Vancity announces 2013 Board of Directors election results

May 3, 2013 - For Immediate Release

Vancouver, British Columbia. The results of the 2013 Vancity Board of Directors election have been compiled and Vancity is pleased to announce that Virginia Weiler, Bob Williams and Allen Garr have been elected to a three-year term as Directors. The returning Directors will again bring their expertise and values to help guide the direction of the credit union ensuring great things keep happening at Vancity and in our communities.

“We’re run by our members for our members and we thank the 11 Vancity members who put their names forward as candidates for the board of Canada’s largest community credit union,” says Patrice Pratt, Chair of the Nominations and Election Committee. “And we send a big thank you to all of our members for putting democracy into action and casting your ballot for the members you want representing your voice and influencing the direction our credit union takes.”

The election took place April 2 to 26, 2013. Vancity members voted to fill three Director positions for a three-year term.

Member participation in the 2013 Director’s election increased 16% overall from 2012 with the total of 21,268 valid ballots and 58,207 votes cast. Members voted in-branch, by mail and online, with a 48% increase in online voting this year. The following three candidates received the highest total votes cast:

Virginia Weiler, current chair of the Vancity Board and a member of Vancity since 1997, received 14,430 votes.

Bob Williams, a member since 1980, received 9,645 votes.

Allen Garr, a member since 1979, received 8,237 votes.

“This year more members took the time to vote and tell us who they wanted to lead their credit union. We saw a sixteen per cent increase in the number of votes cast,” says Patrice Pratt, Chair of the Nominations and Election Committee. “As a financial co-operative we are delighted to hear from our members in this way – it highlights the power members have within a member-owned credit union.”

About Vancity

Vancity is a values-based financial co-operative serving the needs of its more than 492,000 member-owners and their communities through 57 branches in Metro Vancouver, the Fraser Valley, Victoria and Squamish. As Canada’s largest community credit union, Vancity uses its $17.1 billion in assets to help improve the financial wellbeing of its members while at the same time helping to develop healthy, sustainable communities. Member deposits enable the credit union to loan to other members, businesses and organizations that are creating positive economic, social and environmental impact in their communities. In addition, since 1994 Vancity has given more than $238 million to members through dividends and to communities through grants and community investment initiatives. Vancity is a Living Wage employer and a member of the Global Alliance for Banking on Values, a network of the world’s leading sustainable banks sharing a commitment to achieving triple-bottom-line impact through responsible banking practices.

Visit our website at www.vancity.com. Tweet us @vancity and connect with us on Facebook.com/Vancity.

Contact: mediarelations@vancity.com
778-837-0394

High-resolution photos available upon request.