The
Police Credit Union History
HOW AND WHY THE POLICE CREDIT UNION
STARTED
In 1946 a young policeman, Harold W. Anthony,
had a vision and convinced 25 employees of the Toronto Police
Force to sign their names and pledge a $0.25 membership commitment
each to establish the Toronto Police (Employees) Credit Union
Limited. The mission was to provide economical, confidential,
convenient service with low cost loans to fellow employees.
OUR NAME
The Police Credit Union Limited as it is presently
known was formed under the name of the Toronto Police (Employee's)
Credit Union Limited. It was organized in 1946 with a Memorandum
of Association, as prescribed under The Credit Unions Act
of 1946, administered by the Minister of Agriculture and
approved on the 20th day of April 1946. In May
1967, the name changed to Metro Toronto Police Credit Union
Limited, and the present name change came in 1994 to the
Police Credit Union Limited.
OUR LOCATION
The first real headquarters was in the basement
of the former No. 5 Division on Davenport Road. Later for
a rental fee, we were given a room above what was then No.
12 police station on Yonge Street at Montgomery Avenue just
north of Eglinton, our first external office space. As the
credit union grew, so did the requirement for space. In February
1960, the membership consented to purchase (for $177,000)
property on Yonge Street, just north of the 401. In 2003,
the Yonge and Sheppard property was sold and new premises
were leased on the third and first floors at 3650 Victoria
Park Avenue for the Corporate Offices and Toronto Branch.
BOND OF ASSOCIATION
In 1946 membership was restricted to employees
of and persons on pension from the police force of the City
of Toronto, in the County of York, together with the wives
and dependent children of such persons. Over the years our
bond expanded to include other police forces including York,
Peel, Durham, Cobourg, Port Hope and RCMP "O" Division
as well as employees of the Police Credit Union Limited.
In 1999 our bond was expanded once more to all employees
and persons on pension from police services in the Province
of Ontario, employees of related Police Associations and
Police Organizations.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
In the early years, the Toronto Police (Employees)
Credit Union Ltd was organized to provide certain financial
services for employees of the Toronto Police Force.
- (a) First to receive monies on deposit
from members as payment for shares
- (b) Second for making loans to members for
provident purposes
The Police Credit Union is a co-operative,
owned by the members who use it. The organizational structure
is designed with the members at the top, represented by a
democratically elected Board of Directors. These Directors
volunteer their time to ensure that the credit union is operated
in the best interest of the members. The Police Credit Union
has been fortunate to attract high-calibre individuals to
the staff and Board throughout its history. The members at
the annual meeting elect the Board of Directors. They are
in charge of the affairs of the credit union during the year.
They are elected for three-year staggered terms, so that
at all times a majority of the board have had one or more
years of experience.
THE ANNUAL MEETING
The Annual Meeting is the most important function
of the Credit Union year. It provides the individual member
with the opportunity to consider, to question and to commend
the officers for accomplishments of the past and to establish
by-laws for the future. It is the time when the elected officials
must give an account of their stewardship during the year
that is ended and when new officers are selected for the
coming year.
PRODUCTS AND SERVICES
As the credit union industry grew and matured,
so too did the services. We have had numerous by-law changes
throughout the years, the Police Credit Union has never hesitated
to navigate uncharted waters in product development. In 1948,
we received permission from the Board to start payroll deduction.
This is now automated to allow direct deposit of total pay.
With teller machines (ATMs) at almost every corner, you
can access your Police Credit Union accounts anytime, anywhere.
Today, we can access all of our accounts from the largest
Department store to the smallest corner store with Point-Of-Sale
(POS) Direct Payment through the INTERAC ® network.
In 2000 we launched our website and introduced Homebanking
to our membership.
WHY THE POLICE CREDIT UNION WILL CONTINUE
We are still a co-operative owned by the members.
Our philosophy, when we began in 1946, was "not for
profit - but for service" and that is true today. We
have had numerous changes throughout the years and today
we can boast at being a "full service"
financial institution. The mission and co-operative principles
that launched the credit union are still the backbone of
plans and objectives today.
