History

70 Years of Service

Since 1952, TruWest Credit Union has been serving members in the Phoenix and Austin areas. From our humble start as a Motorola Credit Union, we have worked hard to expand our membership reach in the community, our number of Financial Service Centers and the services we offer.

 

TruWest Credit Union Timeline

1950s

  • 1952 – On August 12, Rufus Coulter, Head of Personnel for Motorola Government Electronics Group, gathers seven fellow Motorola Employees and each contribute $5 to form Motorola Credit Union, serving only Motorola employees
  • 1952 – The first board meeting is held in September and loans of up to $300 are extended to employees
  • 1957 – The first annual meeting is held and the Credit Union grows to 1,378 members
  • 1959 – New car loans of up to $2,500 are offered to Motorola employees

1960s

 

  • 1961 – The Hayden Branch office opens and the first loan manager is hired
  • 1962 – Membership increases to 5,000 members
  • 1964 – Membership expands to include retired Motorola employees
  • 1965 – The 8,000th member is awarded a transistor radio!
  • 1966 – Membership reaches 10,000 members

1970s

  • 1973 – Peter DiSylvester is named manager of the Credit Union
  • 1975 – The slogan “Once a Member, Always a Member” is implemented
  • 1975 – Membership expands to include spouses and dependent children
  • 1975 – The Christmas Club, traveler’s checks, unsecured lines of credit and money orders are added to the Credit Union offerings
  • 1976 – The Credit Union grows to nine branches
  • 1977 – The first full service branch opens in Austin, Texas and memberships increase to over 19,000
  • 1977 – Direct deposits are introduced
  • 1979 – Memberships can now include immediate family members
  • 1979 – A new credit union logo is introduced
  • 1979 – The first three ATMs are installed



1980s

 

  • 1982 – The 30th Anniversary is celebrated with the groundbreaking of the Roosevelt Branch
  • 1982 – Membership reaches 32,000
  • 1982 – The Credit Union changes its name to Motorola Employees Credit Union – West (MECU West), to differentiate itself from Motorola Employees Credit Union – East (serving the East Coast)
  • 1983 – The first home office branch opens in Arizona, the first community branch location outside of a Motorola facility – and it has a drive up window!

  • 1986 – The Data Dial Audio Response System, or “24-hour branch” call system is introduced
  • 1986 – “New Car Central” is unveiled, a computerized, one-stop auto shopping service
  • 1986 – Motorola Employees Credit Union West merges with Four Phase Credit Union
  • 1987 – Memberships hit 35,000 and the Visa credit card is introduced
  • 1988 – A quality awareness program is launched, to ensure first-class service
  • 1989 – A first mortgage program is implemented

1990s




 

  • 1994 – A “Mystery Shopper” program is introduced to ensure quality service
  • 1994 – The first offsite community branch is opened in Austin, TX
  • 1995 – Peter DiSylvester, the Credit Union Manager, is elected to Chairman of the Board for the Credit Union National Association (CUNA)
  • 1996 – The first credit union website is launched, accepting online membership and loan applications
  • 1996 – Data Dial expands to 20 lines to allow members greater telephone access
  • 1996 – The Credit Union partners with Credit Unions for Kids, part of the Children’s Miracle Network
  • 1996 – Three new branches break ground, expanding the Arizona and Austin footprint
  • 1998 – The Credit Union welcomes its 50,000th member
  • 1999 – ON Semiconductor employees can now become members and two new branch facilities are added in Austin, Texas
  • 1999 – Visa Platinum and Gold Cards introduced

 

2000s

  • 2000 – Membership grows to over 55,000
  • 2001 – Membership expands again to welcome General Dynamics employees
  • 2002 – Approval is given from the Arizona State Banking Department and members to expand membership to anyone living or working in the East Valley of metro Phoenix
  • 2003 – Motorola Employees Credit Union West changes its name to TruWest® Credit Union
  • 2004 – Membership expands to include anyone living or working in Maricopa County, AZ, and Travis County, TX

2010s

 

  • 2012 – TruWest celebrates 60 years of service
  • 2013 – Membership passes 60,000
  • 2014 – TruWest updates its logo and brand
  • 2017 – Membership now expands into Yavapai and Pima Counties in Arizona and Williams County in the Austin Area
  • 2017 – The new Truwest.org website is launched
  • 2017 – Membership exceeds over 80,000
  • 2017 – The Credit Union surpasses $1 billion in assets
  • 2018 – TruWest partners with the American Lung Association to expand its charitable reach in the community
  • 2018 – TruWest provides financial and training support to Mesa Community College’s First-Year Program
  • 2019 – Rewards Checking is launched to all members
  • 2022 – TruWest celebrates 70 years with over 93,000 members and 12 branch locations between Arizona and Texas

Leaving Our Site

You are leaving the TruWest website. TruWest provides links to external sites for the convenience of its members. By clicking "Continue" you will be directed to an external website owned and operated by a third party. These external websites are not controlled by TruWest and TruWest makes no representation or warranty, express or implied, to the user concerning the information, content, presentation, accuracy or opinion of these sites or the quality, safety, or suitability of any software found on these sites. The privacy policies of TruWest do not apply to external sites and users should consult the privacy policies on these sites for further information. Thank you for visiting the TruWest website.