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KCCU Announces 2023 Teacher Grant Recipients9/1/2023

2023 teacher grant recipients

August 25, 2023

Teacher grant recipient  teacher grant recipient

Left: Gillian Wilk from KCCU presents check to Patti Kuenzel. Right: Gillian Wilk from KCCU presents check to Erin Andrews

Kellogg Community Credit Union (KCCU) is thrilled to announce that for the third year in a row, they offered their Teacher Grant Program and awarded teachers throughout West Michigan with grants for their classrooms.

KCCU understands that great educators are always seeking innovative ways to foster impactful learning experiences, and often use their own funds to purchase additional classroom supplies. They wanted to offer support to these deserving educators, and they did by providing funds to fifteen teachers, each of them receiving $400 to purchase classroom supplies. That is a total of $6,000 going back into local classrooms!

“At KCCU, we are committed to helping teachers who are educating our students and future leaders,” said Tracy Miller, KCCU’s CEO. “We know that teachers work hard and put in a lot of time, and often their own money, to help their students learn and thrive. Our hope is with these grants, educators can get the tools and resources needed for their students to succeed in the classroom.”

“I love teaching because I love to share in the joy with other people, especially my students,” said Patti Kuenzel, third grade teacher at St. Joseph Elementary and recipient of a KCCU Teacher Grant. “I am going to use my grant money to purchase things like chair cushions, bouncy bands for those kids who have to keep moving their feet all day, and water bottle holders for their desks; all kinds of things to bring joy to the classroom."

“One of the things I love most about being an educator is being able to offer a safe and inclusive space for all students to be able to grow and learn,” said Erin Andrews, teacher at North Penn Elementary and recipient of a KCCU Teacher Grant. “I am going to use the grant money to purchase STEM (Science Technology Engineering Mathematics) supplies to help my students with problem solving and critical thinking skills.”

Here is a complete list of the 2023 teacher grant recipients

  • Amber - Parchment Highschool
  • Erin - Lincoln International Studies
  • Haylee - Gull Lake Community Schools
  • Heather - Delton Kellogg Elementary
  • Jessica - Comstock STEM Academy
  • Makayla - Norton Elementary
  • Laura - Union City Elementary 
  • Chelsea - Ann J. Kellogg
  • Erin - North Penn Elementary
  • Karen- Harper Creek Middle School
  • Meghan - Marshall Academy
  • Shannon - Westlake Elementary
  • Shayna - Southeastern Elementary
  • Susan - Mar Lee School
  • Patti - St Joseph Elementary

The KCCU Teacher Grant Program is open to all educators, Pre-K through grade 12, who teach within the 15 counties that KCCU serves.

 


KCCU Gives back to local Community Food Banks3/17/2023

KCCU hosts food drive

March 9, 2023

KCCU team presents check to South Michigan Food Bank
KCCU team members, presented a check for $500 to the South Michigan Food Bank.

To celebrate National Canned Food month, KCCU hosted a food drive during the month of February. We invited their members, team, and community to bring nonperishable food items to any branch location throughout February. The food drive was a great success and will have an immediate impact on the local communities and individuals who are food insecure.  

Due to the increasing prices in the grocery stores food banks and pantries have consistently seen an increase in demand. KCCU took notice of this shift and made a commitment to help. Guided by our philosophy of people helping people, KCCU strives to make our communities stronger by offering support to those in need.

In addition to food donations, KCCU pledged $500 to the South Michigan Food Bank, serving the Southern counties of Michigan, and $500 to Feeding America West Michigan, which serves the Western and Northern counties of Michigan.

With food banks and pantries heavily relying on assistance from volunteers to sort and package food donations, KCCU team members stepped up to also volunteer their time at the South Michigan Food Bank, Kalamazoo Loaves & Fishes, and Feeding America West Michigan.

“With the rising cost of food, I am humbled by the success of our food drive and the generosity of our members, team, and the community,” said Tracy Miller, KCCU’s CEO. “Food is a basic need, and as an organization KCCU wants to ensure we are doing our part to help fill that need, whether it is through food or monetary donations or volunteering our time. We are also grateful to the local food banks who work tirelessly and are dedicated to helping fight hunger in our communities.”

"This $500 gift from Kellogg Community Credit Union will help Feeding America West Michigan provide 2,000 meals worth of food to neighbors in need!" reported Susie Dutcher, Corporate Partnership Manager for Feeding American West Michigan.

“A sincere thank you goes out to everyone at Kellogg Community Credit Union!” says Lori Sunie, Director of Development for the South Michigan Food Bank. “We are very grateful to have them as a partner as well as a caretaker for our community! They have provided funds, food, and volunteer time to ensure our neighbors are supported. Their compassion and dedication to a brighter future is to be commended,”


Toy Drive Brings Joy to Many this Holiday Season1/11/2023

KCCU Staff with Angel Tree Gifts
Photo caption: Kellogg Community Credit Union team members display a few of the many generous toy drive donations made this holiday season

KCCU Host Holiday Toy Drive

January 6, 2023

KCCU partnered with three local organizations to help provide toys for children and teens in need this holiday season. KCCU set a goal to collect 500 toys, games, and gift cards to help support the efforts of the Salvation Army, There’s Enough, and the St Joseph County United Way. With generous donations from KCCU members, employees, and board of directors we exceeded our goal by collecting over 630 gifts!

For the nineteenth consecutive year, KCCU was host to the Salvation Army Angel Tree toy drive, utilizing eight ofour branch locations throughout Battle Creek, Kalamazoo, and Grand Rapids, as drop off locations for toy donations.  In addition, KCCU’s Three Rivers branch collected toys for the St Joseph County United Way, and Marshall’s branch supported the toy drive for There’s Enough. KCCU’s annual toy drive is a favorite event for employees and members, it is heartwarming to know that by donating a toy, game, or gift card you directly affect a child in West Michigan by bringing them the magic and joy of the holidays.


“I am so proud of our members, team, and board of directors. Exceeding our goal by over 130 gifts is truly amazing and we could not have done this without their generosity,” states Tracy Miller, KCCU’s CEO. “The holidays can be hard and especially stressful for those who are in need. We are so grateful for our community partners and that KCCU was able to bring joy to children who otherwise might not have received a gift this holiday season.”

 


KCCU Receives Best Workplace Award10/14/2022

 

SW MI First presents Best Workplace award to KCCU team members

Photo caption: Pictured from L-R: SWMI First Chamber Director, Clarence Lloyd; KCCU CEO, Tracy Miller; KCCU CCO, Amber Mallernee; KCCU VP of HR, Jessica Bissenden; SWMI First Chamber Membership & Events Coordinator, Kevin Crittenden; Chamber Ambassador, Rex Simpson, Owner of Hobby-Sports

 

KCCU receives Best Workplace award

October 14, 2022

Kellogg Community Credit Union is thrilled and honored to announce that we have received the Best Workplace award for 2022 by the Southwest Michigan First Chamber!

The 2022 Chamber’s Choice awards exist to partner with our community to recognize and celebrate the businesses and leaders that are making a huge impact in Kalamazoo County. There are currently (8) Chamber’s Choice awards and (10) Best of Kalamazoo County awards. One of the Best of Kalamazoo County award categories is Best Workplace which recognizes an organization that is a leader in workplace employee happiness, engagement, culture, retention, and attraction. Based on this description and after the votes were tabulated, Kellogg Community Credit Union received the highest total number of votes in this category!

“The Southwest Michigan First Chamber is honored to celebrate the team at Kellogg Community Credit Union as the winner for the Best of Kalamazoo County – Best Workplace award for 2022,” stated Clarence Lloyd, Director, Southwest Michigan First Chamber. “There has never been a more critical time for companies to focus on building world-class employee culture and serving their business mission by first serving their teams. Congratulations to the team at KCCU for being awarded this community recognition.”

“We feel truly honored to receive Southwest Michigan First’s 2022 Best of Kalamazoo County Award for Best Workplace!” said Amber Mallernee, KCCU’s CCO. “KCCU was nominated and selected by public vote, based on our workplace culture and engagement. We are incredibly grateful for our team, our members, and the community!”

 


KCCU to Open Convenient New Branch in Downtown Marshall3/4/2022

Future Marshall branch

February 23, 2022

We are excited to announce that our Marshall branch will move to a new location in 2022! KCCU recently purchased the historic building located at 107 N. Park Avenue – across the street from the Brooks Memorial fountain and just down the road from their current branch.

The new branch location will allow KCCU to offer members more convenient ways to do their banking with access to drive-up banking and a 24-hour ATM.  We will continue to offer a full array of financial services for a one stop shop experience, including: assistance with daily transactions; savings and high dividend checking accounts; auto and other loans; mortgages; investment services; commercial accounts including lending ­- all with the world-class and local service KCCU members deserve. 
 
“We have been a part of the Marshall community for 13 years, and during that time, we have enjoyed establishing relationships with the people and local businesses in the community,” stated Tracy Miller, KCCU’s CEO. “The new location will allow us to enhance the member experience by having the convenience of doing banking through a drive-up or by coming in the branch. We look forward to serving our existing members as well as new members and businesses, in our new larger building.  We encourage the community to stop in and see us when we open, we look forward to meeting you!”
 
Over the next several months KCCU will be working to renovate the space of their new permanent home by the fountain in Marshall. KCCU will continue to serve members at their existing location at 15877 W. Michigan Ave. next to Family Fare, until their new branch is open. Watch for updates over the next few months on KCCU’s social media pages.

KCCU Featured in CreditUnions.com Article3/1/2022

abstract image of business graph

Kellogg Community Credit Union was featured in a recent creditunions.com article. The article showcases KCCU's balance between loan growth and member impact, and how KCCU strives to provide greater value in the products and services offered to members. Want to learn more? Read the article here.