This holiday season, we wanted to celebrate the people who make Arbor what it is, YOU, our members, while also shining a light on the local organizations helping families have a brighter holiday across the communities we serve.
So, as part of our 90th-anniversary celebration and the season of giving, we hosted a five-week social media giveaway: each week, one member won $90, and we matched it with a $90 donation to a local food bank or pantry in the winner’s county. Small moments of fun turned into real support for our neighbors.
Here are the winners and the community partners who helped make the season brighter.
Meet our first winner, Jonce! Jounce loves our Three Rivers branch and was ecstatic to receive the call that he won. He celebrated with our Three Rivers team and will be using the funds to do some home improvement projects this year. We also gave $90 to Generous Hands in Kalamazoo County. Generous Hands was started in 2004 to help children receive supplementary food on the weekends. That mission is still going strong, and today, 366 children are enrolled in their program. They give power Packs to each of the 366 kids weekly. The Power Pack is shelf-stable food that the kids can fix on their own, on the weekends when they don't have free and reduced lunch. With winter break, the program needed more food, so our $90 was used right away to help get fruit and healthy snack options.
Meet our week two winner, Ashley! Ashley's dad was an employee at Arbor, so she has been a member since she was a little girl. She was excited to win and planned to use her winnings on extra presents this Christmas. In addition to Ashley winning, we also gave $90 to Elenor's pantry in Van Buren County. Elenor's Pantry has been helping families since 2009; in fact, they help 75-100 families a week. The pantry can get over 180 pounds of food for $90, so they will be able to help even more families this holiday season.
Meet our third winner, Jessaca! She started her membership with us by opening her first car loan, and since then, her membership has grown with her needs. She was excited to tell us how much she enjoys our friendly service and great products. She plans to use the winnings to use the money to spend quality time making memories with family this holiday season. We also gave $90 to the Three Rivers Food Site, helping our neighbors in the Three Rivers Community.
Meet our Fourth winner, Anna! Anna was so excited when we called with the good news, calling it the perfect holiday surprise. She was excited to treat herself and her family with the winnings after a fabulous holiday together. We also gave $90 to the Allegan County Food Bank, which prides themself on letting people choose the food they get instead of giving prepared grocery so that families can feel confident and feel like they are going to the store. They plan to use the $90 donation to get staple items like milk and eggs that can't always be purchased with grant funding but are needed by families.
Meet our last winner, Marcia! Marcia has been supporting us since we were school employees credit union. She was happy to receive the news she won and plans to use the money to celebrate the new year. We also donated to the Wyoming Family Network, located close to our Grand Rapids locations. Arbor's Caring Committee has worked closely with this organization since 2022. They provide healthy food options and durable medical equipment to families in need. Our contact at the organization was so happy, stating, "Holiday donations are always appreciated and go a long way as we see an increased need and families want to create the holiday magic they deserve. This donation, in addition to the caring committee donation, is such a blessing."
We want to thank you for 90 years of being able to serve you and your family and help grow our community. Here's to 90 more years together!