25 Stories for 25 Years
Service 1st Federal Credit Union started in the Danville community in 1975 as the Geisinger Employees Federal Credit Union. Through board member connections to the Community Giving Foundation's Danville affiliate—including service by former President/CEO Bill Lavage and current Chief Administrative Officer Linda Brown—Service 1st established an endowed corporate donor-advised fund to encourage employee philanthropy and collective support for the community it calls home.
"We appreciate the vision of community leaders like Bill Lavage, Randy May, and Dr. O. Fred Miller to ensure the Danville community continues to grow and prosper through the good work of Community Giving Foundation: Danville," says Mike Thomas, Service 1st President/CEO.
One of the seven core values that guide the Service 1st team is "support community". Employees take pride in volunteering for various nonprofits in the community and giving back through their own initiatives focused on creating awareness and support for local organizations. Service 1st's Annual Charity Golf Tournament (celebrating its 30th year in 2024) has awarded $672,500 for community programs.
(Service 1st Employees at the Annual Charity Golf Tournament.)
Over the years, Service 1st has used its Foundation fund to support Montour County and surrounding area food banks, programs promoting development of local youth, and special needs of individuals in the community. "We're working to lift up our community through our donations and we do that by directing our grants to organizations connected to fulfilling needs of the people in our community," says Linda Brown. "We look forward to growing our fund even more in the spirit of perpetual giving."
