'It Belongs to Me' is ICU Day/Co-op Week theme

MADISON, Wis. (5/28/08)--This year's International Credit Union (ICU) Day and Co-op Week will be themed, "ICU Day is scheduled for Oct. 16. Co-op Week will be Oct. 12-18.

This is the first year that Canadian cooperatives have aligned their Co-op Week theme with the international theme used by the World Council of Credit Unions and its members.

"It Belongs to Me" was picked by a multi-national committee of U.S. and Canadian credit union officials. To promote worldwide involvement, the committee invited all of its member organizations to submit suggestions for the 2008 theme. Laquita Normore, marketing and communications manager for Eagle River CU, L'Anse au Loup, Newfoundland, submitted the theme.

"'It Belongs to Me' represents ownership, but also suggests a sense of loyalty and personal pride," Normore said.

"At credit unions, every customer is both a member and owner," said Dan Mica, president/CEO of the Credit Union National Association. "This year's theme celebrates the economic democracy and equal ownership of each credit union member regardless of how much money that member may have in savings."

"Credit union principles must be preserved for the sake of these members and the continuing strength of the credit union movement worldwide, a recognition our joint events are designed to celebrate," said Pete Crear, WOCCU president/CEO.

Co-Op Week has been celebrated in Canada since 1958. ICU Day has been celebrated annually on the third Thursday of October since 1948. Co-op Week in Canada became a national event in 1982 with the encouragement of the Cooperative Union of Canada.

The events provide an opportunity to honor those who have made contributions to the cooperative movement, to recognize the board and staff members working on behalf of credit unions and cooperatives, and to express appreciation to members of credit unions and cooperatives at home and abroad.

Promotional materials and products for ICU Day and Co-op Week will be available online in the coming months. October also is National Cooperative Month. For more information, use the link.It Belongs to Me."

courtesy of cuna.org