Three dedicated Credit Union visionaries from Georgia were committed to becoming better acquainted with other African- Americans attending the CUNA Governmental Affairs Conferences. 

Gene Johnson and Pete Crear were very instrumental in encouraging Sheilah B. Montgomery and Calvin Tucker to create a meet and greet. They decided to invite people to Holgate’s Seafood Restaurant. 

Tucker would stand in the hallways inviting other African-Americans to meet for dinner at the informal gathering. The first gathering was a success and the opportunity to network was so valued that a core group committed to consistently including the annual gathering in their personal itineraries for the GAC.

From 1993 – 1995, the group began to seriously discuss the feasibility of forming an association that would cater to the specific needs of African Americans in the Credit Union Movement and their organizations. 

The African-American Credit Union Coalition (AACUC), was formally organized in 1995 by credit union volunteers and professionals at one such meeting at Holgate’s Seafood Restaurant in Washington, D.C. 

Those present at the formal organizing meeting were: Carol Aranjo, Dr. Willie Bryant, Paul Dumars, Eva F. Edmon, Eldridge Etienne, Helen Godfrey-Smith, Gary Holmes, Gene Johnson, Cleveland Lockett, W. Scott Logan, Sheila Montgomery, Phyllis Moore, Martin Olagbegi, Goldie C. Randle, Roderick Sanders, Brenda Simmons, Dr. Benjamin Stephenson, Byron A. Taylor, Jennifer Taylor, Calvin Tucker, Richard Turnley, Charles Williams, A. Lee Williams, George Wright and Louisiana Wright. Strong Supporters who were unable to attend: JoAnn Bailey, Pete Crear, Shirley Jenkins, and Leroy Nesbitt, Jr.

The Coalition was created to initiate a platform that would increase diversity at all levels of the Credit Union Movement and provide an avenue to exchange ideas and experiences to bring value to the Movement.