Are Banks Open today July 3 2009? Banks are open today July 3, 2009 with a catch.

Holiday? No
Excuse to close early? Yes

Banks as a way to cut costs, and avoid excess traffic for its employees wanting to head out of town, are open today but generally closing earlier this afternoon. So get to the bank early Friday but some may close 1 to 2 hours earlier this afternoon.

Saturday, July 4, 2009, banks and other similar institutions WILL be closed. Monday they will be open regular hours.

Here again is the list of Federal Holidays for 2009:

Thursday, January 1 New Year’s Day
Monday, January 19 Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr.
Monday, February 16* Washington’s Birthday
Monday, May 25 Memorial Day
Friday, July 3** Independence Day
Monday, September 7 Labor Day
Monday, October 12 Columbus Day
Wednesday, November 11 Veterans Day
Thursday, November 26 Thanksgiving Day
Friday, December 25 Christmas Day

* This holiday is designated as “Washington’s Birthday” in section 6103(a) of title 5 of the United States Code, which is the law that specifies holidays for Federal employees. Though other institutions such as state and local governments and private businesses may use other names, it is our policy to always refer to holidays by the names designated in the law.

** July 4, 2009 (the legal public holiday for Independence Day), falls on a Saturday. For most Federal employees, Friday, July 3, will be treated as a holiday for pay and leave purposes. (See 5 U.S.C. 6103(b).)

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PHOTOS! Here are pictures of MacDella Cooper who one paper claims has a child by Citigroup’s Richard Parsons. MacDella Cooper is described as a model-philanthropist by the New York Daily News today that reports Citigroup board Chairman Richard Parsons, who is married with three children, has another alleged surprise:

“Parsons and model-philanthropist MacDella Cooper are the parents of a baby girl named Ella.”

Parson’s response mirrors that of Cooper.

Parsons: “This is a private matter, and I prefer not to talk about it at this time.”
Cooper: “My private life is private. I’m sure you can draw your own conclusions.”

The report says Ella was born in 2008, while Parsons was the keynote speaker for Cooper’s foundation event in 2007.

Cooper does some amazing work through her foundation.

Many of you may have already heard about the brutal civil war that started in Liberia during the early 1990s. Liberia’s economic, political, and social systems were decimated, while more than a million civilians either died or became refugees. Many young girls my age were raped or taken as sex slaves, boys were recruited as soldiers, and others were abandoned or orphaned. I am one of the lucky few who escaped without harm.

As I watched my country go from peaceful and quiet to chaotic and dangerous, I never forgot how lucky I was to make it to the United States, receive a full academic scholarship to college, and begin a glamorous career in the New York City fashion world. In 2004, the civil war finally ended and Liberia democratically elected the first female president on the continent of Africa, her excellence Ellen Johnson Sirleaf in 2005. I knew my time had come to give back to my people. I founded the MacDella Cooper Foundation (MCF) with the mission of empowering Liberian youth, especially orphans and abandoned children, by providing education and the basic necessities of food, clothing, and shelter.

Stop by and support her organization, the MacDella Cooper Foundation, online HERE.

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Goodbye GM Bank. Hello Ally Bank. Yes Ally as in Allies, not Ally as in Ally McBeal. GMAC LLC’s name change to Ally Bank is effective today.

The reason for the name change? Executive hopes the name change will drive deposit growth. With a name like Ally?

Sanjay Gupta, GMAC’s chief marketing officer, said in a statement today:

“We certainly value our relationship with GM and GM continues to be an important customer. In addition to that, GMAC wants to grow as a bank holding company. The launch of Ally Bank provides a new platform to increase deposits.”

And why the name Ally?

“Ally conveys the sense of a trusted partner, the attributes we are trying to convey.”

Makes sense? Reportedly GMAC is owned by GM and private investors led by Cerberus Capital Management LP.

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An SEC staff has recommend civil fraud charges to be filed against Countrywide’s Angelo Mozilo. Agnelo Mozilo, former CEO of Countrywide, is the subject of a SEC recommendation for civil fraud charges.

The report from the WSJ broke moments ago on CNBC.

Still developing …

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Schools First Federal Credit Union, OCTFU (Orange County Teachers Federal Credit Union), and KAPFCU are among the growth of credit unions in the nation currently.

Schools First Credit Union and OCTFU covered on TV today have since crashed their servers. But another organization similarly worth considering is Kappa Alpha Psi Federal Credit Union (KAPFCU), also making news today (but their server staying up!).

In a new press release issued today, KAPFCU is making a difference in the “Lives of Children and Youth Credit Union Membership Ages 18 to 24″:

Kappa Alpha Psi Federal Credit Union (KAPFCU), the country’s first “virtual credit union”, was recently awarded a $500 Making a Difference grant from the Texas Credit Union Foundation (TCUF) to provide financial literacy and credit counseling to youth in Plano, Texas. The credit union movement is stagnating with aging baby boomers. Recent, NCUA statistics indicate that the average age of credit union members is currently 55+. In contrast, the median membership age of KAPFCU is 18-24. The use of internet technology, a national fraternal base and efforts to increase our field of membership to include Historically Black Colleges and Universities are all reasons KAPFCU has been abel to defy the trends and invigorate financial literacy and education with high school students and college youth.

Kappa Alpha Psi Federal Credit Union (KAPFCU), the country’s first “virtual credit union”, was recently awarded a $500 Making a Difference grant from the Texas Credit Union Foundation (TCUF). The grant will be used to provide financial literacy and credit counseling to youth in Plano and Richardson, Texas. KAPFCU is certified by the Department of Treasury as a community development financial intuition (CDFI) and a NCUA designated low income credit union (LICU) based in Dallas, Texas. TCUF is a non-profit organization dedicated to progressive professional development of credit union staff and volunteers, financial education programs for youth and adults, and creating valuable resources for Texas credit unions and the communities they serve.”

KAPFCU’s Administrator of Community Development Financial Initiatives Michael McCray says of his CU:

“As a virtual institution, we’ve been an ugly duckling for nearly four years. Our balance sheet and profit/loss profile differs from most community based credit unions. We don’t have a physical office, we operate through a 20 member advisory board and management team. KAPFCU provides service to the entire country – instead of a local geographic market. We just don’t look like the typical low income or community development credit union. Consequently, it has been very difficult for us to successfully receive financial support from credit union or philanthropic communities”

Their website describes their services as the following:

Our Credit Union was approved for organization certificate and application for insurance of member accounts on November 2, 2004. We received our Charter from the Supervisory Examiner on Wednesday November 10, 2004 at 1:00PM. A historical milestone has been reached in the annuals of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc thanks to your committment.

Credit Union membership is open to every member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity , spouses, children, relatives, employees and affiliated organizations. We are a stand alone financial institution owned and operated by each of the members that comprise the depository base of the institution. Your deposits are insured up to $100, 000 by the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund and will earn competitive interest rates. Click the following link to become a member of Kappa Alpha Psi Federal Credit Union Membership Application

Online: www.kapfcu.org

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