ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.–– Sandia Area FCU has donated $5,000 toward local wildfire relief efforts and is pledging to match up to $15,000 as part of a fundraising campaign in response to the devastation brought by the ongoing fires.
Separately, Del Norte CU has announced a number of relief efforts aimed at members as well as other community support.
Multiple wildfires have been raging for more than a month, destroying more than 200 homes and devastating approximately 300 square miles, which the CU noted is nearly the size of New York City. As of May 9, nearly 15,000 homes remain under evacuation orders.
The affected region is near Santa Fe, N.M., where one of the Sandia Area branches is located.
The $5,000 donation went directly to World Central Kitchen, an organization partnering with local restaurants in affected communities to serve fresh meals to evacuees and first responders battling the blazes.
“Many of our members live and work in these devastated communities,” said Paula Peknik, president and CEO of Sandia Area FCU. “This immediate donation is already helping mitigate the impacts on these communities, and we have more efforts underway to continue that support.”
Additional Efforts
According to the credit union, those additional efforts include collecting and matching donations on behalf of the All Together New Mexico Fund. Grants from All Together New Mexico are used for emergency shelter, food and water distributions, and access to medical support during the wildfire crisis.
A local food and supply drive is also underway at the Santa Fe branch location in conjunction with The Food Depot.
“We’re proud to be able to amplify efforts of our generous employees, members and community to bring a measure of relief and hope to those impacted by these wildfires,” said Peknik. “Nothing is
more important than supporting New Mexico communities in their time of need.”
Del Norte CU Offers Assistance
Separately, in Santa Fe, N.M., Del Norte Credit Union (DNCU) has announced a series of measures it said are designed to provide financial assistance and relief to communities impacted by fires.
DNCU’s programs include the following:
- Special Emergency Loans for those impacted by Hermits Peak, Calf Canyon or Cerro Pelado fires
- Payment extensions on existing DNCU mortgage and other loans
- Waiver of fees on new manufactured and modular construction loans
- $3,000 worth of supplies, including employee donations, alongside the city of Española’s contributions to the needs of Mora County
- $3000 donation to The Food Depot Fire Relief Effort and inclusion of Food Depot donation barrels at all DNCU locations
- $1,000 donation to Desert Paws of New Mexico for assistance with evacuation and relocation of animals
- 1000 pounds of animal feed donated via NM Sol, IAFF Local 2059, IAFF Local 244, NMPFFA, I.B.E.W 611, and AFSCME Council 18
“For some members and employees of DNCU, these fires have hit home, literally,” said Chuck Valenti, CEO/president of DNCU. “When fires interrupt our lives in this way, we understand that financial assistance is a critical tool for relief from one of the many burdens that affected communities carry. Moving quickly to offer loan payment extensions, fee waivers and direct donations, we believe that DNCU’s response to this crisis provides an effective mix of financial assistance for those impacted by these fires.”
Yes, FOMO is Very Real in this Case!
Don’t forget to check your Spam/Junk email folder if you haven’t been receiving your free, popular and daily CUToday.info news headlines.
And if you haven’t yet signed up for the new email solution on which CUToday.info has partnered with ResponseGenius, you can do so here. Signing up requires less than one minute of your time.
CUToday.info has received very positive response from readers following the move to an improved provider of the daily headlines, but many also noted they did need to go to their Spam/Junk folder and mark it as safe.
The new email solution has not only improved every reader’s delivery experience, but it also features a fresh, new format that is easy to read, especially on mobile devices.
Please note and/or make your IT department or email administrator aware the emails will be coming from the domains CUTodayinfo.com and CUTodayinfoReply.com