Purvis honored with Wegner Award for ‘innovative spirit’

In recognition for his almost forty years of service to the credit union movement and innovative spirit pushing the movement forward, the National Credit Union Foundation Chuck Purvis, resident/CEO at Coastal CU, Raleigh, N.C., as the recipient of a 2018 Herb Wegner Memorial Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement.

"Chuck's tremendous work with Coastal Credit Union is well known and documented," said John Gregoire, chair of the Foundation's Wegner Awards Selection committee and president of The ProCon Group. "Chuck's contributions to the credit union movement are widespread and significant. For example, Chuck structured and drove the Community Investment Fund to fruition, which is the funding mechanism largely responsible for the continued sustenance for the Foundation and state credit union foundations."

Purvis’ award will be one of four Herb Wegner Memorial Awards presented at special fundraising event hosted by the Foundation at the Marriott Marquis Washington on Feb. 26, 2018 in conjunction with the CUNA Governmental Affairs Conference (GAC).

“Under Chuck’s leadership, ‘People Helping People’ is paramount to any decision that the credit union makes,” said Joe Mecca, AVP of Communication at Coastal. “Any new policy, product or program must benefit the members as much as it benefits the credit union, and our test is that decisions are ‘member-friendly and fair.’”

As president/CEO of Coastal, Purvis has exhibited an unrelenting dedication to giving back and improving the lives of those around him. He has structured the credit union’s vision around a balanced approach to returning value to Coastal’s membership, employees and the community. He understands that as a member-owned, community-focused financial cooperative, Coastal is uniquely positioned to help each of these groups to better themselves.

Purvis was instrumental in the creation of a member assistance program at Coastal following the 2008 financial crisis. The goal of the program is to help members remain current with their obligations and to avoid slipping into situations that would negatively affect their credit. Members experiencing financial difficulties that affect their ability to make their monthly loan payments can request assistance.

He also oversaw the re-evaluation of fee structures, eliminating 20 account fees and forgoing more than $600k in fee income while also establishing a new company minimum wage of $12.50 per hour, which went into effect last year.

Purvis was also instrumental in the development of Coastal’s patronage dividend program.  Originally labeled VIP and now Loyalty Bonus, the program has returned more than $11.7 million to members since its inception in 2012.

Purvis has shown his dedication not just to his employees and his membership, but also to his community with educational events for adults and teenagers. Financial Reality Fairs and on-site classes on budgeting, goal setting, borrowing, saving money and more are all used by Coastal to give back to the community.

Purvis’ passion for the well-being of Coastal’s membership and community was instrumental in the creation of the Coastal Credit Union Foundation, formed in 2011. The Foundation focuses on helping the financially vulnerable, increasing financial literacy and alleviating food insecurity in the community. Since the inception, the Coastal Credit Union Foundation has made more than $700,000 in grants, and Purvis currently sits on its board of directors.

Purvis has pushed innovation everywhere he goes, creating both the Community Investment Fund (CIF) and developing video banking systems. Purvis is a former chairman of the National Credit Union Foundation, and served on the board from 1995 to 2007. While on the board of the Foundation and working at U.S. Central at the time, it was Purvis’ personal efforts and foresight that he displayed while creating the Community Investment Fund. At its height, CIF held $350 million in investments and helped $10 million flow into the Foundation annually.