DONATIONS Service 1st Federal Credit Union, Danville, Pa., hasembraced the spirit of giving by coordinating a gift exchange whereemployees buy toy items that match their coworkers'characteristics, hobbies or personalities. This year's exchangeyielded over 50 toys and gifts donated to Toys for Tots to benefitlocal needy families and children. First Community Credit Union,Chesterfield, Mo., donated $1,420 to The Children's Home Society ofMissouri. Credit union employees proudly donated funds to TheChildren's Home to help pay for gifts for the resident children toopen on Christmas morning. The Children's Home cares for up to 29children at any given time at their sites in Brentwood and St.Charles. The Children's Home offers residential services forchildren from birth to age 21, who have significant developmentaldisabilities. The Children's Home also provides care on ashort-term basis for children in an emergency or crisis situation.HarborOne Credit Union, Brockton, Mass., recently donated over$64,000 to the United Way as part of its 2007 United Way Campaign.Employee contributions increased 20% over last year resulting incontributions totaling over $32,000. The credit union's corporatematched the employees' contribution resulting in an over $64,000donation. The CU also launched a major advertising campaignpromoting the opening of new checking accounts, where they promisedto donate $1 to United Way for every new checking account opened.Patrons were also encouraged to donate loose change into largebottles in the lobbies of all 12 branches. And as a finalfundraising effort, the employees of the CU donated money to dresscasual on Fridays. These three resources raised another $2,500 forthe United Way. Mocse Credit Union, Modesto, Calif., donated over60 Christmas gifts to developmentally disabled participants of theHoward Training Center. The employees of Mocse have been supportingthis program for over eight years and for many of the participantsit is the only gift they receive. METRO Credit Union, Warren,Mich., recently held its second annual Holiday Coloring DrawingContest in which local children from the area had a chance to colora holiday picture. Coloring pictures were available at METRO CUoffices and were also distributed to local elementary schools. Oncethe children returned a colored picture, participants were enteredinto a drawing for a chance to win a six-foot-tall stocking filledwith games and toys. Yongwu Wei from Green Acres Elementary Schoolwon the grand prize. Baton Rouge Area Credit Unions, Baton Rouge,La., united to make area children's holidays a bit merrier. Attheir annual Christmas Social at Drusilla Seafood Restaurant, theycollected over 100 toys to be distributed through the Toys for Totsprogram. In other Louisiana CU news, Neighbors Federal CreditUnion, Baton Rouge, La., recently raised $6,700 for the United Way.This donation was the top one received over all the credit unionsin a 10 parish area. Employees of LGE Federal Credit Union,Marietta, Ga., raised $25,900.31 by donating their time and moneythis holiday season to LGE's annual service project, OperationDonation. The credit union matched that amount, raising the totalto $51,800.62. Each year, departments within the credit union formteams and raise money through various fundraisers and personaldonations for local families in need or charities of their choice.Once all of the funds are collected, the credit union matchesdollar-for-dollar the total amount raised, allowing teams to givetwice as much. Peninsula Credit Union, Shelton, Wash., recentlyheld its annual Holiday Bake Sale benefiting local community foodbanks. A total of $1,058 was raised through the sale of thehomemade holiday goodies. The CU matched that amountdollar-for-dollar and the total donation was $2,116. Four foodbanks, Hood Canal Food Bank, Matlock Community Food Bank, SaintsPantry Food Bank, and North Mason Food Bank, each received $529.AmeriCU Credit Union, Rome, N.Y., held a Casual Day for a Cause tosupport Breast Cancer Awareness. For a $5.00 donation, employeeswere able to dress down to support a great cause and raised a totalof $766. The donation was given to the local Susan G. Komen BreastCancer Foundation in Syracuse. The CU also presented a $200donation to Rome Welcome Hall Community Center to help with theholiday needs of the community. The CU also held a Can Drive tohelp replenish the Center's pantry. FirstLight Federal CreditUnion, El Paso, Texas, continued its commitment to the community tomeet a decades-old El Paso tradition, the Sun Bowl Parade. Thanksto a partnership between FirstLight Federal Credit Union, the SunBowl Association, and the West Texas Food Bank, this year's paradeincluded a food drive. Seventy volunteers collected 3,217 pounds offood during the parade, pushing grocery carts to gather cannedgoods and other non-perishables to help feed the hungry throughoutthe region. Franklin Mint Federal Credit Union, Broomall, Pa.,teamed up with City Team Ministries of Chester to sponsor childrenin their annual Adopt-A-Family program. Gifts were collected fornine children between the ages of 10 months and 11 years old fromthree local families. This is the 12th year that FMFCU hasparticipated in the Adopt-A-Family program. Mid-Cities SchoolsCredit Union, Compton, Calif., recently awarded 13 scholarships toarea students at Compton, Lynwood and Paramount high schools. Eachscholarship was for $500 and was based on outstanding academicachievement. The CU offers a variety of college scholarshipsannually. Cal State 9 Credit Union, Concord, Calif., donated$12,400 to the West Contra Costa School Unified District to supporta variety of key educational enrichment programs. The West ContraCosta School District serves approximately 35,000 students at 141schools and educational sites. Eagle Community Credit Union, LakeForest, Calif., recently ended a successful year of fundraisingevents on behalf of Orangewood Children's Home, which supportsabused and neglected children throughout Orange County. The annualcontribution of $3,124 will fund counseling services, job programsand educational opportunities to at-risk children in the OrangeCounty foster care system. Monthly events and activities varied inscope and theme from the inaugural “Silent Auction” to the sale of“Make a Difference” greeting cards that focused onemployee-to-employee appreciation.