BROOKLYN PARK, Minn. — TopLine Federal Credit Union is taking a page from an age-old tradition for its latest branch in Brooklyn Park.
Enlisting the help of employees, TopLine filled a time capsule with items to mark the year, the event, and the history of the credit union and marked it with a cornerstone located on the northwest corner of the Brooklyn Park branch.
"You see cornerstones typically in old buildings of all sorts with the year but they were always embedded in period architecture, so we had this novel idea–why not connect the solid tradition of the past with the contemporary design of our modern state-of-the-art branch," said TopLine President/CEO Harry Carter.
The facility itself boasts a bright member-friendly atmosphere, three drive-through lanes for convenient access to tellers and an ATM. Inside, members can enjoy a self-serve refreshment station, fun kids area, easy to use coin counting machines and a retail branding space that is set aside to display everything from motorcycles and custom choppers to ATVs.
Carter says the cornerstone/time capsule idea also turned into an unexpected team building exercise.
"Everyone in every single depart got involved in selecting items to go into the time capsule," said Carter. "From samples of today's technology like cell phones and cds to marketing literature and photographs we put it in the capsule. The credit union is 72 years old so it will be great to see how we've changed and grown when it is opened."
He adds that time capsules create a guide to the past and help future generations understand what life may have been like back then. TopLine's cornerstone is set to open in another 70 years. Plans are to continue the cornerstone tradition in the next TopLine branch.
"The hope is that it's opened with TopLine still in existence and with the history of the credit union preserved with the items within," said Carter.