Drogheda Credit Union celebrates 50th anniversary
1967 - How it all began
IN 1967, quite a few people were aware of the theory of Credit Union though not too many were convinced that it would work in practice. Enthusiasm and idealism were in short supply. Rarely has any prophecy proved more wrong.
Drogheda was painfully emerging from the terrible apathy of the 50’s and early 60’s and there was little idea or desire for self-help and co-operation. There was a great deal of poverty, much of it swept under the carpet. Fr James Crowley formed a study group comprising of men and women who came together in the Parochial Centre on Monday 10th July 1967 to discuss the formation of a Credit Union in Drogheda.
The inaugural meeting held in November 1967 was attended by 800 local people. Mayor, Colr. Pat Carr Snr congratulated Father Crowley and his energetic committee on coming together to establish something which would benefit all the people of Drogheda. He felt that the setting up of a Credit Union in Drogheda would create a fraternal and community spirit amongst the people and would bring thrift to them all.
The first Board of Directors, Credit Committee & Supervisory Committee were duly setup as follows:
President: Fr James Crowley (RIP), Treasurer: Mr Cathal Barr (RIP), Secretary: Miss Terry Doran.
Directors: Mr Pat Leech, Mr Christy Quigley (RIP) Mr Aidan Cullen, Mr Michael Donnelly, Mr Roger Greene, Mrs Moira Corcoran (RIP), Mr Donal Casey, Mr Paddy Gerrard (RIP)
Supervisory Committee: Miss Dorothy Kelly (RIP), Mr Gerry Kiernan, Mr Thomas Matthews (RIP)
Credit Committee: Mr Willie Boyle (RIP), Mr Tom Campbell (RIP), Mr Jimmy Matthews (RIP), Mr Pat Carr (RIP), Mr Paddy Gerrard (RIP)
“To my mind, the most wonderful achievement of Drogheda Credit Union has been the magnificent fidelity and totally unselfish giving by so many of its administrators, many of whom have been there from the very beginning” Fr James Crowley.
50 years serving the community
FIFTY years on, Drogheda Credit Union continues to provide financial strength to its members. Our branch network now includes East Meath Credit Union (Bettystown) and St Loman’s Credit Union in Trim. The Credit Union ethos also continues to play an important role in the communities with our community fund helping to support projects promoting social, educational and integration to the wider communities. With the amalgamation of East Meath Credit Union and St Loman’s Credit Union, growth of our Credit Union has continued and we now serve almost 55,000 members and employ over 50 staff.
Our services also continue to develop with the introduction of modern services such as online banking and our mobile app which is ready to launch. 2018 will see the introduction of our current account and debit card facility and we will continue to explore options such as document uploading and digital signature facilities to further enhance and improve loan application procedures for our members.
While we are pleased with all the economic developments it is important to remember what makes Drogheda Credit Union different. It is our members- they are the owners, it is their Credit Union. Our aim is to provide them with the best service and value that we can. We feel that each and every member should be able to approach their Credit Union for all their financial needs, secure in the knowledge that they will get a friendly, understanding hearing, combined with a professional service.
DROGHEDA Credit Union’s 50th AGM was held on Monday 11th December 2017 and we had a €5,000 cash draw on the night, 30 cash prizes to celebrate our 50th anniversary.
Christmas Double Car Draw
In celebration of our 50th we held a DOUBLE car draw in our Drogheda branch on Friday 15th December.
WINNERS WERE:
Car 1 Winner – Rachel O’Dowd, Trim Branch Car 2 Winner – Fionnuala Cullen, Drogheda Branch €2,500 Winner – Marie Brennan, Bettystown Branch €2500Winner– Hazel Cunningham, Drogheda Branch €2,000 Winner – David Moore, Trim Branch €2,000 Winner – Bridget Bird, Drogheda Branch €1,500 Winner – Emer Collins, Drogheda Branch €1,500 Winner – Annette Dowling, Trim Branch €1,500 Winner – Mary Watters, Drogheda Branch €1,500 Winner – Ugar Hanbay, Drogheda Branch €1,000Winner– Bernadette Connor, Drogheda Branch €1,000 Winner – Mary Kennedy, Drogheda Branch.
Happy 50th birthday from us to you
Members who share their 50th birthday with us in 2017 have been entered into a draw and next week 50 lucky winners will win €50 vouchers for the Boyne Pantry Restaurant in Drogheda.