Neighbors FCU Contributed $406,289 in Community Impact in 2018
In 2018, Neighbors Federal Credit Union contributed an estimated value of $406,289 to charitable causes supporting the Greater Baton Rouge community in the form of cash donations, sponsorships, employee community service hours and goods donated by NFCU members and employees.
The contributions break down into the following areas of need:
| Education | $ 141,928 |
| Misc. Community Empowerment | $ 114,897 |
| Financial Literacy | $ 75,355 |
| Children’s Services | $ 38,050 |
| Health Wellness | $ 20,492 |
| Veterans and Law Enforcement | $ 12,012 |
| Animal Welfare | $ 3,555 |
At Neighbors FCU, we hold community involvement as one of our core values and believe it is a credit union’s role to improve and empower the communities we serve.
Our credit union started out as Baton Rouge Teachers FCU, so investing in education is one of our founding principles and continues to be a priority. Neighbors estimates contributing a total value of $141,928 toward education.
Neighbors provides most of our support for education through the Mascot Initiative. The Mascot Initiative is comprised of three major components: the Neighbors Way Tuition Assistance Award scholarship program, the Mascot Checking program and the Financial Literacy Program.
In 2018 we launched our new scholarship program, the Neighbors Way Tuition Assistance Award. We were thrilled to award $15,000 to graduating students at our Mascot Schools. And, we cannot wait to double that in 2019!
In addition, we provide money back to the schools through our Mascot Checking program. Each school receives cash back for every debit card swipe from a Mascot Checking account. In 2018, schools earned $40,985 through this program!
The final element of the Mascot Initiative is providing financial literacy education to the school. Our team will visit with schools and host workshops for students to learn about money management. We also built two new financial literacy centers at Walker High School and Denham Springs High School in 2018. At these facilities, we have provided plenty of resources to educate students on financial services. These facilities cost roughly $60,000 to build and renovate in 2018.
“One measurement of success is to evaluate the positive impact that we’ve made on our community as well as in the lives of our members,” Neighbors President and CEO Steve Webb said.
“As we look back upon 2018, I am proud of the work done by our organization and our team as we invest time, talent and donations to ensure the communities that we serve are better places because Neighbors FCU was present.”
The contributions were made in the following forms:
| Cash Contributions and Purchases | $ 250,009 |
| Community Service Hours | $ 143,980 |
| Goods Donated | $ 12,300 |
A volunteer hour is valued at $24.69 according to the Independent Sector, which was used to determine the monetary value of NFCU’s community service work.
This included Neighbors Day where every NFCU employee took Columbus Day off to volunteer throughout the community! With more than 1,000 hours of community service throughout the Greater Baton Rouge area, the impact from Neighbors Day is valued at $26,813.
“Neighbors Federal Credit Union is really showing us what it means to co-create a positive community,” Baton Rouge Mayor President Sharon Weston Broome said during her Neighbors Day proclamation.
The total value of community service hours includes the volunteer value of two full-time employees who work exclusively in community involvement.
These contributions were orchestrated in conjunction with the Neighbors Capital Area Foundation.
“While 2018 was an exciting year for us, we’re dedicated to making 2019 even bigger and better,” Neighbors Community Outreach Coordinator Kacie Bizot said. “Our employees have a great desire to give back to the communities we serve.”
“We hope to continue to expand the opportunities that are provided to them and continue to connect with those in need throughout Baton Rouge and the surrounding areas.”