Hald-Nor Community Credit Union of Caledonia received the Outstanding Achievement Award for a number of community programs, including working seven years on the financing and development of the town's multi-use community centre, distributing 2-3 per cent of year-end pre-tax profit for community projects and collecting on behalf of the region's food banks.

Charles Collura, CEO of Healthcare and Municipal Employees Credit Union in Hamilton received the Allan Lanctôt Award for Mentorship in recognition of his excellence as a teacher and mentor and his willingness to assist others in their personal growth.

Kimberley Ney, vice-president, branch operations, at Alterna Savings and Credit Union, which has branches in Toronto and Ottawa, received the Gary Gillam Award for Social Responsibility presented annually to a person who promotes credit unions as socially responsible alternatives to banks and as enablers of community economic development.

Ney was honoured for activities, including a partnership between Alterna and the University of Ottawa School of Management that included a $100,000 endowment to promote corporate social responsibility at the MBA level.

Scott Kennedy of Superior Credit Union in Thunder Bay, past-chair of the board of directors of Ontario Central and Jonathan Guss, former president and chief executive officer of Ontario Central, received distinguished service awards to mark their years of commitment to the credit union system.

Three young credit union members received bursaries to allow them to attend the World Council of Credit Unions Conference in Dublin. The winners were: Kevin Boersma, chief credit officer of Sydenham Community Credit Union, Greg McQueen, branch manager at St. Willibrord Credit Union, and Shari Leitch of St. Catharines, a director of PenFinancial Credit Union.

Northern Lights Credit Union, which has eight branches in Northwestern Ontario, received the Innovation Award for Youth Involvement for its program called Pay-for-A's that rewards students in Grade 12 with $10 for every A that they achieve in school and the chance to win a laptop.

The Police Credit Union of Toronto received the Innovation Award for Marketing in the service or delivery channel category for a campaign to attract new recruits to become members with a rewards program tailored to their needs.

Teachers Credit Union of Hamilton received the Innovation Award for a Marketing campaign program aimed at attracting younger members. Prizes, including a Smart Car, Mac Computer and iPods, and an active advertising campaign helped the credit union surpass its goals.

Credit Union Central of Ontario with more than $1.9 billion in assets is a financial and trade services organization that represents 172 credit unions with more than 1.2 million members. Ontario's credit unions are independent, community-based alternatives to banks regulated by the provincial government.

For further information: Art Chamberlain, Manager, Media Relations, (905) 238-9400, ext. 534, achamberlain@cuco.on.ca

Source: newswire