MONTPELIER, Vt. — A record turnout resulted in members of Vermont State Employees Credit Union voting March 26 to keep the financial institution's current name rather than changing it to Veristate Credit Union.
Nearly 11,000 members voted at the CU's annual meeting, online, by mail and over the phone, the CU said. Forty-eight percent [5,127] voted for the new name while 52% [5,838] voted against Veristate, according to VSECU, which serves more than 42,000 members.
"The Board's recommendation did not pass but there's more to the story," the $350 million CU said in a statement. "The democratic process is strong and alive at the VSECU. The level of participation in this vote was phenomenal. Nearly 11,000 members cast a ballot! An important part of this story is about the extraordinary involvement of our members and our belief in the democratic principles of a cooperative."
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The proposed name came about in an effort to woo younger members and to clear up confusion on who is eligible to join. If approved, the Veristate Credit Union name would have become effective July 1.
VSECU said it spent approximately $35,000 in member communications prior to the name change vote, including two direct mail pieces and outreach activities where the chairman of the board traveled throughout Vermont to meet members to discuss the name change. It also spent approximately $50,000 in consulting and federal trademark fees.
VSECU said it had not ordered any signage, letterhead or collateral in advance of the name change, but had intended to replace expired credit cards and check inventory with the new logo had the name passed.
VSECU said it conducted a year's worth of research, which included gathering suggested names submitted by members. More than 30 names were considered before a naming committee selected Veristate. According to the CU, "Veri" is a combination of "Verde," which is Spanish for green and represents the state of Vermont, and "Verity," which means truth or truthful. The word "State" was added as a tribute to the CU's founders.
This is the second time in recent weeks that members have voted not to change their CU's name. In a second vote held in February, members of the $544 million University of Iowa Community Credit Union voted against changing to Optiva Credit Union. Both VSECU and UICCU hired Weber Marketing to help develop the Veristate and Optiva names. –[email protected]
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