Coffee with Chuck Ep.27: Reflecting back on 2019

Dear Members,

I hope this message finds you well. It’s hard to believe that 2019 is nearly finished.  I’m already looking forward to 2020, but also being mindful to take the time to think back on the year that’s passed.  Like you, I’m eager to spend some quality time with friends and family during the holidays, and am encouraging our members and employees to do the same.

CardNav Saves the Day

You’ve heard us talk about the various resources that are available to you to help combat fraud. In our latest video, Joe shares a personal story about how the CardNav app alerted him that his debit card had been compromised, and how the card controls settings prevented the bad guys from getting any money.

It’s a great real-world example of how our members can benefit from the tools that we provide. I hope you’ll take a few minutes to watch.

A Look Back at 2019

As another year draws to a close, I’d like to reflect on some of the accomplishments of this past year:

It was a busy year for new locations. We opened our new Hope Valley branch in Durham, and started construction on the Brier Creek branch that will open in the spring.  We also added a new micro-branch concept by installing a dual function teller machine at the new Weaver Street Market in downtown Raleigh.  Looking ahead to the future, we’re actively working to secure properties for the branches we’ll add over the next few years, and are planning a new headquarters building.

Early in the year, more than 63,000 members shared in a $3.3 million Loyalty Bonus, our biggest ever. It was part of an overall $32.4 M Member Giveback, the value that we’re able to quantify we return to members through various means. 

On the business side, we continued to see strong loan and deposit growth. Additionally, our Wealth Management department surpassed $500 million in assets under management, and our mortgage team set new records for loan volume. 

We also implemented a number of new systems to provide member convenience. One was Visa Account Updater, which enables participating merchants to automatically update your on-file cards when we issue you a new one. This helps reduce the hassle of having to manually update your information, and possibly having services cut off when your card expires. 

We had a great year with events.  Our foundation’s 4^th annual Power of Sharing was another big success, with more than $1.5 million donated from our foundation and the event’s other partners to several area non-profits. This year, UNC-TV even ran a two-hour special highlighting the event.

Our Coastal Family Day in October was the biggest yet, and among the various member perks that we’ve been able to leverage out of our community venue sponsorships. On that note, I’m excited to share that we’ve agreed to extend our naming rights of Coastal Credit Union Music Park by another 8 years. It’s been a great relationship for us and our members.

Our efforts were recognized with several awards. Most notably, we collected four best workplace awards, plus a healthiest employer award.  Our community involvement helped earn a Corporate Philanthropy Award from the Triangle Business Journal (TBJ).  On the individual side, our board chair Joan Nelson was inducted into the African American Credit Union Coalition Hall of Fame, and our Chief Strategy & Talent Officer Willard Ross earned a C-Suite Award from the TBJ. Coffee with Chuck even won an award from the Raleigh Public Relations Society!

I’m confident that we’ll continue our winning ways into 2020 and beyond. We have a lot in store for the new year, and promise to do even more to help our members bank better to live better.

Until then, I wish each of you safe and happy holidays.

Sincerely,

Chuck Purvis
President & CEO

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Our featured coffee is Redemption from Oak City Coffee Roasters in Raleigh.