Youngsters throughout Northern Virginia joined Northwest Federal Credit Union to celebrate National Credit Union Youth Week, an event designed to help area youth learn about money and the value of saving. During the event, Northwest Federal youth members made nearly 1,300 deposits, totaling $156,835. The event also resulted in the opening of 51 new youth accounts.
“We’re here to guide our members – regardless of age – down the path of financial success. It’s never too young to start,” said Chris McDonald, President/CEO of Northwest Federal. “With youth, it might just be helping to set goals and opening savings accounts, but we are building a financial foundation that can last a lifetime.”
During the week, Northwest Federal hosted a variety of special activities. The Credit Union’s youth members received a special t-shirt when they made deposits or opened a new account, and each branch had a “guess and win penny jar” contest. Young members could guess the amount of pennies in the jar and win its contents, which included a hidden $50 bill.
In addition to events sponsored by Northwest Federal, the Credit Union National Association (CUNA) and GreenPath Debt Solutions sponsored The National Youth Saving Challenge, which distributed $100 prizes to members nominated from 25 participating credit unions. Nationwide, more than $20.5 million was deposited by 94,466 youth members, with 8,844 of them opening new accounts, during this year’s week-long event. Northwest Federal member Ryan Mattus was one of the lucky winners. Ryan, who is three years old, and his younger brother Andy visited the Credit Union with their mother, Heather Mattus.
“Ryan loves to tell me when his piggy bank is full and he needs to take his money into NWFCU,” said Heather, who opened Ryan’s account when he was just a few months old. “We use the coin sorter and then deposit the money into his account. And now that we’re reading the book, Westie's Triple Decker Decision [written by Northwest Federal staff and provided to its youth members], we are talking about savings, spending and sharing as well. The boys are only 3 and 2 years old, but hopefully starting them young will teach them good money habits for when they are older.”
To learn more about Northwest Federal, visit a local branch or www.nwfcu.org.