Chapter 32

The meeting with the Chamber of Commerce was a success, Ron gave them the basic concept to start off with and then he gave them a background history of credit unions. "The history of credit unions began in 1844, with a group of weavers in Rochdale, England, who established the Rochdale Society of Equitable Pioneers. They sold shares to members to raise the capital necessary to buy goods at lower than retail prices, and then sold the goods at a savings to members. In doing so, they became the first credit union." "Canada started their credit unions around the turn of the century and it became a major part of Canadian life. Credit unions continue to look out for their members' interests and provide a level of service that is not generally available at other financial institutions. Whether it's providing a loan to help a member cover unexpected medical bills, giving financial counselling to a member whose company closed its doors, or simply offering a better deal on a used car loan, credit unions make a difference for their members and the communities they serve." "If we can organise a credit union in this town I feel we would not only be helping the folk who live and work here but it would also benefit the local businesses and keep the money in the town, everyone would benefit by it."

It was decided to call a public meeting to gauge the amount of interest towards setting up our own union, Ron was charged with the responsibility of producing a flyer explaining how a credit union worked and inviting the townsfolk to attend the meeting to discuss how we intended proceed.

The public meeting attracted a great deal of interest and after a lengthy questions and answers session it was decided to elect a committee to do the ground work. Ron, because of his knowledge of the legal aspects was elected as the team leader, a group of five with varying background made up the rest of the committee.

As their wedding date came closer Jess and Ron were like two nervous teenagers, they had arranged to honeymoon at a seaside location, Ron had rented a beach house for the week and they would spend time relaxing and getting to know each other, I thought that's what they had been doing for the last couple of months.

The new store was nearing completion, Roy Seath and his crew were setting up the display cabinets and shelving while Peio was tying up the loose ends. It was hoped that every thing would be up and running prior to the wedding.

Finally the staff started to transfer goods from the old 'Martins' store into the new one, we were ready to start trading, because of Roy's planning there was little disruption to the public, however the first day of opening at the new venue the store was packed with customers and people just looking to see the first self serve market in the area.

The customers liked the self service and the feedback was positive, a few diehards missed the personal touch but when it came to the cash register they were mollified, the savings were appreciated.