At the 54th annual meeting of the New Hampshire Credit Union League (NHCUL) held at the Mt. Washington Resort on June 7, 2008, Michael L’Ecuyer was re-elected by NHCUL’s nominating committee to serve a third term and voted by the Board to serve as Vice-Chairman.  During his two terms on the NHCUL Board, L’Ecuyer served as Secretary/Treasurer for two of the six years he has served.

“The NHCUL has a long history of supporting credit unions and their members.  Credit unions have a demonstrated track record of success in helping people meet their financial goals and fulfill dreams.  I look forward to supporting New Hampshire credit unions as they serve their members and communities in these challenging times,” said L’Ecuyer.

For the past seven years, L’Ecuyer has been affiliated with Manchester-based Bellwether Community Credit Union (BCCU) as President/CEO.  During his tenure as President/CEO, institutional assets at BCCU have grown from $195 million to $327 million. 

New Hampshire credit unions, which hold some $4.68 billion in assets, have seen growth in assets, deposits, loans and membership according to data compiled from year end reports released recently by the National Credit Union Administration.

Over the year the 23 credit unions located in the Granite State had aggregate growth in assets of 10.7% rising to $4.68 billion from $4.22 billion at the first of the year.  This figure exceeds the national growth rate of 8.9%. 

With more than 452,000 members and growing, New Hampshire credit union membership grew by 6.1% during 2008.  “Clearly the people of New Hampshire see that credit unions are financially strong, well capitalized and working hard to meet their needs said New Hampshire Credit Union League president Daniel F. Egan, Jr. 

Savings in New Hampshire credit unions are also up increasing by 13.2% since the beginning of the year.  Nationally savings grew by more than 10%. “Credit unions traditionally offer more competitive savings rates than banks and consumer can save significantly by using the services of their local credit union,” added Egan. 

Despite the fact that consumer has been hearing a great deal about the credit crunch Granite State credit unions are ready to meet their borrowing needs.  Loans outstanding at New Hampshire credit unions grew by 9.7% to $3.13 billion dollars during 2009.  Loan growth a credit unions in the Granite State outpaced the national rate which was 1.2%.  According to Egan, New Hampshire credit unions have seen a growth in both loan applications and allocations.  “New Hampshire’s credit unions take pride in offering fairly priced home, auto and personal loans to people who are part of our credit union community,” said Egan. 

Credit Unions in New Hampshire are fully insured by the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), which provides exactly the same deposit insurance coverage banks received from the FDIC.  Member accounts are insured up to $250,000. 

The CU 4 Reality Education Program, sponsored by local credit unions, has given students at middle schools in the United States and US Armed Forces installations in Germany a chance to learn about managing finances and how to calculate earnings and expenses. CU 4 Reality is a program cooperatively developed across a number of credit unions and is now in its fourth year. The partnership between the CU 4 Reality program and credit unions has benefitted approximately 9,000 students worldwide.

The program uses an in-class curriculum during the school year to teach participants important skills that will equip them to handle money responsibly, set and adhere to budgets, and avoid the pitfalls of debt.  The program culminates with a simulated real-world CU 4 Reality Fair, where the student participants create a spending plan based on a salary, and balance needs versus wants, to make sure they are living within their means.

To complete their course of studies, the students attend a fair where they speak with representatives of auto dealership, cable TV, clothing, food and utility representatives and others to help them understand the many expenses they will face in adulthood. 

According to recent reports, nearly a third of all high school seniors use at least one credit card or use ATM cards. In addition, more than three-quarters of seniors have a savings or checking account.  However, just 20% of high school seniors graduate with any formal instruction in personal finance.

The CU 4 Reality curriculum creates a fun and interactive learning environment where students can practice specific financial management skills and learn early on the consequences of debt when it comes to financial matters.

Developed by the Financial Literacy Education Committee of Americas Credit Union Museum, in conjunction with the New Hampshire Credit Union League, the CU 4 Reality Program, which is in its fourth successful year, gives students the opportunity to participate in a hands-on event that propels them through the personal financial management process, including career selection, budgeting for housing, transportation, luxuries, and more.

At the CU 4 Reality Fair, each student receives a file detailing the personal information specific to their career choice. It includes their monthly gross income and students calculate their take-home pay and create a monthly spending plan as they progress through booths representing various categories of expenses they can expect to incur. Students make decisions about what they would spend on various items such as food, clothing, housing, transportation, insurance, home furnishings, savings, investments, entertainment and credit.

Americas Credit Union Museum promotes the heritage of the credit union movement through the preservation of credit union industry history.  Additional information about CU 4 Reality program and the museum can be found at www.acumuseum.org and www.cu4reality.org.

The 23 credit unions headquartered in New Hampshire have seen growth in assets, deposits, loans and membership according to data compiled from year end reports released recently by the National Credit Union Administration.

Over the year these credit unions had aggregate growth in assets of 11.74% growing to $4.22 billion from $3.8 billion at the first of the year.  This figure exceeds the national growth rate of 7%. 

Savings in New Hampshire credit unions are up by 9.13% since the beginning of the year.  Nationally savings grew by almost 7%.

Some of that money may have been deposited by new credit union members.  The data show that New Hampshire credit unions have added approximately 23,000 new members in 2009 which represents a 5.7% increase.

Despite the fact that consumer has been hearing a great deal about the credit crunch Granite State credit unions are ready to meet their borrowing needs.  Loans outstanding at New Hampshire credit unions have grown by 7.5% or $330 million dollars since the beginning of the year.  Loans were up nationwide by 6.7%