Mr. Herman Williams Jr. is the Chairman of the Board for MECU of Baltimore, Inc., Baltimore, MD. He has been in the credit union movement for 25 years.

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Accomplishments:

• Chairman Herman Williams Jr. (known as the “Chief’) began his membership as a credit union member in 1954 when he joined the Baltimore City Fire Department. He was elected to the MECU Board of Directors in 1990 and quickly established himself as a strong advocate for the average member. He was elected Chairman of the Board in 1992, a position he has held for the past 23 years.
   

• During Herman’s tenure as Chairman, MECU has grown from $325 million in assets in 1992 to $1.2 billion at the end of 2014. The membership has also grown from 52,515 members in 1992 to over 117,000 members currently. MECU’s one branch system has grown to ten branches, with an extensive network of ATMs and competitive products and services.​

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• Chairman Williams was a driving force in the Recodification of the Credit Union Law that had not been changed since 1936. Beginning in 1997, he brought together the Chairmen of the Boards of the Maryland State Charted Credit Unions to develop a plan to address these regulations in the State Legislature. He also met with the Commissioner of Financial Regulations, Robert Hergenroeder, and gained his support as well as other representatives of the Governor. His continued leadership resulted in efforts to have legislation passed creating a Task Force on the Recodification of the Credit Union Law appointed by the Governor. The Maryland Credit Union Law was rewritten and went into effect in October 2001. The passing of this new law gave parity for the Maryland Credit Unions with the Federal Chartered Credit Unions and the State Chartered Banks.
   

• During his tenure, Chairman Williams has encouraged and led a community service cultural change at MECU. At the state level, MECU has repeatedly received the prestigious “Louise Herring Credit Union Philosophy in Action” Award and 9 “Dora Maxwell Social Responsibility for Community Service” Awards including a National award in 2014. Between 2003 and 2014, MECU employees directly contributed over $700,000 toward community redevelopment volunteering over 40,000 hours of their time valued at over $1,000,000. This investment of both time and money is a crucial differentiator that helps set MECU apart from other businesses in the community.

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Commitment to Serve the African American Community:

• In 2004 Chairman Williams initiated the MECU Charity Cup Golf Tournament. To date, the Charity Cup has raised over $350,000.00 that has been donated back to the communities. Proceeds from this golf tournament are also donated to 9 Baltimore City schools that MECU has partnered with over the past 10 years.

• In 2011 under Chairman Williams’s leadership, MECU of Baltimore, Inc. received certification as a community development financial institution (CDFI). This certification is provided by the US Treasury Department’s CDFI Fund to financial institutions committed to financial inclusion and to providing access to affordable financial services in underserved communities. To obtain the certification, financial institutions must demonstrate that at least 60% of their financing activities are targeted to a qualifying target market as defined by the CDFI Fund. MECU’s certification application indicates that over 70% of its membership is low income and/or lives in economically depressed, financially underserved communities.

• MECU has been a major sponsor of the AACUC since its beginning. In addition, MECU hires several interns each year to give them work place experience.   MECU is also a major sponsor of the Maryland/DC Credit Union Foundation and donations to the foundation are used specifically for scholarships.