World Council Honors Rose Dorman, Credit Union Leader

Madison, WI—World Council of Credit Unions recently recognized Rose Dorman—a credit union leader who shaped credit unions throughout Scotland and England—by renaming the newly remodeled World Council conference room after her. In the conference room at World Council headquarters in Madison, Wisconsin a photo tribute honors Dorman, who passed away in 2006.

Pete Crear, World Council CEO shared, "Rose Dorman was a credit union leader whose mission in life was helping others. She not only shaped credit unions throughout Scotland and England by training, mentoring and providing support to thousands of credit union leaders over her career, she also made an impact on the international credit union system."

Dorman's work began in her home town of Dalmuir, where she founded Dalmuir Credit Union, now the largest community credit union in the UK. Seeing credit unions as a means for eliminating poverty, she devoted her life to the cause of providing access where there was none. She held positions at the local, regional and national levels, and from 1995 to 1998 she represented the Association of British Credit Unions Limited (ABCUL) on the World Council of Credit Unions' board of directors.

In recognition of her dedication, Her Majesty, the Queen of England awarded her the Member of the British Empire (MBE), the first time the award—a distinguished honor for Rose and British credit unions—was granted to a woman of Scotland.

Even toward the end of her career, the British government recognized the importance of her contributions and appointed Rose to an HM Treasury Task Force to explore ways in which banks and building societies could support the development of credit unions. With her guidance, the Task Force recommended the creation of a central credit union service organization and the passage of less restrictive legislation.

World Council of Credit Unions is the global trade association and development agency for credit unions. World Council promotes the sustainable development of credit unions and other financial cooperatives around the world to empower people through access to high quality and affordable financial services. World Council advocates on behalf of the global credit union system before international organizations and works with national governments to improve legislation and regulation. Its technical assistance programs introduce new tools and technologies to strengthen credit unions' financial performance and increase their outreach.

World Council has implemented more than 290 technical assistance programs in 71 countries. Worldwide, 51,000 credit unions in 100 countries serve 196 million people. Learn more about World Council's impact around the world at www.woccu.org.