Credit Unions 101 for Kids

Happy National Youth Month, guys! This month, we are celebrating you! The kids who make up the credit union world. Why are we celebrating, you ask? Well, you make up our future! And we can’t wait to see everything you achieve.

So, let’s start here. Have you ever thought about what a credit union is, OTHER than the place that hands out free suckers in the drive thru? Let’s test your skills:

1. A credit union is a place where you can safely store the money that you earn
2. A credit union is a place where you can borrow money to buy a house, a car, and other things that you need
3. A credit union is a financial institution that thinks their members deserve the best possible service
4. All of the above

If you guessed D, you are correct! And if you guess A, B, or C, you are still right too. Credit unions are not only a place to save and borrow money, but they also care about the wellbeing of you and their other members, no matter what age. By having money in a credit union, you actually own a little slice of the credit union. Isn’t that cool?

Have you ever played a game of tag? You can think of your credit union as your “home base” for the money that you earn. Like when you are at your home base in tag, when you deposit your money into a credit union account, it’s a safe spot for your money.

And here is an added bonus: when you have money in an account, the credit union pays you for it! The money that you earn for saving money in an account is called “interest”. Does the space underneath your mattress help you earn extra money? I didn’t think so!

So the next time you have some extra birthday money or some leftover allowance, ask a responsible adult to take you to the credit union to deposit into your kid’s club account (don’t forget the sucker, too!).

Have you stumbled upon this page but you don’t have a kids club account yet? No sweat! Have your parents go to this website and learn how to open an account.

Here is another cool thing about credit unions: we like to pitch in to help the people in our communities! At MFCU, we do this through our Community Difference Project.

The Community Difference Project is a fancy name for the ways that we volunteer and give out donations. Is your classroom working on a project that could use help with funding? Or, are you a part of a sports team or an academic team that needs some help buying equipment or materials? Pass this link on to a teach or parent. They can help you apply for a sponsorship or donation for your project!

Thanks for taking the time to learn more about credit unions! We hope to see you in a branch soon. In the meantime, look below for some fun activities to keep you busy until we see you again!