I was dismayed to read the letter to the editor in the Dec. 1issue , “CUs Can't Survive On the Low-Income Alone”, by JosephVisconti, the retired NCUA employee. As a 28-year credit unionvolunteer and worker, I am glad that Mr. Visconti is retired anddoesn't represent the sentiments of a majority of the credit unionmovement. “CU's can't survive on the Low-Income Alone?” Really?Tell that to the 800,000 members of the 225 community developmentcredit unions in America. Community development credit unions'assets, loans, and memberships are growing at a faster rate thanmainstream credit unions. Each day, low-income, communitydevelopment credit unions demonstrate that the credit union modelcan provide financial empowerment for all Americans, includinglow-income populations. I applaud these community developmentcredit unions and the many mainstream credit unions that havedeveloped strong outreach campaigns into low-income communities.And kudos for Credit Union Times for highlighting these wonderfulefforts that define the important difference that the credit unionmovement provides. Thank goodness that we don't have to deal withnumskulls like Mr. Visconti at the NCUA anymore. We owe muchgratitude to Mr. Visconti's replacements at the NCUA, and countlessothers in the credit union movement who have a commitment toserving all aspects of our communities, including low- incomepopulations. Jeff Wells, Co-founder Santa Cruz Community CreditUnion California