GECU President Emerita Inducted into the Cooperative Hall of Fame

EL PASO, Texas - May 29, 2014 - PRLog -- GECU President Emerita, Harriet May, was recently inducted into the Cooperative Hall of Fame by the U.S. cooperative community. She received the recognition on May 7, 2014 at the National Press Club in Washington D.C.

The Cooperative Hall of Fame is the U.S. Cooperative Community’s highest honor. The inductees are those who have made genuinely heroic contributions in support of the cooperative form of enterprise.

May was one of four selected inductees this year. She was selected based on being a standout cooperative leader at the state, national, and international levels. Her leadership in providing opportunities for affordable housing in her community led to the foundation of Affordable Housing Credit Union Service Organization (CUSO). CUSO has resulted in $8 million in down payment assistance for first-time home buyers and $23 million in total mortgage loans. Her leadership in financial literacy has also assisted in implementing a new affordable remittance services system and she has also valiantly defended the credit union movement throughout her career on a regional and national level.

Harriet May, GECU President Emerita, stated, “I’m honored to receive this recognition by the U.S. Cooperative Community. I’ve dedicated much of my life to bettering our communities through financial literacy. Education is the key to a successful financial future and I hope to continue to provide the right tools to help open that door to all.”

May retired in 2012 and serves as the GECU President Emerita while continuing to receive the highest of honors that include the Herb Wagner Memorial Award for Individual Achievement and the World Council of Credit Union Distinguished Service Award.

Qualities of a Cooperative hero include conviction, determination, dedication, innovation, leadership, and more. Inductees are nominated and selected on an annual basis. For more information on the Cooperative Hall of Fame, please visit: http://www.heroes.coop.

GECU is locally-owned by its more than 315,000 members.  GECU has locations throughout El Paso, Socorro and Horizon City and offers online banking, Mobile Apps and over 32,000 free ATMs as part of its nationwide surcharge-free ATM Co-op network.  GECU hosts free financial education seminars throughout the year to promote financial literacy in our community. GECU, with more than $2 billion in assets and nearly 700 employees, is federally insured by NCUA.   Visit GECU’s website at http://www.mygecu.org for more information on membership eligibility, branch and ATM locations and online banking.