It’s Our Birthday Month! Happy Birthday to UKRFCU! We turn 67 on May 27th.
Let’s start off by saying we are not old, nor do we like using the term “old.” While 67 might seem like a high number (and closer to 100 than 1), we are still a young, passionate, energetic credit union that we were 67 years ago. Today, the full retirement age is 67. However, we are not ready to go on retirement; we want to work for many, many more years. Although we might have a few wrinkles and a slight hearing issue, our heart is restless, our mind is powerful, and our mission is immutable: providing our members with a full range of quality services in a professional and convenient manner while preserving the safety and soundness of the Credit Union Assets.
To prove how financial healthy we are, we went to a doctor for a yearly checkup and the test results came back looking great! Yay to us! Let’s take a quick look at the results:
- Membership growth – within normal level (3.80% growth in 2018)
- Asset growth – within normal level (6.58% growth in 2018)
- Loan growth – within normal level (18.62% growth in 2018)
- Capital growth – above normal level ($37 million in 2018) We’re considered very well capitalized according to industry standards.
- Average age – below average (UKRFCU average age is 45; CU industry average age is 47) This means we serve more younger members compared to industry. This is a good thing.
We are happy to inform our members that we are a very financial sound (and healthy) credit union. It’s true what they say, “we only get better with age.”
While our mission and aspirations stay constant throughout the years, we have adjusted our appearance. Though we are 67 years old, we do not look ‘old.’ We’ve grown from a small office on Broad Street to a 10,000 square feet state-of-the-art building that houses our Administrative Office & Branch in Feasterville, PA with branches located in Philadelphia and Jenkintown, PA and Trenton, NJ. To tell you more about us in a nutshell, the Philadelphia Federal Credit Union was established with an original membership of 223 and initial deposits of $52,000 in 1952. Since then, we have changed our name to UKRFCU and have grown to over 11,000 members and more than $350 million in assets. We help our members grow, because they help us grow.
As mentioned earlier, although we are at an age where we can go on retirement and perhaps be laying on a beach, take a moment to read what our President, Mary Kolodij, had to say about us in our 2018 Annual Report:
“This year the Ukrainian Selfreliance Federal Credit Union will celebrate its 67th birthday. Is this a milestone? Most believe the 65th or 70th birthday is worthy of celebrating. Let us not forget – the official retirement age in the United States is 67. Four years ago, when I took on the role of President, I thought I would find an organization that was a little tired, a little arthritic and ready for retirement. To my surprise I found an organization with a high level of energy and great enthusiasm. An organization ready for innovation, ready for change and ready for growth. Our members were old and new. Our employees were old and new. Our credit union was old but determined to be new, to be relevant and successful. We have spent the last four years, re-branding, training, expanding and succeeding.” (p. 4)
From better rates to personalized service, we give you greater control over your money and your future. This means higher rates on your savings, lower rates on loans, honest insightful advice, and more educational resources. We want our members to make better informed personal finance decisions. We are deeply committed to our membership and in helping them achieve their financial goals while building lifelong partnerships with us.
Our members have relied on us for the best rates, products, and services. As President Kolodij stated in the Annual Report, “We will continue to pay market-high interest rates on your deposits and provide low rates on all your loan needs. But we won’t stop there. We will continue to grow and evolve.” We are here to serve you and will continue to serve you in the future. Together, we are embracing our present while building our future. We can help turn financial goals into fantastic realities.
Although today we celebrate the credit union’s 67th birthday, it is a celebration for all of us, because we could not have gotten to where we are now without you, our members. We are grateful for your continued support and trust in the credit union. We are going places, and so are our 11,000 members. Happy Birthday to US! Многая Літа!