Latest / Despite Impossible / IRL: From Estes Park with Love

Transcript

IRL: From Estes Park with Love · Despite Impossible

• 0:11
  SPEAKER_00: IRL from Estes Park with love.
• 0:16
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome to season three of Curiously Driven.
• 0:21
  SPEAKER_00: We are so excited to be back.
• 0:24
  SPEAKER_00: Subscribe to our Curiously Driven podcast to listen to this piece while sipping a Diet Coke, cleaning out your inbox, shifting your summer clothes to the back of the closet, sitting nervously in the passenger seat as your daughter practices parallel parking, or dreaming up your newest grilled pizza recipe.
• 0:47
  SPEAKER_00: It might be surprising for someone outside the credit union movement to know that events have played an important role in financial cooperatives for years.
• 0:57
  SPEAKER_00: One of the earliest was held in Estes Park, Colorado, on August 10th, 1934.
• 1:05
  SPEAKER_00: 20 states were represented by 52 delegates, and what is now America's Credit Unions, formerly CUNA, was formed.
• 1:14
  SPEAKER_00: According to American bankers, CUNA to recreate iconic photo where it all started, quote, the site was proposed by CU pioneer Claude Orchard, who suggested a national park in Colorado that was a favorite of his because many people would have to take vacation time to attend and because it would require travel from both coasts, unquote.
• 1:39
  SPEAKER_00: From those early beginnings, gatherings have continued.
• 1:44
  SPEAKER_00: Natural person credit unions host their annual meetings.
• 1:48
  SPEAKER_00: While many host smaller or virtual annual meetings, some create incredibly special events.
• 1:55
  SPEAKER_00: In fact, according to Summit Credit Union's 2025 annual report, the Wisconsin Credit Union hosted 2,878 people at their 2025 Summit Fest, described as both an annual membership meeting and appreciation event.
• 2:12
  SPEAKER_00: My first credit union, best source credit union, served Macy's employees.
• 2:17
  SPEAKER_00: I remember the stories of the annual meeting being hosted in downtown Detroit with dinner and dancing.
• 2:23
  SPEAKER_00: The credit union had a bus that would stop at the department stores all around Metro Detroit and pick up members to converge at the annual meeting.
• 2:32
  SPEAKER_00: This past week, I was reminded of why these in real life connections matter so deeply.
• 2:39
  SPEAKER_00: Our Orsa Credit Union grand opening of our Novi Michigan branch brought together team members, members, board members, community leaders, nonprofit organizations, neighbors, family members, and friends.
• 2:54
  SPEAKER_00: As I walked around the room and visited with those who joined us, the new branch buzzed with energy.
• 3:01
  SPEAKER_00: With a DJ playing, people danced as they chatted.
• 3:05
  SPEAKER_00: The food, especially desserts, drew people in for seconds and thirds.
• 3:11
  SPEAKER_00: The speeches elevated the story of Orsa and the experience of community.
• 3:17
  SPEAKER_00: One member stopped and asked, why does the building look like this?
• 3:22
  SPEAKER_00: I was so thrilled, he asked.
• 3:24
  SPEAKER_00: I shared that our open concept is intended to be our living room.
• 3:29
  SPEAKER_00: I talked with him about how, for many people, using a financial institution can feel intimidating and even shame-inducing.
• 3:37
  SPEAKER_00: I explained that removing lines and physical barriers allows our team to connect on a human level with our members and the community and sends a signal that we put people first.
• 3:52
  SPEAKER_00: This member nodded and said, that made sense.
• 3:55
  SPEAKER_00: He also told me that he'd been with us since the mid-1970s and he'd be sticking with us.
• 4:01
  SPEAKER_00: During my remarks that evening, I shared that every Sunday in my house we host Pizza Night.
• 4:08
  SPEAKER_00: We've been doing so since before my daughter Mackenzie was born.
• 4:11
  SPEAKER_00: So it's been over 16 years.
• 4:14
  SPEAKER_00: I grow pizza.
• 4:15
  SPEAKER_00: While the pizza is so fun to create, and I look forward to eating it all week.
• 4:20
  SPEAKER_00: The pizza is not the centerpiece.
• 4:24
  SPEAKER_00: The people are, especially since we've moved back to Michigan.
• 4:28
  SPEAKER_00: My in-laws and my parents come nearly every weekend.
• 4:31
  SPEAKER_00: We have friends, loved ones, and colleagues who join us.
• 4:35
  SPEAKER_00: Each quarter, I create a new playlist for Pizza Night.
• 4:38
  SPEAKER_00: I curate songs from across genres and decades.
• 4:42
  SPEAKER_00: Click here for a Pizza Night playlist from 2025 to get a sense.
• 4:47
  SPEAKER_00: Often, when family or friends are with us, they'll remark about the playlist or songs that they enjoy.
• 4:54
  SPEAKER_00: Similarly, as I make the pizza, our guests can count on one with pesto and mozzarella every week.
• 5:00
  SPEAKER_00: Just as often, our guests can also count on a new creation like croque moucheur, Dijon mustard, gruyere, ham, and cornichants, or a barbecue pizza, barbecue sauce, cheddar cheese, pulled pork, and coleslaw.
• 5:15
  SPEAKER_00: Pizza Night connects across the senses as the playlist comes to life.
• 5:20
  SPEAKER_00: People chat about their week, the sense of pulled pork cooking all day long linger.
• 5:26
  SPEAKER_00: Dogs get a pet behind the ears, hugs are exchanged, and quick snacks of bacon or cheese get snagged as the dough rises and the cheese bubbles.
• 5:37
  SPEAKER_00: Typically, everyone huddles in the kitchen and I zip back and forth between the kitchen and the grill.
• 5:42
  SPEAKER_00: My dad, Floyd, and my father-in-law Jeff often make sure the sliding patio door is open wide enough for me to get through with four pizzas.
• 5:50
  SPEAKER_00: They've developed a fist bump that they start the evening with.
• 5:53
  SPEAKER_00: Marge brings a salad and often has an update on our reading group's latest book.
• 5:58
  SPEAKER_00: My mom, Liz, offers to chop veggies and bag the extras for McKenzie's lunches.
• 6:03
  SPEAKER_00: All the grandparents are eager to hear about McKenzie's week.
• 6:07
  SPEAKER_00: In a life that can feel heavy and lonely and too connected to my devices, on Sunday night, outside of starting and nudging my chosen playlist, my phone is removed from my hip.
• 6:21
  SPEAKER_00: Life feels a little easier.
• 6:23
  SPEAKER_00: The tradition brings me incredible peace because I belong.
• 6:30
  SPEAKER_00: Belonging matters today more than ever.
• 6:33
  SPEAKER_00: The American Psychological Association found that half of adults in this country feel isolated, left out, or without companionship, often or some of the time.
• 6:44
  SPEAKER_00: Half.
• 6:46
  SPEAKER_00: That isolation doesn't stay in one lane.
• 6:49
  SPEAKER_00: It shows up in how people feel about money.
• 6:52
  SPEAKER_00: Shame keeps people away from the very institutions built to help them.
• 6:57
  SPEAKER_00: Connection isn't a soft add-on to what we do.
• 7:00
  SPEAKER_00: It's the front door that swings right open to our living room.
• 7:06
  SPEAKER_00: As a financial cooperative, concern for community, the seventh cooperative principle, guides our impact.
• 7:12
  SPEAKER_00: Quote, while focusing on member needs, cooperatives work for the sustainable development of communities through policies and programs accepted by the members.
• 7:22
  SPEAKER_00: The way that community grows is through connection, and events are a conduit to that connection.
• 7:29
  SPEAKER_00: Credit unions have an opportunity to enhance relevance, grow, and create more impact through a strategic event strategy.
• 7:37
  SPEAKER_00: Whether launching a strategic event strategy as part of your 2027 plan or enhancing a longstanding commitment to strategic events, here are five ways to enhance our activation of the seventh cooperative principle.
• 7:55
  SPEAKER_00: One, connect to strategy.
• 7:59
  SPEAKER_00: More than four years ago, Orsa Credit Union launched HERD.
• 8:03
  SPEAKER_00: With a strategic pillar to be a best friend to women and those who love them, creating a curated, intimate event highlighting the journeys of women across life's light and dark moments allows us to bring women together to activate learning, listen, and make sure the next generation of women sees an array of choices for their future.
• 8:26
  SPEAKER_00: The experience of Herd creates the possibility for even stronger financial futures simply through enhanced choice and networks.
• 8:36
  SPEAKER_00: Herd ties directly to our long-term vision.
• 8:40
  SPEAKER_00: 2.
• 8:41
  SPEAKER_00: Engage outside in and inside out.
• 8:44
  SPEAKER_00: Many credit unions have invested in an annual event for the full team to come together.
• 8:50
  SPEAKER_00: At Orsa, with a diffuse team spread across the great state of Michigan and beyond, our annual C3 event, Community Connection and Collaboration, is the only time when our entire team has space together.
• 9:03
  SPEAKER_00: While we are big believers in the flexibility of remote work, human beings need other human beings.
• 9:11
  SPEAKER_00: And time spent together creates connections that enable a stronger culture.
• 9:16
  SPEAKER_00: We also use this time for learning, collective volunteering, and celebration.
• 9:22
  SPEAKER_00: This event is core to our commitment to shaping the future of work.
• 9:28
  SPEAKER_00: Three, involve all five senses.
• 9:31
  SPEAKER_00: Just like on Sunday Pizza Night, one way to make an event unforgettable and memorable is to curate the experience across the senses.
• 9:40
  SPEAKER_00: What will your attendees hear, feel, see, taste, and touch?
• 9:45
  SPEAKER_00: For each of those senses, consider what might be a signature part of your strategic events.
• 9:52
  SPEAKER_00: At the Stearns home, that includes our playlists and the Pesto Mozzarella pizza, and how you might infuse surprise and delight elements unique to each event.
• 10:04
  SPEAKER_00: 4.
• 10:05
  SPEAKER_00: Be the bridge to belonging.
• 10:08
  SPEAKER_00: Whether someone is attending one of your events for the first time or has been at many of your events, the warmth and connectivity that your organization creates will determine who returns.
• 10:21
  SPEAKER_00: Make sure that leaders and people across your team talk to those who are not yet engaged, ask questions, and find ways to connect people who have never connected.
• 10:33
  SPEAKER_00: In the spring, the Backbone Coalition hosted a semi-annual collaborative event.
• 10:38
  SPEAKER_00: One attendee shared that his experience meant so much because it was one of the few opportunities in our movement for creative and marketing executives to spend significant time with credit union CEOs who see storytelling as a business amplifier.
• 10:55
  SPEAKER_00: This moment of connection will extend to more connections and more learning over time.
• 11:00
  SPEAKER_00: And it started because of the sense of belonging that began in that meeting.
• 11:07
  SPEAKER_00: When your organization is the bridge for connection, you bring to life concern for community.
• 11:13
  SPEAKER_00: You also create an experience that attendees will rave about to their friends.
• 11:19
  SPEAKER_00: 5.
• 11:20
  SPEAKER_00: The details are never small.
• 11:24
  SPEAKER_00: Events thrive when the details matter.
• 11:27
  SPEAKER_00: Strategic events play an imperative role in bringing purpose and vision to life.
• 11:33
  SPEAKER_00: They also falter when the small elements of experience are missed.
• 11:37
  SPEAKER_00: For example, at the recent National Credit Union Foundation inaugural Financial Wellbeing Exchange, FWBX, with experiential sessions, each table had a microphone that could engage breakout groups.
• 11:52
  SPEAKER_00: While this seems like a tiny measure, the strategic impact of the flow of the session was enormous for two reasons.
• 12:00
  SPEAKER_00: First, everyone in the room could hear one another.
• 12:04
  SPEAKER_00: Secondly, the meeting did not lag as Micrunner zipped and ran across a large ballroom.
• 12:10
  SPEAKER_00: Over time, your strategic events team can create playbooks that capture these details that elevate experiences consistently.
• 12:18
  SPEAKER_00: As we continue to share the story of credit unions and live the seventh cooperative principle, strategic events can play a role in magnifying our momentum.
• 12:28
  SPEAKER_00: At a time when our devices make us feel more connected than ever, we continue to feel even more isolated.
• 12:36
  SPEAKER_00: As community leaders, in real life experiences curated to nurture belonging can change that.
• 12:43
  SPEAKER_00: The founders of our movement traveled across our country to share time together, and that connection sparked organizations that serve us to this day.
• 12:54
  SPEAKER_00: Their example and commitment shine, creating a path to inspire event experiences well into the future.
• 13:02
  SPEAKER_00: How might your leadership team integrate a strategic event strategy into your 2027 plan?
• 13:10
  SPEAKER_00: This concludes today's reading.