ANN ARBOR, Mich. (January 28, 2020) – Twenty local students will have the opportunity to take advantage of a six-week summer program designed to prepare teens for their potential career goals thanks to a recent donation of $5,000 to the Community Action Network (CAN) from the University of Michigan Credit Union (UMCU). This gift was made possible with the help of 71 local businesses during UMCU’s “Shop Local Give Local” campaign.
Throughout November and December, UMCU matched and donated one percent of the total sales to CAN when members made purchases with their UMCU Visa credit cards at participating stores, restaurants cafes, and bakeries. As a philanthropic credit union dedicated to the local community, the purpose of this campaign was to help make a positive difference for an impactful charitable organization while strengthening the relationship between UMCU members and locally-owned businesses in the Ann Arbor, Ypsilanti, Saline, Flint and Dearborn communities.
According to CAN, the donation will go towards supporting their Youthworks Program which helps under-resourced teens develop soft skills such as resume building and interviewing, and employability skills including professionalism, accountability and customer service that are essential for the workplace. The program also provides the opportunity to explore a few different career paths, networking, and beginning to chart a path towards personal goals. In addition, each teen is paid a stipend for their time in the program as a way to begin their financial literacy journey.
“Community Action Network community centers rely on local support in order to offer our education, housing stabilization, and community-building programs to each family in need at no cost to them. While $5,000 will go a long way to help us run our long-standing teen work readiness program, the exposure and outreach that ‘Shop Local Give Local’ offered is invaluable and helps us engage the community in our mission to create brighter futures for all. We are grateful for UMCU’s support and look forward to a strong and continued partnership,” said Derrick Miller, Executive Director, Community Action Network.
Local businesses that helped make this donation possible include Spun, Found Gallery, 16 Hands, Collected Works, Apples & Oranges, Ann Arbor Running Company, Mudpuddles Toys & Books, Parrish Framing, Bivouac, Underground Sounds, Le Bon Macaron, Underground Printing, The Bo Store, Vault of Midnight, Rock Paper Scissors, Downtown Home & Garden, University Flower Shop, RoosRoast, Imagine Three Beauty Studio, Cherry Republic, Roeda Studio, The M Den, Thistle & Bess, Oz’s Music, Lewis Jewelers, The Local Bike Shop – Ann Arbor, The Lunch Room Diner & Canteen, The Lunch Room Bakery & Café, Detroit Street Filling Station, Catching Fireflies, Jerusalem Garden, Fourth Avenue Birkenstock, Ten Thousand Villages, The Grotto Watering Hole, Sweetwaters Coffee & Tea, Afternoon Delight Café, Sottini’s Sub Shop, The Earle, Abracadabra Jewelry & Gem Gallery, Priceless Preservation, Real Irish, Go! Ice Cream, Ypsilanti Running Company, Unicorn Feed & Supply, The Rocket Shop, Maiz Mexican Cantina, Cream & Crumb, Ollie Food + Spirits, Brick and Mortar Modern General Store, The Eyrie, McPherson Local, Pineapple House, Cheese Shop of Saline, The Cobblestone Rose, Carrigan Café, Enchanted Oven, Complete Runner, Latina Restaurant & Pizzeria, Rocky’s Great Outdoors, Fireside Coffee Co., Café Rhema, SHIFT Boutique and Dearborn Music.
“Shopping locally is so important, and we are very thankful to have been part of UMCU’s Shop Local Give Local program. It felt great to be part of something that is giving back to the local community in such a positive way,” said Angie Root, Fireside Coffee.
This was the fourth year UMCU raised funds for a local charity through “Shop Local Give Local.” Last year, this campaign helped 60 local students take advantage of an after-school program at the Neutral Zone designed to help teens connect with their local community, work on academic success, develop leadership and employment skills and take critical steps towards planning for future education and career goals.
“The overwhelming support we continue to experience with the Shop Local Give Local program is truly amazing. The connections made between the participating local business owners, our members and the local charities is what makes this program so unique. UMCU strives to cultivate strongly united communities and those connections are the foundation to that growth. We are incredibly grateful to all of our members and the local businesses who helped make this donation possible,” said Julie Wigley, UMCU Vice President of Brand and Community Development.
To further engagement with “Shop Local Give Local,” UMCU continued an incentive that was implemented in 2017. In addition to contributing to the donation, every time members used their UMCU Visa credit cards at the partner stores during the promotional period, they were entered to win UMCU’s Shop Local Give Local $5,000 Grand Prize. Brian Talbot was the lucky grand prize winner.
“As someone who strongly believes in supporting local businesses and giving back to your community, UMCU’s Shop Local Give Local program and donation to the Community Action Network makes me incredibly proud to be a member of more than 40 years. My wife and I plan to either donate the $5,000 to more local charities or use it to start 529 Plans for our grandchildren,” said Talbot, UMCU member and retired Ross Business School professor.
For more information about the Community Action Network, visit: www.canwashtenaw.org
About the University of Michigan Credit Union
The University of Michigan Credit Union is a member-owned, not-for-profit cooperative. Its purpose is to amaze UMCU members, the community, and its team by working together for shared success.
UMCU is the only credit union headquartered in Ann Arbor, Michigan. When established in 1954, there were 12 members and $9 in assets. Today, UMCU has more than 100,000 members and more than $950 million in assets, and it continues to grow. With seven branches in Ann Arbor, one in Ypsilanti, a branch in Dearborn and three branches in Flint, UMCU serves the financial needs of the University of Michigan, Eastern Michigan University, Washtenaw Community College and their surrounding communities. For more information, visit umcu.org or follow UMCU on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Instagram.
