“The Credit Union movement… It is a great movement, worthy of great deeds, deserving of great loyalty.” -Edward Filene, Credit Union pioneer

Passion and purpose have been at the heart of the credit union movement from the beginning. Advocates like Edward Filene believed strongly that ordinary people could improve their standard of living by pooling their money together and lending it at reasonable rates to friends and neighbors. In this cooperative spirit, people of “modest means” would be able to create opportunity and security for themselves, and a brighter future for their community.

In recent years, Tucoemas has been striving to return to those roots. We want to be doers of great deeds, or as we like to say, we want to be a “freakin’ ray of sunshine.”  We want to earn the loyalty of future generations, not just because we all wear the same colored shirts, but because we are community-focused, passionate and personal.

Our new branch on Akers is the embodiment of our values. We wanted to build something beautiful that would delight our members, our staff and our community.  We wanted to make it a place that attracts people from the outside, and embraces people on the inside.  We wanted our team to look forward to coming to work, and our members to have a little thrill every time they entered. We wanted it to welcome the community, and provide a place for education and growth. We wanted it to make the world better, or at least Visalia.

Our new branch on Akers will be one of only three LEED Gold Certified credit unions in California, and one of only 12 in the country. It uses less water, creates its own electricity, and was built using reclaimed and recycled materials.  The landscaping is native, we have bike racks for cyclists and plug-ins for electric vehicles.  We have two state-of-the-art training rooms that are available to the community, trees and a living wall in the entry for improved air and ambience, and a full-service Expresso bar for quick transactions and a delicious caramel latte (yes… we know how to spell espresso).

We realize that we could’ve built a standard building. It would have been quicker and easier.  But that’s what everyone else is doing… it’s safe. We wanted to build something better, because this is our home, or to coin a phrase: “we’re local locals.”  We care about our purpose, our people and our planet. We wanted to build something that this community could be proud of. After nearly a year of some pretty dark days, we wanted to be a freakin’ ray of sunshine. Stop by and let us know how we did… after all, we did it for you.