FREEPORT, Texas -- Often the credit union philosophy of people helping people shines brightest when the skies turn the darkest.
In 2005, when Edward Speed, CEO of the $1.3 billion Texas Dow Employees Credit Union and a private pilot, heard that the $150 million Dow Louisiana Federal Credit Union desperately needed cash in the wake of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, the answer was obvious.
He packed $600,000 in his small plane and, with another Texas Dow executive flew it to Baton Rouge, La., where Dow Louisiana CEO Jeff Hendrickson accepted it and put it to use in the recovery effort.
Now, as Hurricane Ike (see related article, page 1) bore down on the county where Texas Dow has its headquarters, Hendrickson and Dow Louisiana FCU returned the favor, not with cash but with assistance to bring Texas Dow back on line and their experience in hurricane recovery.
As it turned out, the offer was needed "and it was fortunate to have Dow Louisiana staffers staying on the phone with us for long periods giving us advice on how to keep branches open," said Speed, noting also that his CU was lucky to miss suffering major property damage.
"You all were here in a moment's notice when we needed you--and we are going to be there for you," Hendrickson wrote in an e-mail to Speed, who evacuated along with 250 of Texas Dow employees. Hendrickson had offered Texas Dow office space, phone centers, help with ACH and other transaction problems, and even sending employees if necessary,
"We will be glad to provide any information to help you all make the best choices for recovery," Hendrickson wrote.
"You can write that we will most certainly be taking them up on their offer," Speed said from his cell phone as he moved with the other employees to safety. "The experience they have of going through storms and getting down branches back open and on line is going to be invaluable," he added.
Texas Dow's headquarters is located in Brazoria County near Freeport, the home of major Dow operations, which were also battered by the hurricane. Speed noted that the CU's headquarters is about five miles from the beach on land that is, at most, 15 feet above sea level.
"We're actually doing OK," Speed said. "Obviously this is something you think about and we have some extensive plans in place that we have activated."
As with many credit unions during Ike's destructive path, those plans included participating in shared branching so that members perhaps far flung from the storm could have easier access to their accounts.
Speed also reported the credit union had invested in a reinforced data center located in Hallettsville, Texas, about 200 miles inland from the CU's headquarters. There, all of Texas Dow's servers could operate in safety, records and communications were safeguarded and member service calls taken.
"We chose the site carefully," he said. Texas Dow placed its center in Hallettsville in part so that it could be on a completely different electrical and telephone grid than headquarters and on the same one serving the hospital and emergency preparedness center there.
Hendrickson told Credit Union Times he will always be indebted to Speed for the help his CU provided to his Baton Rouge CU after Katrina. And after experiencing Gustav, Hendrickson said he might have needed his help again during Gustav. However, his CU only sustained minor damage and, like others in the city, had to use backup power.
"After experiencing Katrina, I understand what Ed Speed would have to go through," said Hendrickson. "There is tremendous stress facing a disaster like a hurricane because as a CEO you have so many choices and so many things to do and sometimes those vendors can't really help."
But another CU can sometimes help, said Hendrickson. "When we heard Ike was nearing landfall, we wanted to be proactive to help and so we called."
--dmorrison@cutimes.com
Senior Correspondent Jim Rubenstein
contributed to this story.
