
History
Our Family Social
Credit Union began on June 26, 1950.
The credit union currently has 476 active members and has had 671
members over its lifetime.
Every credit union lists, in its application for a charter, its
field of membership, which is a listing of the criteria for membership
in that credit union. The
field of membership for OFSCU includes all descendants of Lucy and Manley
Williams and all those who marry any descendants. So, to this day, every one of the 671
members of OFSCU is a cousin, either born into the family or married into
the family. The credit union was
originally formed with the intent to pool money to assist family members
in times of financial need.
Approximately 30 cousins living in Omaha in June of 1950 joined
together to make their first share deposits after receiving their official
charter from the state of Nebraska.
As of June 30, 2008, the total shares in of all members in OFSCU
are $400,281.20. These shares
have served the goals of our founding members well, as we have used that
money to grant over 2000 loans to cousins in our 58 years of
existence. We are well past
the $2,000,000.00 mark in total money loaned out. As of the closing of our books on
June 30, 2008, we had total assets of $448,361.60, with the exciting goal
of one-half million dollars now clearly in sight. Since many parents
enroll their children in the credit union soon after birth, we have a
young membership overall, with roughly one-third of our members being
under the age of sixteen. As
our shares, loan, and assets totals would indicate, we are a fairly small
operation in the big picture of credit unions. However, we have provided a very
large and rewarding service to our members over the years, as any of them
would attest. LOCATION
The home office of
OFSCU has always been in the Omaha area, as this is where the credit union
began and where more members live than in any other single metropolitan
area. However, the family has
spread out across the nation, and we now have cousin members in more than
twenty states. As all elected
officials of the credit union are cousins, OFSCU truly believes in keeping
this credit union business all in the family. Rather than providing
a list here of all the states in which our cousins currently live, we
challenge you to check out our OFSCU Trivia section to see how many states
you can name!!! GOVERNANCE
Our Family Social
Credit Union is truly controlled by its shareholders. The credit unions Annual Meeting,
to which all members are invited, is held in Omaha in even-numbered
years. In odd-numbered years,
it is held in the Williams Family Reunion city, wherever that might be, on
the first night of the Reunion.
At these Annual Meetings, the members elect fellow members to the
Board of Directors and to the Credit Committee. There are seven members on the Board of Directors, each elected to three-year terms on a staggered basis. This staggered-term format is designed to provide for both continuity and experience on the Board at all times. The Board then meets immediately after the Annual Meeting adjourns to elect its own officers, including a President, Vice-President, Secretary, Communications Secretary, and Treasurer/Manager. If an independent Manager is hired who is not an elected Board member, then the Manager and Treasurer work closely together to conduct the daily operations of the credit union. The Board meets once every month, with additional special meetings called as needed. The Credit Committee
consists of three members also elected to three-year, staggered terms,
with one elected at each Annual Meeting. One member is then elected by that
committee to serve as the Chair for the year. The Credit Committees primary
function is to consider all loan applications and vote to approve or to
disapprove these applications based on a set of established criteria. These members are invited to
attend all monthly Board meetings, and, to their credit, often
do. The Supervisory
Committee is appointed by the Board each year following the Annual
Meeting. The committee is
made up of three or more volunteers who serve a one-year term and meet
quarterly to conduct our internal Supervisory Audits of all our
books. In addition to these
four internal audits, the credit union also undergoes a yearly external
examination by the Banking Department of the State of Nebraska, and the
credit union augments its internal audits by employing the services of an
outside accounting firm once each year. These procedures provide ample
checks and balances to assure members of the smooth and efficient
operations of the credit
union. |
Our Family Social Credit Union