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Donor Advised Funds & Professional Development
In partnership with the National Credit Union Foundation and the California and Nevada Credit Union Leagues, the Cornerstone Foundation hosted CUFinHealth21 via a virtual platform.
186 credit union professionals gathered virtually to explore credit unions’ role in improving people’s financial well-being and health as well as understand the connections between financial well-being, physical health, payments, technology, and advocacy.
Understanding the principles and philosophies that guide credit unions will help define the future of the credit union movement in the marketplace.
28 credit union professionals gathered in 2021 to learn the history and role of credit unions, and how these foundational concepts can be integrated into everyday operations.
Many credit unions seek to give back to their communities through their own private nonprofit foundations, but quickly encounter compliance challenges or lack critical resources and capacity. The Cornerstone Foundation now provides an ideal alternative and solution: a Donor Advised Fund. A Donor Advised Fund provides the benefits of creating a foundation while avoiding many challenges such as initial set-up fees, administrative costs, and ongoing compliance issues, including reporting and excise taxes.
• Annual Giving Campaign
via dues statement
• Disaster Relief
• Payroll Deduction
• Cooking with
Cornerstone Cookbook
• Credit Union/Chapter
Fundraising Events
• Community Investment
Fund
• Individual Giving
• Memorials/Honorariums
• 24th Annual Golf
Tournament
• Concert for a Cause
• Festival of Trees
Certified
Credit Union Financial Counselor (CCUFC) graduates
FINANCIAL CAPABILITY
We raised
because of
your support
Copyright 2022
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This unique program offers a benefit to credit unions as well as to state and national programs. The shared investment return provides interest income for participating credit unions, the Cornerstone Foundation, and the National Credit Union Foundation.
more than $8.2 million in combined CIF investments
• BALANCED Life Reality Fair and
Classroom Simulations
• Community Outreach Programs
• Volunteer Income Tax Assistance
(VITA) Site
• Financial education resources
• Financial wellness and inclusion
research
• Credit Mountain - credit
inclusion pilot
• COVID19 relief-related grants
• Chapter grants
• CDFI assistance
• Planning Sessions
• Audits and assessments
• Website upgrades
• Equipment and technology upgrades
• Hispanic outreach assistance
• Training calendar grants
• Credit Union Development Educator
scholarship (CUDE)
• Small Credit Union Committee
Workshops
• Young Professional Development
• 51 total scholarships
• 26 first-year students
• 11 second-year students
• 13 third-year students
• One full scholarship to the
C2C YP recipient
Your Dollars at Work
Click on each icon for more information
Angie Lutes, CCUFC
Administrative Coordinator
Cornerstone Foundation
Marina GarcIA CCUFC
Financial Capability Director
Cornerstone Foundation
Emily Moreno
CUDE, CCUFC
Grants Manager
Cornerstone Foundation
Staci Zale CUDE, CCUFC
Development
Director
COrnerstone
Foundation
Caroline WillarD CCE, CUDE, CAE
President/CEO
Cornerstone League
Courtney MOran
I-CUDE, CCUFC
Executive Director
Cornerstone Foundation
Jim Phelps, CAE
Chief Advocacy Officer/eVP
CORNERSTONE LEAGUE
Management Team
Roll over each image to learn more.
Current Board of Trustees
Standing Trustees
James Boyd, SCMS, CEO, Abilene Teachers FCU
League Vice Chair
Tammy Passafiume, President/CEO, Diamond Lakes FCU
League Secretary
Advisory Trustees
Bruce Fox, President, Catalyst Corporate FCU
Art Hornell, CEO, The People's FCU, Past CSCUF Chair
Micheal Walls, Account Consultant Manager, CUNA Mutual Group
Ruby Alvarez, AVP, GECU, DE Society Representative
Standing Trustees
League Vice Chair: Tammy Passafiume, President/CEO, Diamond Lakes FCU
League Secretary: Gina Wilson, CEO, Oklahoma Central CU
Trustees
Jason Berridge, CEO, Complex Community FCU
Kanika Boutte', CUDE, CEO, Energy Capital CU
Karyn Davis, President, UP Arkansas FCU
Pam Garrett, VP, Diamond Lakes FCU
Debbie Gatlin, SCMS, CEO, Pine FCU
Crystal Long, CUDE, CEO, GECU
Andy Reed, CUDE, SCMS, CEO, Security First CU
Brent Rempe, I-CUDE, SVP, Allegiance CU
Craig Rohden, CEO, Space City CU
Russell Vest, CEO, Hockley County Employees CU
Becky Whitted, CEO, Northwest Arkansas FCU
Officers
Chair: Dave Willis, President/CEO, Tinker FCU
Vice Chair: Shelli McCoy, CUDE, VP, Tarrant County’s CU
Treasurer: Mary Beth Spuck, I-CUDE, CEO, Resource One CU
Secretary: Stephen Lark, VP, Communication FCU
JR Webster, CCUFC
Member Education & Advocacy Manager True Sky CU
There are a few things to which I attribute my success, and Cornerstone has played a huge role in that. I can trace back the successes in my career to connections I made through the League and Foundation.
Your Foundation.
Your Growth.
Your Goals.
True to our "People Helping People" philosophy, and our mission, "Empowering People to Improve Their Financial Well Being," we are dedicated to helping credit unions make a difference in the lives of the members and communities they serve.
The Cornerstone Foundation receives financial support from credit unions, corporate partners, individuals, Cornerstone League, Cornerstone Resources, and grants from other foundations.
Tap the play button to watch our video
Our Mission
Our Finances
Your Dollars at Work
Management Team
Current Board of Trustees
Our Mission & Vision
CLICK TO JUMP TO SECTION
Contents
The Cornerstone Foundation is the 501(c)(3) public charity of the Cornerstone League. The Foundation promotes financial capability programs for youth and adults, provides access to professional development, and offers financial relief when disasters strike.
GO FULLSCREEN
2021
Impact Report
Empowering people to improve their financial well-being
Our Vision
Serve as the premier resource for building a better financial future
The Cornerstone Foundation’s Donor Advised Fund opportunity enabled us to establish the ACU Cares Foundation, led by a committee of our employees, several years earlier than we had thought possible and at a fraction of the cost. Thanks to Cornerstone’s partnership for helping us to help our community.
Amy Downs
President/CEO
Allegiance Credit Union
$1,245,847
Thanks to a grant from the Foundation to purchase the BALANCED Life Bundle, we can now educate our future borrowers and savers and show our young adults that sometimes Reality is not Fair.
Judy Koetter
CEO
Windthorst Federal Credit Union
The support that the Cornerstone Foundation has provided us has contributed greatly to our outreach efforts. The grant helped us increase membership by over 14% in 2021, as the funding allowed for easy and streamlined membership applications in a remote environment.
Jeff Ivey
President/CEO
River City Federal Credit Union
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working together to strengthen the credit union movement.
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Your Cornerstone Foundation continues to be purposeful with our response and support as we enter a new year. We are tuned into the needs of our credit unions and stay attentive to best support the Cornerstone region in today’s environment. These are unexpected and unpredictable times, but thanks to our combined strength, we are fulfilling the credit union philosophy of “People Helping People.”
556
Financial Capability Network members, representing
cities across three states
112
47
168
Reality Fairs,
reaching
students
12,294
• Phillip Crocker, Resource One CU, Chair
• Brent Rempe, Allegiance CU
• Priscilla Cisneros Olvera, A + FCU
• Josh Franzen, InTouch CU
• Elizabeth Gray, Abilene Teachers FCU
• Tiffany Greenway, TruService Community FCU
• Giovanni Monterroso, Tinker FCU
• Lisa Wyman, Complex Community FCU
• Ruby Alvarez, GECU
Financial Capability Network Advisory Committee
162 Grants Totaling
$377,097
It is with full hearts and sincere gratitude that we thank you for your support. Such support made it possible for the Cornerstone Foundation to properly assess and assist our credit unions during the most challenging and unique year we have faced. Your generosity gives us the financial strength to meet the needs of our credit unions during these difficult times.
Disaster Relief
An important role for the Foundation is supporting credit union communities in times of natural disaster either within its own region, through the World Council of Credit Unions (WOCCU), or in partnership with the National Credit Union Foundation’s CUAid.
Megan Allred ---------------------------------------------- First Abilene FCU
Jason Berridge -------------------------------------------- Complex Community CU
Kanika Boutté --------------------------------------------- Energy Capital CU
Kati Buchanan -------------------------------------------- Cornerstone League
Melissa Burleson ----------------------------------------- Tarrant County's CU
Ruben Cisneros ------------------------------------------- Border FCU
Jennifer Crawford ---------------------------------------- RBFCU
Karyn Davis ------------------------------------------------ UP Arkansas FCU
Kim DeLeon ----------------------------------------------- Cherokee County FCU
Monica Galindo ------------------------------------------- GECU
Marina Garcia --------------------------------------------- Cornerstone Foundation
Pam Garrett ------------------------------------------------ Diamond Lakes FCU
Debbie Gatlin --------------------------------------------- Pine FCU
Elizabeth Gray --------------------------------------------- Abilene Teachers CU
Tiffany Greenway ----------------------------------------- TruService Community FCU
Jennifer Grinder ------------------------------------------ Resource One CU
Melissa Hagenbuch -------------------------------------- Heart O' Texas FCU
Dale Hansard ---------------------------------------------- Caprock FCU
Michelle Herrera ------------------------------------------ RBFCU
Art Hornell ------------------------------------------------- The People's FCU
Washima Huq ---------------------------------------------- Texas Trust CU
Stephen Lark ----------------------------------------------- Communication CU
Crystal Long ------------------------------------------------ GECU
Angie Lutes ------------------------------------------------- Cornerstone Foundation
Kobey Mabry --------------------------------------------- Red River Emp FCU
Tim McCoy ------------------------------------------------ InTouch CU
Sherri McElyea -------------------------------------------- United CU
Tammy McNair -------------------------------------------- Santa Fe FCU
Elise Moore ----------------------------------------------- North East Texas CU
Courtney Moran ----------------------------------------- Cornerstone Foundation
Maribel Moreland ---------------------------------------- EECU
Emily Moreno --------------------------------------------- Cornerstone Foundation
Kimberly Perrine ----------------------------------------- Concho Valley CU
Carol Pickering ------------------------------------------- University FCU
Jenny Prieto ----------------------------------------------- People's Trust FCU
Priscilla Ramirez ----------------------------------------- Generations FCU
Andy Reed ------------------------------------------------- Security First FCU
Brent Rempe ---------------------------------------------- Allegiance CU
Laura Rodriguez ------------------------------------------ Select FCU
Craig Rohden ---------------------------------------------- Space City CU
Jeremy Silva ----------------------------------------------- AMOCO FCU
Michelle Stanley ------------------------------------------ Baylor Health Care System CU
Randy Stolp ----------------------------------------------- My Community CU
Lezlie Veach ---------------------------------------------- My Community CU
Russell Vest ------------------------------------------------ Hockley County School Employees CU
Micheal Walls --------------------------------------------- CUNA Mutual
Becky Whitted ------------------------------------------- Northwest Arkansas FCU
Dave Willis ------------------------------------------------ Tinker FCU
Staci Zale --------------------------------------------------- Cornerstone Foundation
Cornerstone Foundation
Ambassadors
2021 Ambassadors
Empowering credit unions to make a difference in their communities
Initiatives
Credit Union Development
Financial Capability
Disaster Relief
The Cornerstone Foundation understood the need to take care of Cornerstone-region credit unions and their staff during the unprecedented events of 2020 and 2021. Ideated in April of 2020, the Pandemic Response Strategy contained four components that helped our region in a way that had a ripple effect, spreading from credit union staff to members, using immediate and long-term assistance.
The Foundation saw a great need to continue offering the Pandemic Response Strategy in 2021.
Although revised to only include three components and slight modifications to the FiCEP offering, the strategy continued to provide solutions for credit union staff, members, and their communities.
Pandemic Response Strategy
$6,400 in grants distributed to local nonprofits on behalf of ACU Cares
The Cornerstone Foundation and BALANCE partnered to offer three turnkey personal finance solutions to help credit unions provide financial capability in their communities. To prepare our youth for adulthood, credit unions must empower them with the tools, information, and decision-making skills necessary to achieve financial freedom.
BALANCED Life™, comprised of a Reality Fair, a Classroom Simulation, and a Virtual Classroom Simulation, provides three low-cost options with one shared goal of offering practical and powerful ways to help today’s youth learn the importance of managing a household budget for long-term financial success.
Preferred Financial Capability Service Provider Program
The Cornerstone Foundation launched an initiative to attract Financial Capability Service Providers (FCSPs) to the Cornerstone tri-state region. Modeling after Cornerstone Resources’ vetting system, the FCSP initiative will help streamline the selection process and enable credit unions to give back to Cornerstone Foundation through the partnership’s referral agreement.
Meet our Preferred Financial Capability Service Providers:
Certified Credit Union Financial Counselor Toolkit
Certified Credit Union Financial Counselor Toolkit
More than 870 credit union staff currently hold CCUFC designations. The Cornerstone Foundation provided a comprehensive toolkit containing resources to help counselors guide their members throughout the ongoing pandemic. The toolkit covered the following elements, which are all intricately connected – finance, coaching, counseling, the cycle of change, and building relationships.
Financial Counseling Certification Program (FiCEP)
Financial Counseling Certification Program (FiCEP)
The FiCEP program, an enhanced and unique training program for credit union staff that combines the convenience of a self-study program with group hands-on learning, was offered at half the cost to credit union staff in the Cornerstone region.
331 credit union professionals earned their professional Certified Credit Union Financial Counselor (CCUFC) designations in the 2020 no-cost to the credit union offering, while 47 received designations through the 2021 discounted offering. CCUFCs are better equipped to understand, empathize, and serve members during these unpredictable times.
Free one-on-one financial counseling
Free one-on-one financial counseling
The Cornerstone Foundation partnered with BALANCE to offer all 30,152 staff members in the Cornerstone region the opportunity to receive one-on-one coaching with a licensed financial coach/counselor for one year. Participants received free, comprehensive, one-on-one money management, budget, and debt counseling provided by telephone, educational materials and resources, and two free monthly educational webinars.
Components of the Pandemic Response Strategy
28 CIF Investors
Winter Storm
Uri Assistance
Hurricane Laura Assistance
Disaster Assistance
Storms, house fires, tornadoes, and Hurricane Nicholas:
Phase I grants $18,000
Hurricane Laura Assistance
Phase I grants $16,950
Winter Storm Uri Assistance
Phase I $201,600
Phase II $24,150
TOTAL: $260,700
383 Individuals
35 CUs
[Click icons to see more]
Abilene Teachers FCU
Alamo City FCU
Arkansas Superior FCU
C-E FCU
Cherokee County Teachers FCU
Chocolate Bayou Community FCU
Concho Valley CU
Cornerstone League
Corner Stone CU
Corpus Christi City ECU
Electric Cooperatives FCU
GECU
One Source FCU
People’s Trust FCU
Port Arthur Community FCU
Randolph-Brooks FCU
Resource One CU
RGVCU
River City FCU
Rockdale FCU
Shell FCU
Southwest Heritage CU
Starr County Teachers FCU
Tarrant County’s CU
Union Fidelity FCU
University FCU
Ward County CU
West Texas Educators CU
WestTex Community CU
I received an unexpected grant when I lost most of my possessions (including work equipment) to an electrical fire due to a solar battery malfunction. Since I work from home, my computer and all electronic equipment was destroyed. The quick response and action from the Foundation meant more than the grant itself. I’m so thankful and will never forget the tears of happiness I cried in response to your positive impact during a very hard time.
Stephanie Haskell
Lending Solutions Officer
Diamond Lakes Federal Credit Union
Because of a generous scholarship to attend Southwest CUNA Management School, the heavy financial burden on Local 20 IBEW Federal Credit Union has been eased and we are so thankful. I will not take this gift for granted. Please know that I will put my best efforts into growing, learning, and succeeding during my time at SCMS.
Brandi Boney
Loan Officer & General Ledger Specialist Local 20 IBEW Federal Credit Union
