During the Great Depression, news headlines told of bank runs and 22 percent unemployment across the nation. It was a time when many couldn't get credit, or if they could find a loan it might be at a whopping 1000% interest rate. It was during that time, in 1936, 10 Los Angeles City Water and Power employees pooled their money and decided to form a new kind of bank, a credit union, to help out fellow employees.
Originally named the Los Angeles Water and Power Employees' Credit Union, the credit union's first office, located in one room of the Broadway Building in downtown Los Angeles, held one table and one typewriter.
It was a modest beginning for a credit union that would grow to become more than $450 million in assets, offer five full-service branches, and serve 42,000 members.
Just a few weeks ago, WPCCU President and CEO Carl Stewart was sharing the story of the early years at one of his annual fireside chats with staff, when he realized that many of the early stories, pictures and memorabilia will be lost if the credit union doesn't capture them.
"We want to remember everything we can about our history," Stewart said. "In the 1930s, a credit union was a new idea, and an important employee benefit. For many of our department employees, it made the difference between repairing a roof or getting needed medical attention, or going without."
When Water and Power Community Credit Union was organized in March 1936, it was created as a member-owned financial cooperative. The credit union allowed Water and Power employees to pool their assets and make loans to one another, earning dividends on savings. The organization was founded just two years after President Franklin Delano Roosevelt signed into law the Federal Credit Union Act in 1934. Before then, 32 states had already passed credit union legislation to help small borrowers.
The concept worked. Today, credit unions continue to operate under the same original philosophy of "not for profit, not for charity, but for service."
Water and Power Community Credit Union is celebrating its 75th anniversary March 2011 through March 2012 and asking for you to share any WPCCU memorabilia they may have from its 75 year history. Anyone interested may go to http://www.wpcu.org/75thHistory for more information on the archiving efforts. WPCCU will be collecting stories, pictures and documents from its early days throughout 2011 at any of the five branches located in Westchester, Granada Hills/Northridge, Sun Valley, and two offices in downtown Los Angeles. If you have memorabilia or stories to share, please call 1-800-300-9728 and ask for the Marketing memorabilia project.
About Water and Power Community Credit Union
Founded in 1936, Water and Power Community Credit Union is a full-service financial cooperative celebrating 75 years of service. The credit union has more than 42,000 members, and holds more than $458 million in assets. Under its California State Charter, WPCCU members come from the employee and retiree associations of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, more than 60 other sponsor organizations, and others who live, work, attend college, or worship in the greater Los Angeles area. For more information, visit www.wpcu.org. This credit union is federally insured by the National Credit Union Administration.
Contacts:
Water and Power Community Credit Union
Linda Heidtke, 213-580-1625
linda.heidtke@wpcu.org