NCCU sets grand opening for new Johnson City branch   

By Greg Miller
star staff
gmiller@starhq.com

  JOHNSON CITY -- Northeast Community Credit Union has set the grand opening for its new branch office, located at 313 W. Oakland Avenue, on Thursday, July 22, from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. A ribbon cutting ceremony will be held at 12 p.m.
  "We have a strong member base out of Johnson City," said Sherri Stout, branch manager. "We're getting a very strong response with them being pleased with us opening up our branch here in Johnson City because of the convenience for them, whether they live here in Johnson City or they work in Johnson City. So we have an existing strong base of members that are planning to use our new location."
  The Johnson City branch, Stout believes, is in a good location. "I feel it's a very well picked location," she said. "There's a whole lot of traffic. We're getting excellent response from our members that it's a good location. We've set up the ATM and are already getting activity from members as well as non-members."
  With its office in Elizabethton, NCCU has served the area for more than half a century. "The credit union has actually been in business for 52 years," said Stout. "I have been with the credit union 16 of those years. I have gone from teller to Visa coordinator, to loan officer. I've pretty much done all the job responsibilities that there are to do and have been promoted up through the years."
  Stout's primary goal is to promote NCCU's services to both current and future members. "We just hope that our membership will grow," she said. "We feel that our specialty is treating people friendly, them coming in and feeling comfortable with sitting down and talking with us."
  Potential NCCU members, worship, live or work in Washington, Carter and Johnson counties. Products offered by NCCU include checking accounts, savings accounts, safety deposit boxes, CD's (certificates of deposit), a variety of loans, and IRAs (Individual Retirement Accounts).
  "The board of directors, the management staff and the staff at Northeast Community Credit Union are very supportive," Stout said. "They look out for the best interests of the members."
  Stout notes the importance of putting the members first. "With a credit union, the members own the business, so it's very important to put them first because they have ownership in the credit union. It's their credit union. We're taking their funds to operate the credit union and to offer them the cheapest interest rates that we can." she said.
  In addition to Stout, employees of the Johnson City branch include Tammy White and Nikki Smith, both of whom work as member service representatives.
  "We offer discount tickets to local attractions and also Dollywood and Carowinds," Stout said. "
  With assets of $38 million, NCCU features a 24-hour ATM. The facility is open Monday through Thursday from 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. and Friday from 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m.
  Members of the board of directors include Bill Armstrong, chairman; Raymond Hill, vice chairman; Vickey Broyles, secretary-treasurer; Wayne Pierce, JoAnn Campbell, Bill Ritchie, Kay Arnold, Dicky Clark, and Kathy Campbell.
  Stout's husband, Randy, works as a public safety officer with Tri-Cities Regional Airport. The couple reside in Elizabethton.
  For more information, call 772-6228, e-mail stout@chartertn.net, or log onto the Web site, www.nccu-tn.com.