SANTA ROSA, Calif. — Redwood Credit Union recently partneredwith Shred-It to host a “Shred-A-Thon” event at its headquartershere.

Individuals and businesses in the community were encouraged tobring their confidential and personal documents to be shredded onthe spot at no charge during the Shred-A-Thon. Free educationalseminars taught members and the public how they can avoid becomingvictims of identity theft and fraud. The City of Santa Rosa wasalso on site offering educational literature on a variety of safetyand crime prevention topics, and parents were able to obtain ChildSafety Kits provided by the Polly Klaas Foundation.

Approximately 170 people attended, and a dozen RCU staffvolunteers were on hand to assist them with their documents. Over300 boxes of sensitive materials totaling nearly seven tons wereshredded during the event.

In addition, over 40 people attended the corresponding IdentityTheft and Fraud seminars, with many individuals staying for bothsessions.

“We are passionately committed to helping our Members andneighbors learn how to protect themselves against identity theftand fraud,” said RCU Senior Vice President Robin McKenzie. “One ofthe simplest, most effective precautions is to shred sensitivedocuments, such as old financial statements, cancelled checks,credit card offers, and other outdated documents containingpersonal information. Through hosting this event, we were able tooffer individuals and small businesses in the community theopportunity to safely dispose of sensitive paperwork, in additionto educating them on protecting themselves from these crimes.”