One Way 'We Share' - A Coastal Member Assistance Program Success Story
Coastal Federal Credit Union’s mission statement is simply this –
“To help our members with a lifetime of financial solutions one experience at a time.”
A couple of years ago, Coastal re-branded ourselves under the ‘We Share’ philosophy. Being a cooperative, we truly do share in many ways, most notably – monthly Go Green checking dividends, low rates for loans, the Coastal Member Giveback program, financial education initiatives, grants through Coastal Federal Credit Union Foundation, and our Member Assistance Program (MAP) – to name a few.
The Coastal Member Assistance Program itself was designed to help our members who are facing a financial hardship, whether short or long term, stay on track with their loan payments. MAP has the ability to allow a member to skip loan payments, reduce payments for a short period of time or permanently reduce their payment depending on what their situation necessitates.
Most of the time a member is referred to MAP through Collections (primarily); they can also be referred by our Coastal branch staff as well. A member must submit a complete MAP packet in order for the process to begin. Once the complete packet is received, their file is then reviewed by a MAP Loan Officer who also interviews the member to better understand their situation and determine what course of action will be beneficial, not only to the member but Coastal as well.
Recently, our Supervisor of the Member Assistance Program, Trina Jones, received this wonderful letter from an appreciative member –
My family and I wanted to express our enormous appreciation for your assistance with our loan refinance. We have always enjoyed our relationship with Coastal Federal Credit Union. For the many years when times were normal for our family we often commented on how much better we liked Coastal than the banks we previously used.
When the circumstances emerged that changed life as we knew it, the only thing we had left from our old lives was our home. For many people a house is an investment, a status symbol, a transitory location, a stepping stone, collateral for other loans, and a host of other things.
While it can be all t hose things, for us, our home is a place where we’ve made uncountable memories together and we desperately wanted to keep it and stay together as a family. I don’t know what we would have done if we’d lost our home. As our financial situation slowing improved, we were afraid that we’d just run out of time before we could save it.
Ms. Jones, I’d like to thank you and your colleagues at Coastal Federal Credit Union for your kindness and for investing in us as a family and allowing us to refinance our home. It has meant so much more than we can even express in words. The day we moved into the home we built is one of the happiest days of our lives.
Given the many memories since, the day that Coastal allowed us to retain that home was an even more joyous day for us, filled with hugs and tears. We are a good family that ran into some very tough breaks. You and Coastal extended a hand that allowed us to help us help ourselves, and we will never forget your kindness. Thank you so much for what you’ve done for us. We can only pay it forward, and we will.
With great appreciation,
A Coastal Member
To maintain the privacy of this satisfied member, we won’t go into the specifics of their circumstances. We do, however, want to thank them for allowing us to share their letter of appreciation.
As cliché as this sounds, life really isn’t always all that easy. Sometimes, we run into hardships we just didn’t expect, and sometimes, those hardships take a significant toll on our finances. At Coastal, we understand that and through our Member Assistance Program, we will do everything we can to assist those members experiencing some of the worst financial circumstances they have encountered. It’s just another way that We Share.