Ohio State helps establish credit union in the University District area

COLUMBUS – The Ohio State University Extension has teamed up with community partners and residents to establish a credit union that will serve people in the University District and its surrounding areas.

The credit union will help low- to moderate-income individuals improve the quality of their lives by becoming educated about the importance of money management and increasing their financial resources.

Formerly known as the Colofab Federal Credit Union, the non-profit institution is located at 1427 N. Grant Ave. It is open to anyone who lives, works, worships or attends school in the area, and will be called, appropriately, “Your Neighborhood Federal Credit Union.”

For more than 50 years, the credit union served workers at the Columbus Coated Fabrics Factory, said Wanda Owens, manager of the credit union. After the factory closed, representatives of the credit union decided that it could still serve a purpose.

“Credit unions try to teach people to save a little each payday for the things they want or to have money for an emergency,” Owens said. “We get to know our members and take a personal interest in their welfare.”

Sue Helmreich, director of outreach programs for the Ohio Credit Union League, said helping people is the goal of credit unions.

“Credit unions were founded for working class people to help them gain a higher level of independence,” Helmreich said. “We have a mission of helping people help themselves.”

Membership costs only $1, with a minimum of $5 needed to open an account. The credit union’s hours of operation are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the first Saturday of the month.

Benefits for members include direct deposit, checking accounts, savings accounts, Christmas Club accounts, credit cards, loans, check cashing and ATM cards. In addition, the credit union can encourage people to become more financially responsible, said Susan Colbert, University District Agent for OSU Extension. The University District Extension office already works with people in the area to offer financial literacy classes which focus on banking basics, savings, checking and using credit cards responsibly.

Although Ohio State Extension was instrumental in getting the credit union to open its membership to others in the area, the university is not involved with any day-to-day operations. Colbert said this is just one of the projects that the University District Extension office is involved in to help improve the quality of life in the area.

“As the neighborhood improves, it will have a positive impact on the neighborhood and surrounding community,” Colbert said.

Catherine Girves, chair of the Ohio State Extension University District Advisory Committee and director of the University Community Enrichment Association, said credit unions help people avoid “check-cashing spirals” by allowing them to cash their checks for a smaller service fee rather than using services that charge excessive fees.

For more information, contact “Your Neighborhood Federal Credit Union” at (614) 299-9927.