A local musician had only a handful of gigs in 2020 due to the pandemic. He and his family were in a difficult financial position because the entertainment work was their only income.

When the pandemic hit, however, SCU felt compelled to explore additional ways to show appreciation and support for its employees, members, and community.

"By adding this to our tool belt, it’s just one more way we can treat our members like family."

During a cold winter day in 2020, one of our long-time Edgerton members drove into our parking lot and our staff noticed that he didn’t get out of his vehicle to come inside.

A couple was living paycheck to paycheck with substantial credit card debt. They were tired of getting nowhere making minimum payments and met with us after being told they were “un-bankable” by other banks.

“I called to get a payoff amount on a car loan due to it being totaled from an accident."

“I was ‘unbanked’ due to credit issues and shenanigans from my youth."

"We were so happy with it that we've kept our checking account, even after paying off the loan."

"After my husband’s car was totaled in a horrific accident, we needed to buy a new one ASAP, but our insurance company was dragging their feet on paying us for the totaled car."

"My credit score is up 43 points in just six months, and I am no longer burdened by high-interest credit cards."

When other financial institutions did not want to take the risk on this startup business, we carefully reviewed this member's financial factors and business plan while also trusting in her knowledge, skills, and work ethic.

Gilbert has been a member since 1954. He was fresh out of the military, and while he and his wife had begun renting an apartment, they had nothing else. He tried to get a loan from multiple area banks, but—without credit--they would not help him.

We had a young mother of two who was contemplating filing bankruptcy. Our loan officer gave her a call, and they talked about what she would be including in the bankruptcy.

In 2020, we developed a unique program for all first mortgage holders, giving them the ability to reduce their interest rate and the opportunity to enter into a simple modification agreement that would allow for 9 months of interest only payments.

While many financial institutions say that they want more people to have a better understanding of personal finance, credit unions go the extra mile and actively find ways to educate our communities.

2020 was a struggle for so many people in our communities, including our small business owners.

A couple came into WESTconsin who had just wanted to open a savings and checking account. While opening these accounts, our Member Service Representative had a chance to review their financials.

"The fact that you spent time funding our small $9,000 PPP loan just may have saved my business!"

A member called to check her account balance shortly after we had paid out dividends for our Member Loyalty Cash program.

As many small businesses were being put under hardships regarding pandemic restrictions, we knew we had to step up.