By By JAMES COLLINS / Niles Daily Star
NILES -- The largest credit union in the State of Indiana has expanded its business into Michigan for the first time with the opening of a Teachers Credit Union in Niles.
Construction of the impressive new service center was recently completed and opened for business in January.
The state of the art facility is located at 1500 S. 11th St and is nearly 6,700 square feet.
On Wednesday, from 5 to 7:30 p.m., the credit union will be hosting an open house and Business After Hours event, which is co-sponsored by the Four Flags Area Chamber of Commerce.
TCU will also be holding a different grand opening special each day next week.
Mark Berta, manager of the Niles Service Center, said the new facility has been getting a great response from the community.
Berta explained the main difference between a credit union and a bank is that credit unions are membership based.
In order to become a member of the credit union, you must have a family member in the household who is a member or your employer must write a petition letter asking for approval on behalf of that organization's employees.
Berta encourages anyone who is interested to ask their employer to petition.
Berta said TCU provides its members with a number of the different financial services including savings, checking accounts with no monthly fees, direct deposit, low-cost loans and mortgages, home banking, and bill payments. In addition to those traditional financial services, members can also take advantage of TCU's investment, insurance, and travel agency services. The Niles Service Center will have investment representatives available on Tuesdays and Wednesdays or upon appointment to talk about any of their brokerage services. Asmus said the Niles Service Center is the first TCU branch to house their own full time insurance agency. Their full service travel agency service can assist members with planning international and domestic travels. Berta pointed to TCU's hours of operation as one of their most popular features. Their drive-thru is open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Monday through Friday. The lobby is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday and until 5:30 on Friday. Both the drive-thru and the lobby are open from 9 a.m to noon on Saturday.