The Shuswap’s credit union is looking for a fitting project to mark its 75th year of service in the region.
According to SASCU CEO Barry Delaney, the credit union began April 29, 1946, when 14 families that ran local apple orchards decided to establish a financial institution that benefited the community. They created the Salmon Arm Savings and Credit Union which, by the end of its first year, had 33 members and $205 in the bank.
Since then, the credit union rebranded to SASCU and now serves a membership of more than 19,000.
“The values that drove our founding members continue to fuel SASCU today: community, member ownership, and financial education,” commented Delaney in a media release.
SASCU now has two branches in Salmon Arm, a branch in Sicamous and Sorrento, as well as an insurance office in Enderby, and employs about 150 staff and 150 staff has more than $900 million in assets.
To mark its 75th, SASCU will be reaching out to artists for help in coming up with a legacy project that reflects the spirit and vibrancy of SASCU and the region it serves for years to come.
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“The apple sculpture that we have in the parking lot of the downtown (Salmon Arm) branch was commissioned at our 60th birthday, and there are 14 apples there that represent the 14 families that founded us,” Delaney told the Observer. “So we wanted to build on that idea and do something that would be a public art installation somewhere in this community.”
Delaney said money has been put aside for the project and that SASCU will be engaging with the arts and culture community and the city, to determine what the project might be and where to put it.
“We want to do something the community can see and appreciate,” said Delaney.
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