<p>Middlesex Credit Union, Middletown, Conn., has kicked off a Community Service Project, which will benefit the food banks of Middlesex County for the remainder of 2002. Every six weeks, the items received by MCU will be donated to the food banks of Middlesex County. A different town will be selected for each donation cycle. MCU employees have set a goal of donating 11,500 nonperishable food items to the community by the end of the year. Pen Air Federal Credit Union, Pensacola, Fla., has donated $5,000 to the Children's Miracle Network through Sacred Heart Children's Hospital in Pensacola, Florida. The funds were raised by contributing 10 cents from foreign ATM card transaction fees. Pen Air Federal Credit Union also participated in the local Escambia Chapter of the Florida Credit Union League's candy sales and other activities to raise funds for CMN. The combined credit union effort raised $9,330. North Central Area Credit Union, Standish, Mich., has raised $3,080 by getting "Casual for a Cause" to benefit several local charities including the Roscommon High School Music Program; Roscommon County Animal Shelter; Grayling Meals on Wheels; and Arenac County Habitat for Humanity. In exchange for a few dollars each payday, employees could dress casually in their credit union shirts. Members 1st Federal Credit Union, Mechanicsburg, Pa., has teamed up with the Muscular Dystrophy Association to raise awareness and funds for research. Members 1st FCU has raised a total of $7,225 to benefit the MDA. Earthmover Credit Union, Oswego, Ill., has raised $1,293 during the "Bowl for Kids sake" event to benefit the Big Brother and Big Sisters of Southern Kane and Kendall Counties. Over 18 employees bowled. The money raised from the event will be used to provide training to volunteers supporting one-to-one child adult relationships in the Big Brothers, Big Sisters program. Educational Community Credit Union, Jacksonville, Fla., has donated 15 computer workstations to Beulah Beal Young Parents Center. BBYPC continues the education of expectant parents and provides care for the parent and baby until the student can return to the regular school. ECCU Marketing Manager Patricia Ponder partnered with Beulah Beal's business and social studies teachers to have the computers delivered. The donation was made possible when ECCU upgraded workstations in its accounting and automated services departments. The computers, all less than three years old, contain Pentium processors with 64M of RAM and are network capable. Oregon Metro Federal Credit Union, Eugene, Ore., has raised over $12,500 the Credit Unions for Kids campaign benefiting Doernbecher and the pediatric units of Sacred Heart Hospital and Rogue Valley Medical Center. Oregon Metro also supports many other charities through the efforts of the Community Involvement Committee. The Community Involvement Committee consists of volunteer members Norm Weaver, Evelyn Looney, Larry Glaspey, Laurie Wilson and Julie D. Lemons. Royal Credit Union, Eau Claire, Wis., has raised over $17,500 to benefit sick and injured children treated at local nonprofit hospitals of the Children's Miracle Network. The campaign raised funds through the sale of paper links, hearts, and bake sales. Each link or heart included the name of a credit union member and a loved one they wanted to remember in a special way for the Valentine season. RCU's Chain of Hearts is part of a statewide fundraising effort for CMN by 332 Wisconsin credit unions. Municipal Employees Credit Union, San Jose, Calif., has raised $6526.10 for the San Jose community. MECU presented the San Jose Police Activities League and the San Jose Firefighters Burn Foundation a check for $3,263.05 each. MECU has organized a variety of events, including silent auctions and bake sales, to raise funds for these two special organizations that dedicate much of their time helping children in the community. US Federal Credit Union, Burnsville, Minn., has raised $7,332 for Credit Unions for Kids, which benefits the Children's Miracle Network and the Gillette Children's Hospital. The donation will be used to help support children with illnesses and their families. The bulk of the funds were raised by the sale of Happenings Books, an Entertainment coupon book. The book cost members $25 with a $10 profit on each book going to charity fund raising. Of the many credit union employees who sold the 466 books, one employee purchasing, Jan Dols of the Fridley, Minnesota branch sold 143 books alone.</p>