For most credit unions, the annual meeting is as sure a sign ofspring as flowers blossoming and leaves budding on trees.

But what will the message be this year? Even as the economyrecovers, will credit unions have to break bad news? What messagewill they present to members? Is this year likely to bringimprovement?

To find out, Credit Union Times talked to CEOs at avariety of credit unions that recently held their annual meetingsor have one scheduled in the next few weeks. Some are stillstruggling. Others can report significant gains. Overall, most seemfairly upbeat about 2011. 

We serve a rural area. We concentrate onpre-publicizing our annual meetings and financial news in localmedia. What we have focused on at any kind of meeting over the pastfew years is the safety and soundness of the credit union.

At our annual meeting we cover some specifics. This year weexplained we participated in the replenishment of the [NCUSIF]. Wealso explained the extraordinary expenses that occurred due tocorporate credit union losses. We actually put a figure out andsaid the cost to our credit union was $484,000. That negativelyaffects our income. On the other hand, we've emphasized all alongthat we are very strong. We are well equipped to handle bumps inthe road.

We strive for 300 people at our annual meeting. This year therewere 250. We want to make sure we provide good information that istruthful and also positive to the best of our ability.

We know credit unions are going to be facing certain expensesprobably for five or ten years. We hope we have positive incomethis year. It's tough to say right now because the country is stillin financial turmoil. It took 10 years of some decisions bynumerous big companies, Wall Street or whatever to get us to wherewe were two or three years ago. So personally I think it will takefive or 10 years to really get back up to normal.

We will have a very positive story to tell. Wewere able to extend our charter and had double-digit growth in oursavings. It was better than last year. Though members wereuncertain about the economy and their jobs, many were able to takeadvantage of low rates to refinance their mortgages though us.Recently, there has been some improvement locally in unemploymentand housing. Overall, our membership probably feels a little morepositive this year.

Our guest speaker will be Andrew Busch, the author, columnistand television anchor who covers global financial markets. Withmembers trying to anticipate their financial future, his commentsshould definitely be of interest, and I imagine our members willhave questions about the economy in general, not just the creditunion.

I'm optimistic about 2011. We'll be adding another branch andadditional services. We'll be reaching out to members through evenmore venues, including social media.

Mary Madden
President/CEO
Hudson Valley Federal CreditUnion
Poughkeepsie, N.Y.

This was not one of our betteryears. The corporate stabilization expense did affectus–although otherwise we were doing well. As a result, we didn'thave centerpieces at the annual meeting, as we usually would. Otheryears we have had substantial gifts. This year we simply had candybars with the credit union name on the wrapper. We normally givequite a few prizes, but this year that was cut back by about $500.No one seemed to mind the cutbacks.

Actually, our annual meeting is a fun time for members to gettogether and forget about the economy. We don't concentrate on ourtroubles. I'm cautiously optimistic about 2011. We are finding manypeople turning to us for services.

Virginia Williams
President/CEO
Jersey Shore Federal CreditUnion
Northfield, N.J.

I have a great message for ourmembers. We had a fabulous year. Our ROI is a little over1%. The credit union had 4% growth and our capital grew. It's our60th anniversary, and I'll be delighted to deliver good news. Iwill talk about stability and how we're giving them additionalvalue.

I have the nicest problem in the world. Deposits are flowing in.We're a little over $500 million. We grew $10 million in depositslast month, and I expect another $10 million this month. I'd loveto tell you my rates are so high they're attracting this money. Ourrates are good, but they're not what you would call great. I reallythink people in our community–Ventura–are changing their behavior.The growth we're seeing is in base shares and checking. I think a5% or 6% savings rate is good for American households.

The problem is we have few loan applications. There's always aseasonality, but this is beyond that. People are tightening theirbelts. More people are paying cash for cars or making significantdown payments. Our approval ratio is down a bit.

I'm optimistic about the current year–more optimistic than I'vebeen in five years.

Joseph Schroeder
President/CEO
Ventura County CreditUnion
Ventura, Calif.

It's been an improving year.The picture for 2010 was better than 2009. However, the annualmeeting itself a year ago wasn't any more difficult than usual.Members seem to understand the economic times we're in and thedifficulties we had to get through. Our capital position took alittle bit of a hit, but fortunately for us, we had a good strongcapital position to begin with. This year there's good indicationof a rebound.

Members are asking when deposit rates will improve. It's a greattime to be a borrower but not a great time to be a saver. We adviseour members to adopt a laddering strategy.

I'm cautiously optimistic. Locally we tend to lag the nationalmarket.

Matt Kaubris
President/CEO
Oxford Federal Credit Union
Mexico, Maine

This will be the easiest of our last threeannual meetings. We're weathering the storm and hopeful about theupcoming year. We see some signs of improvement. Our members areacutely aware of the economic situation here in Michigan, and Ithink they're focusing primarily on their own day-to-day economicoutlook rather than the credit union. The Fed coming out with theinterchange price rules could have a major impact. We've tried toeducate members, and at the same time insulate them.

John Buckley
President/CEO
Gerber Federal CreditUnion
Fremont, Mich.

We'll have a couple messages for our membersat the annual meeting. First, we've held our own and deposits havegrown, actually outpacing loans. So we can't return as much incomeas we'd like. We also want them to know we're here for them. We'reoffering help such as budgeting assistance and creditcounseling.

Our annual meeting will be a breakfast featuring a financialfair with tables staffed with resources that can help our members.We'll also have small and mid-size nonprofit organizations lookingfor volunteers and donations. There is a $5 fee for the breakfast,but a member can give a ticket to a nonprofit and the organizationwill get $5 and the member will receive the $5 back.

Wisconsin's governor and legislature have passed a law that willrequire educators to contribute more to their benefits. Members arewondering how they can get by now, much less with what amounts to a10% or 15% pay cut. They're asking if we've made politicalcontributions to the governor or legislators who are doing this.The credit union hasn't and our officers haven't.

We're somewhat optimistic the economy may be getting better.Next year will be our 75th anniversary and we're planning someevents to enhance the member experience. Maybe a low-cost or freeday at the Milwaukee Zoo or a Brewers game.

Eugene Szymczak
President/CEO
Educators CreditUnion
Racine, Wis.

We had a very successful year in terms of ROAin 2010 and will report that to members. It's our 75th anniversaryand we're expecting nearly 3,000 people. We realize we may have toscale back in future years and try to decreases expenses. But thisyear, we are planning a big meeting with great entertainment, giftsand refreshments. We have many longtime members, some of whom arebig depositors, who are accustomed to the meeting and very muchappreciate this once-a-year opportunity.

We haven't received any questions from members about how much wespend on the meeting, primarily because we've been very consistentover the years in our financial performance and in the way weconduct our annual meetings.

This coming year will be challenging and we are trying toincrease our loan volume and decrease expenses.