In an effort to raise awareness about credit unions, the CreditUnion Association of the Dakotas participated in the Red RiverValley Fair in Fargo, N.D, from July 13-15.

CUAD's participation in the event was a part of theassociation's awareness campaign, “CU on the Road,” in which representativesare traveling across the Dakotas spreading credit unionknowledge.

CUAD said its booth at the fair gained the attention of nearly1,400 passersby. The booth featured a balloon-filled vehicle andvisitors were told to guess the amount of balloons as part of a$100 prize contest.

According to Kristie Heit, a CUAD staffer who worked at thefair, the awareness campaign “dispelled a lot of myths, includingone credit union member who had a savings account at a CU for avery long time, but had no idea he could get a mortgagethere.”

Heit added that were many visitors who were unaware that creditunions offer mortgages or that credit unions were relatively easyto join.

CUAD serves 73 credit unions and more than 470,000 members inNorth and South Dakota, with assets in excess of $4.6billion.