ODESSA, Texas — Whether the $114 million First Basin Credit Union changes to a bank charter or not may hinge on a cultural split between the credit union's leadership, which is primarily English-speaking, and its Hispanic, Spanish-speaking members.

First Basin began in 1965 as Medical Community Credit Union but then merged twice, once with Ector County Credit Union and then with Neighborhood Credit Union. The addition of Neighborhood, which had been started on the south side of Odessa, particularly increased the credit union's percentage of Hispanic members, according to Carol Uranga, a longtime credit union member who is also the executive director of the Hispanic Heritage of Odessa organization.

"I have been a member of the credit union from the beginning, when it was Neighborhood," she explained. "Back then it started in a store which sold boots and western wear and rented Spanish videos so it was very accessible and people were always in and out renting their videos and using the credit union," Uranga said. "Now many of the credit union's 24,000 members are Hispanic."