It's a fun and exciting fact that more than half of credit union CEOs are women — nearly 14 times higher than the percentage of women CEOs at banks. Additionally, a board member of a credit union is more than 1.5 times likely to be a woman. Credit unions have long upheld the belief of supporting others, including traditionally disenfranchised groups. As a credit union, we're proud of our history and mission to bring financial inclusion to all. This Women's History Month, we're spotlighting notable women who have helped steer, elevate, and champion the cooperative movement across the United States.
Louise McCarren Herring
Louise McCarren Herring, regarded as the "Mother of Credit Unions" in the United States, is one of the most known names in the credit union movement. She was only twenty-three years old when she started organizing credit unions. It was while working at Kroger Company in the early 1930s that she witnessed the crippling effects debt and outrageously high interest rates had on people and decided to pursue a career that would help provide fair access to financial services. She started by setting up a volunteer-run credit union to serve Kroger employees who often had difficulties getting loans from banks. Herring also became involved with the national cooperative movement and was one of the attendees at the 1934 Estes Park meeting that established the Credit Union National Association (CUNA). Later, she became the first director of the Ohio Credit Union League, where she helped to create more than 500 credit unions.
Dora Maxwell
About the same time that Louise McCarren Herring was spreading the credit union difference in her state of Ohio, fellow credit union champion Dora Maxwell was securing charters for hundreds of credit unions throughout the United States. Dora Maxwell was also a delegate to 1934 Estes Park conference which established CUNA and worked as an organizer for the Credit Union National Extension Bureau (CUNEB), the movement's trade organization.
At Members First Credit Union of Florida, we're proud of the women who make up our team members and leaders. More than half of our team managers and executives are women who have made great contributions to the growth and success of the Credit Union. Members First was originally chartered as Escambia County Teachers Credit Union on March 19, 1954, by five men and five women. Our member-owned, non-profit institution was formed for the purpose of encouraging savings by offering a good return on member investments. Later, the Credit Union began offering loans at competitively low interest rates and providing other services to meet our members' financial needs, growing into the community credit union that we are today.
Credit unions, like Members First, offer great opportunities for women in the workforce. While there is still work to be done, we're excited to see the future of women's leadership in credit unions and other industries. Additionally, we look forward to empowering women and others in our community with our financial services and educational resources.
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