50 episodes.

It’s hard to believe that I have been hosting Headlines and Fine Print for that long. Time really does fly.

Many of you may not know that when it began, it was a radio segment on WSJS with Jeffrey Griffin.

Then in 2023, we switched to the more traditional podcast format, in part thanks to Logan Angell, who’s behind the camera on our marketing team and has been a tremendous resource for editing, ideas and more.

In honor of the landmark 50^th episode, here are five of the biggest topics we covered during our time together:

1. Pay Yourself First: As soon as you get your paycheck or any other form of income, the first thing you should do is set aside an amount to go into an emergency fund or savings account. That way, you are proactive in having any funds you may need when unexpected situations happen.
2. Consider Christmas/Vacation Club Accounts: It’s never too late to start saving for the holidays or next year’s family trip. Whatever goal you are saving toward, these accounts are designed to give you a designated savings account for a specific purpose that you can earmark and fund.
3. Personal Finance is a Marathon, not a Sprint: As I have said in many episodes, there is no better day than today to start saving! Everyone must start their financial journey somewhere, and often the best way to begin saving is to set aside $25, $50 or $100 from each paycheck and watch your savings grow over time. Before you know it, you’re financially ready to reach your goals, whether to buy a house, a new car or send your children to college. Remember, you’re not going to go from living paycheck to paycheck to being a millionaire overnight. It’s a marathon. But each step you take gets you closer to your financial finish line.
4. Be Vigilant Against Fraud: Remember, if someone calls you out of the blue, claiming to be your credit union representative, and asks for personal information, such as your Social Security Number or debit card number, that is a fraudster! If this happens to you, immediately hang up and contact your financial institution.
5. Credit Unions as Advocates: In the past, we spent a few episodes discussing how credit union representatives are often involved in politics when it comes to legislation that was circulated and could affect credit unions, such as the Big, Beautiful Bill. Before the bill passed, some bank lobbyists sought to add a section that would remove credit unions’ federal income tax exemption. Thankfully, that section was not added to the bill. Credit unions are not-for-profit cooperatives that funnel the funds we don’t pay in federal income tax into better rates on deposits and loans and into investing in technology and branch services.

Over the past 50 episodes, we have not shied away from deeper topics, and I hope you have taken away something about what it means to be a credit union, especially that serving our members is at the heart of everything we do.

I mentioned earlier, this episode is a milestone as our 50^th in more ways than one. It’s also our final episode.

As many of you may know, Piedmont Advantage Credit Union is currently undergoing a potential merger with Truliant Federal Credit Union, our neighbors here in Winston-Salem.

Legal Day One is anticipated to be September 1^st, pending approval. If you’re reading this and a PACU member, I hope you see the benefits of this merger and vote to approve it when you receive your ballot in the mail.

Merging with Truliant will provide many benefits to our members, including access to over 40 branches, improved technology and the continued culture of people helping people.

We are excited about what the future holds, not only for PACU staff, but also for the 28,000 members we are privileged to serve.

It has been a true joy and a labor of love to host this podcast and to serve as PACU’s President and CEO over the past seven years.

I want to leave you with one of my favorite quotes from one of my favorite shows, The Office:

“I wish there was a way to know you’re in the good old days before you’ve actually left them.”