AACUC Announces Peach State FCU's Donation to the Pete Crear Scholarship Fund and the Creation of the Maurice R. Smith Fund

SNELLVILLE, Ga., Sept. 25, 2019 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- The African-American Credit Union Coalition (AACUC), will be receiving $50,000 from Peach State Federal Credit Union over the next five years. Marshall Boutwell, President/CEO of Peach State FCU was a presenter at the African American Credit Union Hall of Fame Program, on August 7, 2019 during the AACUC's 21st Annual Conference that was held in Charlotte, North Carolina. Boutwell announced that Peach State FCU will donate $10,000 annually for the next five years to the Pete Crear Scholarship Fund.

The Pete Crear Scholarship Fund was created in 2004 to honor the contributions of Pete Crear when he received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the AACUC. "Peach State is committed to strengthening the credit union community through our support of educational opportunities within the industry," said Boutwell. "This commitment is a tribute to our foundation by educators and the credit union philosophy of 'people helping people'."

At the Pete Crear Lifetime Achievement Award Dinner, AACUC's Chairman Adrian S. Johnson, SVP/CFO of MECU Credit Union, announced the creation of the Maurice R. Smith Fund, in honor of the 2019 Pete Crear Lifetime Achievement Award Honoree. "Maurice Smith's body of work and contributions for the credit union movement is inspiring. He is the immediate past chair of the Credit Union National Association (CUNA) and the first African American to hold that position. His article on the 8th Cooperative Principle centering around Diversity and Inclusion holds the credit union industry accountable to provide access to all people regardless of color, racial ethnicity and gender. Maurice's contribution to the AACUC Board of Directors and all of the Board's he sits on is noteworthy because everywhere he goes he provides thoughtful consideration to the challenge and or opportunity and gently steers everyone in the room to seek the best course of action for all parties involved," said Johnson.

The Maurice R. Smith Fund will be used to provide scholarships to credit union personnel to attend conferences or special schools to further their career and administrative support for the AACUC. To make a donation to the Maurice R. Smith Fund or the Pete Crear Scholarship Fund, visit the AACUC website at http://www.aacuc.org.

About AACUC
The AACUC is a 501c3 non-profit organization created in 1999 to increase the strength of the global credit union community through professional development and advocacy. It has become an all-encompassing organization for individuals (professional and volunteers) in Credit Unions, Insurance, Regulators, Consultants and other entities in the credit union industry. AACUC is considered a leader in the credit union industry adopting the 8th Cooperative Principle and providing knowledge of how credit unions can become more diverse and inclusive.

SOURCE AACUC