By Asia Nail
The Truth Reporter
For 30 years, Toledo Urban Federal Credit Union has helped shape the financial lives of families across Toledo. Through conversations with its founder, faith leaders, board members, and longtime staff, this anniversary feature preserves the voices behind an enduring community institution and a piece of Toledo’s living Black history.
The Moment Everything Changed
Before there was a historic building on Dorr Street.
Before there was a ribbon cutting on Monroe.
Before thousands of families found a financial home…
there was a prayer.
That prayer was not spoken in a boardroom or during a fundraising campaign. It came from a young, resilient banker whose heart broke after watching a loan application denied; not because of a lack of income or creditworthiness, but because of a ZIP code shaped by generations of redlining and economic exclusion.
That moment changed Suzette Cowell, ThD, forever.
“God,” she prayed, “one day there has to be an institution that helps people in these ZIP codes.”
Thirty years later, more than 4,000 active members know the answer to that prayer by name: Toledo Urban Federal Credit Union.
More Than Banking
Dr. Suzette walked out of that bank believing she had witnessed an injustice. What she did not yet know was that moment would become the beginning of a life’s mission.
For decades, she has carried a simple belief: financial institutions should do more than approve or deny loans. They should listen.
“Everybody has a story,” Cowell says. “Sometimes people don’t need someone to tell them ‘no.’ They need someone willing to sit down, listen, teach and help them find another way.”
That belief became the heartbeat of Toledo Urban.
For Cowell, financial literacy was never just about numbers on a page or a credit score on a screen. It was about restoring confidence, building trust and helping families recognize that financial freedom begins with understanding.
Before a member could qualify for a mortgage, purchase a vehicle or rebuild damaged credit, there first had to be a conversation; someone willing to explain the process, answer overlooked questions and remind people their circumstances did not define their future.
Toledo Urban FCU was built on that foundation: meeting people where they were and helping them move forward.
Still, building something that had never existed before required more than faith; it required the courage to continue even when others could not yet see the possibilities.
“When God gives you a vision, everyone may not understand it in the beginning,” Cowell explains. “You learn that every person is not meant to see the vision at the same time; the right people will recognize the purpose and help carry it forward.”
Every Institution Has a Founder.
Few Have a Congregation.
While completing graduate studies focused on the Black church, Bishop Duane Tisdale, senior pastor of Friendship Baptist Church, found himself studying theology alongside the writings of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. One idea continued to echo in his spirit: lasting ministry had to include economic empowerment.
“The church,” he explains, “ought to help the community.”
He believes Scripture calls believers not simply to occupy a place, but to improve it.
When he shared that conviction with Cowell, his words were simple but life changing.
“I really believe God is calling you to build an economic bridge for the people of Toledo.”
Looking back today, Bishop Tisdale sees Toledo Urban as evidence of what happens when faith is followed by action.
“We started with prayer,” he recalls, explaining the spiritual foundation behind Toledo Urban’s journey.
“When you give it to God, He becomes responsible for the outcome.”
A Vision Bigger Than One Church
Cowell’s prayer began as a response to what she witnessed in the banking system, but the vision quickly grew beyond the walls of any single congregation.
When Dr. Suzette shared the vision with Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur, the conversation pushed her to see the possibility beyond one congregation.
“She said to me, ‘Suzette, this is bigger than the church. Can you do this for the broader community?’” That question helped clarify the mission ahead.
For Cowell, the answer was rooted in what she describes as God’s alignment of vision, people, and action.
“I believe God works in threes, a trinity,” Cowell explains. “There is the vision, there are the people who believe in the vision, and there is the action that brings it to life. When those things come together, that’s when you know God is moving.”
History Doesn’t Always Arrive With Fanfare
Sometimes it arrives in a plain brown cardboard box.
Inside was Toledo Urban Federal Credit Union’s official charter.
There were no instructions.
No blueprint.
No guarantee.
Only an opportunity.
Cowell remembers receiving that charter with both excitement and uncertainty. The federal government had granted permission to begin, but it offered no manual explaining how to build a financial institution capable of changing lives.
“I went to the library the next day. They only had one book on starting a financial institution, and I just started learning,” she says. “It was like a fire inside of me. I had to figure out how to do this.”
The charter opened the door, but faith, paired with determination and a willingness to learn, would build what came next.
The First Investment Wasn’t Money.
It was trust.
Long before impressive facilities and expanded services, there were volunteers, church members, folding tables, fundraising drives and neighbors who believed enough to invest in an idea.
People contributed what they could because they believed they were building something their children would one day inherit.
For many families, Toledo Urban became the first place they truly felt seen.
Bishop Tisdale remembers watching members move from riding the bus to owning reliable transportation. He watched renters become homeowners. Families improved their credit. Land contracts became mortgages, and dreams that once seemed unreachable slowly became reality.
Everyday Prayer, Everyday Purpose
Everyday, before the first member walks through the doors, before accounts are opened, and before the daily work of serving the community begins, employees pause.
They pray.
For three decades, that tradition has remained part of the heartbeat of Toledo Urban FCU.
For Bishop Duane Tisdale and Suzette Cowell, prayer was never separate from the work. It was the foundation beneath it.
Throughout American history, faith and civic responsibility have often existed side by side. From classrooms where generations of students began each day by reciting the Pledge of Allegiance to communities built through service and shared responsibility, the words “one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all” remain a reminder that unity is strengthened when people choose service over division.
For Toledo Urban, prayer represents more than a ritual. It represents a reminder.
Behind every account number is a person. Behind every credit score is a story. Behind every financial decision is a family, a dream, and a future.
Cowell believes serving people requires seeing the whole person, not just their financial circumstances.
The mission has always been bigger than banking.
It is about dignity, compassion and believing that people deserve the opportunity to rebuild, grow and thrive.
And before the doors open each day, prayer continues to center the institution around the same belief that started it all:
Faith must be followed by action.
The Community Began Calling It “Ours”
Perhaps that was the greatest milestone of all.
Buildings matter.
Branches matter.
Growth matters.
But somewhere along the journey, something far more important happened.
The community stopped seeing Toledo Urban as someone else’s credit union.
They began seeing it as their own.
From the historic Dorr Street location to the second location on Monroe Street, each building became more than a place to conduct financial transactions; it became a visible reminder of what the community had built together.
Families opened accounts for their children. Grandparents introduced grandchildren. Members returned not simply because of convenience, but because they believed in the mission.
A financial institution had become part of the community’s identity.
Open Doors Mean More Than Opportunity
They mean responsibility.
Throughout our conversation, Bishop Tisdale returned again and again to one image: the open door.
To him, an open door is not merely an opportunity.
It is access.
Authority.
Privilege.
It is God’s invitation to participate in His work.
Standing in that open door required perseverance. There were setbacks, critics, financial challenges, and moments when success seemed uncertain.
Yet he never lost confidence that the institution would endure.
“It doesn’t mean we won’t face challenges,” he says. “But it won’t fall.”
The Story Isn’t Finished
Thirty years after one prayer challenged a system that judged people by their ZIP code, Toledo Urban Federal Credit Union continues preparing for its next chapter.
That future includes expanding access to financial education, strengthening families, and developing a community Resource Center where organizations can work together to meet people where they are.
That same spirit will be celebrated during TUFCU’s 21st Annual African American Festival, July 13–18, as the community gathers to honor Black culture, history, and the continued power of collective action.
The mission has grown.
The purpose has not changed.
A young banker saw a need and dared to believe something different was possible.
A pastor recognized the calling.
A congresswoman expanded the vision.
A community carried it forward.
And inside a plain brown cardboard box was the beginning of something that would help thousands of families build stronger financial futures.
Today, Toledo Urban Federal Credit Union stands as more than a financial institution.
It stands as a testament to what happens when faith is matched with action, when service becomes legacy, and when ordinary people answer an extraordinary call.
History does not always begin with headlines.
Sometimes it begins with a prayer.
Sometimes it begins with a vision.
And sometimes…
that vision arrives in a plain brown cardboard box.
Read more from the people who helped shape Toledo Urban Federal Credit Union’s legacy in our companion interview series.