Using Matricular Consular Cards Worth Any Risks

I just finished reading Mike Welch's column in the 9/17 issue of Credit Union Times, "Are Matricular Consular Cards Good or Bad?" I must admit the first half of the column had me convinced that Welch was against their acceptance as a form of ID in this country for joining a CU. I was pleasantly surprised at the final few paragraphs of the column. Good for Welch. Our multi-SEG credit union here in San Diego has a golden opportunity to serve this ever-encroaching neighbor from the South. New Americans are walking in daily to our lobbies. We just opened a new branch in the South Bay area, 15 miles from the border, and have staffed it and all of our other stateside branches with bi-lingual folks to serve this growing segment of our society. While those CUs around us seem to be recycling the same old white middle-class rate shoppers, we're hoping to tap into this new market in an appropriate way. Being able to accept the Matricular Consular Card as proper ID is part of that plan. As they say with students, these may seem like high maintenance / low return kind of members today, but they ooze with potential for tomorrow. I look at serving New Americans the very same way. I know that accepting this form of ID is risky, but I heard a really cool saying once that I think sums up credit unions. It goes like this: "Pure risk leads to self-destruction. Pure safety leads to stagnation. In between lies survival and progress." Thanks for your column, and keep up the great work. Mary Cunningham. President/CEO USA FCU San Diego