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Moapa Valley Credit Union Celebrates 50 Years

	The board of the Moapa Valley Credit Union was, as it is today, made up of a board of seven members. Pictured above are four of the first members of the MV Credit Union’s Board of directors. Left to right Harlan M. Lyon, first president of the board; Masako Y. Windsor, first Treasurer; John F. Moser, and Grant M. Bowler board members.


	By Tim Robison Moapa Valley Progress Seven Moapa Valley residents met and organized the Moapa Valley Federal Credit Union on Tuesday, August 19, 1958. The need for a local financial institution had been keenly felt in the community. With the help of Harold McKay, a Southern Nevada educator and Vice President of the Clark County Teachers Credit Union, the seven residents formed the first board of directors. The officers of that first board were Harlan M. Lyon who served as President, Irvin Bryner who served as Vice President, Patricia Harris served as the Clerk, and Masako Y. Windsor served as the Treasurer. Three men served as directors on the board John F. Moser, Grant M. Bowler, and Mads B. Jorgensen. Each of these founders pledged a $5 share becoming charter shareholders. In 2008 dollars, a 1958, five-dollar bill is worth around $40. To form a credit union in 2008, it would cost a bit more than either dollar amount. According to Moapa Valley Credit Union history, the credit union operated out of the typing room of the Moapa Valley School, in Overton. This was back in the day when children in the Valley attended kindergarten through the twelfth-grade all in what is today the Mack Lyon Middle School. Retired Moapa Valley teacher Val Smith was an active proponent of the credit union from the beginning. When the credit union opened, Smith encouraged all his students to join, expounding to them the virtues of saving and investing money when young. “I remember talking about it to my Junior High classes for several days…on one day I asked the students if any would like to join,” Smith explained. “Many hands went up, we took a class period that day and went over to the district office building and Masako signed up almost all of my class. As I recall, the fee to join at that time was only 25 cents.” Within three years of the founding, the credit union held just over $3,000 in assets invested. Twenty-years later in 1978, the amount was over a million dollars. Today the Moapa Valley Credit Union manages the assets of 7,500 members worth roughly $68 million. “It is not really the goal of the Credit Union to grow just for growth’s sake,” said Moapa Valley Credit Union President and CEO Doug Schwartz. “The Credit Union has grown as the community it serves has grown we want it to be financially safe and sound.” In its golden anniversary year, the Credit Union is planning to celebrate in high style with the community that it serves. Each month will have a theme and a motto. The theme for March will be ‘Shredding 50 Years of Paperwork with the Credit Union’. The credit union will be hosting a shredding company to come to the community and help credit union members shred their old and sensitive documents. “The Credit Union was founded by the community and it is our goal to always be there to serve the community,” Schwartz said. “We believe in community participation we are active in everything the fair, the car show, and the schools there are a lot of people in the community who count on us. First and foremost we are a community institution.”