News
Wednesday, 15th May 2024
Let us take a look back at our Darlington Credit Union winners since we first set up our With You DCU savings account in September 2023.
Back in September 2023, we set up our With You DCU prize draw account. If you have not heard about this savings account here is an introduction. Our new account encourages new and existing members to invest £200, no more and no less, in the 'with you DCU' savings account. These philanthropic investments will help us to lend to those who need it most and who, for many reasons, cannot access other forms of borrowing. So, what is in it for you? A monthly draw will see winning members able to donate £100 to a charity or worthy cause of their choice as a thank-you for their philanthropy and support of Darlington Credit Union!
So let us look back at our winners and their chosen charity donations since the introduction of With You DCU.
Richard's story. Richard was our very first winner and we interviewed him to find out more.
Did you know what a credit union was before you opened a 'with you DCU' savings account?
I first became aware of Credit Unions through my work and was attracted to their mission of helping people in a practical way to become more financially capable, through education and support.
After finding out Richard is a regular saver with DCU, we asked why. Why do you choose to save with DCU?
I see it in a similar light to premium bonds, I may get a little return on my investment or not, but my money is safe and I can withdraw it any time I need to. I particularly like saving with DCU because I know my savings are being put to good use in helping people in a practical way to improve their financial circumstances.
Now to find out why he opened his 'With you DCU' account!
I thought it was a great idea, and the interest I would earn on £200 in the bank wasn’t worth worrying about. 'With you DCU' offers an opportunity to support more good causes and provide more support for DCU.
Which good cause did you choose to donate the £100 to?
After some careful consideration over which good cause I wanted to support with the winnings, I chose the 700 Club!For me, the 700 Club is a local organisation giving homeless people practical support to get off the streets, not just showing them what to do, but actually giving them the tools to do it.
The 700 Club responded to this donation with this.
"We would like to express our gratitude to Richard for nominating the 700 Club as the recipient of DCU's charitable 'thank you' donation. We wish DCU every success in this new initiative."Dr. John Elliston.
October's winner of our with you DCU prize draw was Janice Lincoln
'I am a member of DCU as I believe in their ethos of looking after the financially excluded and vulnerable in Darlington. I was very pleased to win the With you DCU prize for October and decided to donate it to Darlington Mind who I know play an important role in the community supporting mental well-being. They deserve this donation, keep up the good work to both institutions.'
November’s With you DCU winner was Sue Cross
'I am very proud to be a with you DCU account holder. A £200 investment that helps others to borrow from DCU and improve their financial stability. As this month's winner I am delighted to be sending my donation to Maxi's Mates, a dog rescue and rehoming center in Dunsdale, Teesside. The team there does so much to care for and rehome dogs who were abandoned or handed in. I am a huge dog lover and Molly my cocker spaniel is a regular at the DCU office where she is only too willing to help team members eat their lunch.'
Jonathan's story.
Our December winner, Jonathan, opted to donate his £100 philanthropic prize to CLAWS (Communities Living Among Wildlife Sustainability). CLAWS works with families in Botswana to help with human/wildlife conflict.
This is what winning means to Jonathan.
“DCU has been a fantastic support to me. After a difficult period, I needed a banking facility that was willing to listen, understand, and support me. After meeting with the CEO, Sue Cross, she took me on board and did this in every way. Jo and the staff are brilliant, compassionate, caring, conscientious, and accessible people who give a service that banks cannot match, mainly because they don’t care as the people of DCU do.
It's been fantastic to get to know DCU and to have their service, it made me feel human again and I am very grateful for their professional service and care. Retail Banking is no longer like this but DCU keeps a personal service alive.”
Arthur's donation.
Our January winner, Arthur, proudly donated his £100 prize to Guide Dogs for the Blind. With a volunteer connection to DCU, Arthur has been a member of us for a long time. Thank you, Arthur, for your continued support.
Councillor Kevin Nicholson. Our February winner was Councillor Kevin Nicholson, whose chosen charity donation was presented to Friends of St. Cuthbert's Church. This is his story.
“I opened a With You DCU account because it’s great to know that by saving with a responsible local credit union, you can help support local good causes at the same time. The friends of Saint Cuthbert’s Church do incredible work throughout the year to maintain and make accessible our wonderful Town Centre Church; hard work which often goes unnoticed.”
We heard from Friends of St. Cuthbert's Church what this donation means to them.
"We are very grateful to receive this cheque. It will enable us in our vision to transform lives, our building and be a part of transforming our town of Darlington."
Our With you DCU charitable donations continued.
March's winner Rob chose to donate his £100 charitable prize to Leanne's fundraiser for Macmillan Cancer Support. We are pleased to support the work of Macmillan Cancer Support from our With You DCU prize fund.
April's winner was a long-term DCU saver Archie, who chose Darlington Association Disability for his £100 charitable donation. Darlington Association Disability exists to promote independence and choice, supporting disabled people and carers through the provision of services, support, and information, and by tackling issues affecting disabled people both locally and nationally.
Is there a cause or charity close to your heart that could use a boost of support? Let's make a difference together.
https://www.darlingtoncreditunion.co.uk/with-you-dcu/
However, we didn’t stop there. We have introduced our Save to Win savings account in 2024. Helping members save little and often, with the chance to win up to £100 in quarterly prize draws.
We had our April winners for the first Save To Win prize draw.
Thank you to everyone who has become a Save To Win member with us, we contacted our first three winners of the £50 and £100 prizes, congratulations to our lucky trio!
If you want to be in with a chance for the upcoming prize draws, those who have saved a minimum of £10 a month in the three months before the draw will be eligible, with prizes of £100 and 2 x £50 up for grabs. If you haven't already opened an account, don't worry, start saving now and you could be our next winner.
https://www.darlingtoncreditunion.co.uk/saving/save-to-win/
Look out for more ways to win with Darlington Credit Union, and stay up-to-date on our socials, newsletters, and website.
