Country CU Was chosen because of the success of their “Credit Union Curious?” campaign, which was geared at growing awareness of Town & Country CU and educating those who were not familiar with credit unions. The campaign increased website page views, added members at the highest growth rate in three years, and increased loan applications by more than 48%.