LANSING, Mich.– LAFCU is offering an update on the first full year of work done by its StableCommunities Foundation, which was launched to strengthen neighborhoods, uplift families, and give small businesses :the boost they need to thrive.”
In 2025, its first full year, the foundation awarded grants totaling $267,000 to local organizations and entrepreneurs—an early demonstration of its commitment to driving stability and opportunity where it is needed most, LAFCU reported.
“The foundation is designed to meet people where they are — especially those who have too often been left behind,” the credit union said. “From food security to fair emergency loans, from financial literacy to microgrants for entrepreneurs, the foundation’s work will center on removing barriers, fueling opportunity, and building lasting resiliency across Greater Lansing.”
It noted in a statement that not all neighborhoods have had the same access to opportunity, pointing out that some areas, particularly those historically marginalized or redlined, continue to face higher rates of poverty and fewer resources. The foundation is designed to help close those gaps, it said.
“This is about more than programs or grants, it’s about people helping people,” Patrick Spyke, LAFCU CEO, said in a statement. “We’ve seen the challenges families and small businesses face every day. The StableCommunities Foundation is a promise to stand with them, to invest directly in their potential, and to help turn struggle into strength.”
The foundation is led by Kelli Ellsworth Etchison, CEO, who also serves as LAFCU’s chief marketing officer and chief diversity officer. Her vision is to bring back hope, LAFCU said.
“I want the StableCommunities Foundation to plant hope where it has been lost,” Ellsworth Etchison said. “Without hope, people can feel stuck. We want to help them find their way forward, and to build a movement where resiliency thrives, where small businesses can grow roots, and where families know they don’t have to face struggles alone.”
