Hope Community Credit Union (HOPE) was organized in 1995 by the members
of Anderson United Methodist Church as Mississippi's only church-sponsored
credit union.
The credit union grew out of a desire to foster asset development, cooperation
and self-empowerment among low-income Jackson residents. HOPE also sought
to promote savings and community reinvestment in distressed communities,
educate youth about economics and finance, and provide greater access to
financial services for its members.
By 1999 HOPE was still extremely small and run by part-time volunteers.
They were finding it increasingly difficult to manage. HOPE began to look
for additional sponsors.
In February 2000 HOPE expanded its field of membership to include several
groups that share a mission of community development. Among these were the
Amos Network and its approximately 28 member churches; Fellowship of Hope
Ministries with fifteen member churches; the 100 Concerned Clergy with over
fifty member churches; Voice of Calvary Ministries and New Horizon Ministries.
The expanded field of membership and the new sponsors helped HOPE grow ten
fold in the space of two years.
In August 2002 the Enterprise Corporation of the Delta (ECD) became HOPE's
primary sponsor. One of the nation's leading community development financial
institutions, ECD provides commercial, mortgage and community facilities
loans in economically distressed areas of Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi.
This alliance has enabled HOPE and ECD to increase their provision of
financial services to low-income communities and residents in the region.
In 2005, HOPE was recognized as the fastest growing credit union in the
nation for building it's deposit. A 2007 survey ranked HOPE for the fifth
largest increase in membership growth in the country during 2005 and 2006.