| Message
from the Dean | Do You Want
Shrink-Free Income? | Leading by Example
|
Midwives Bring Experience, Talent to CON |
Nursing Briefs | Seeking
Solutions
Supporting Students One Purchase at
a Time
By Amber Swardson
Supporting education has never been so easy! Thanks to the New Mexico Educators Federal Credit Union’s (NMEFCU) Community Rewards Program., credit union members give back to education by using their debit cards. The CON received funds from the program over the past two years, which established scholarships for outstanding nursing students.
Through the Community Rewards Program, which began in 2006, each time participating NMEFCU members use their debit cards as a signature-based transaction, they earn a cash reward that is matched by the credit union and distributed to the communities they serve. The member designates support to education, health care, the arts, environment and wildlife, or community support and notes which New Mexico community should receive the gift.
“The goal of the program is to support our members and to support the community. It follows the credit union’s philosophy of ‘people helping people’,” explains Sharla Reinhart, NMEFCU associate vice president of membership development. “We are proud to support nursing students because their impact on society is enormous. After all, one nurse may treat thousands of patients. We believe that is a worthwhile investment.”
Scholarship recipient Maria Retunski, CON graduate student and 2008-2009 College of Nursing Scholarship recipient, is grateful for the support of the credit union and its members. “Receiving this scholarship motivates me to maintain my GPA and complete my degree,” wrote Retunski in a thank you note to NMEFCU. “I look forward to being able to give back to the community once I begin my career.”
Linda Garcia-Lucero, mother of four and a 2008-2009 College of Nursing Scholarship recipient, echoed Retunski’s gratitude as she thanked NMEFCU for making her graduate studies possible. “Your scholarship donation has been the greatest gift I could have ever received and I want you to know that I am truly grateful and appreciative of your donation,” wrote Garcia-Lucero. “ It has helped relieve the excess financial burden of paying for college and has given me a newfound hope in my ongoing educational pursuit.”
NMEFCU, a member-owned and not-for-profit organization, is proud to support the local community financially and through in-kind contributions and volunteerism. NMEFCU employees serve on community boards and advisory committees from Taos to Socorro. They also hold memberships in the chambers of commerce in the cities and towns they serve.
