BY BQE STAFF
JACKSON HEIGHTS — The corner of 37th Ave and 82 St. was alive with the smell of fresh empanadas and a crowd of smiling faces on the morning of Friday, May 29 for the opening of Four Leaf Federal Credit Union’s latest branch.
The event, which featured a ribbon-cutting ceremony and food from local business Over the Moon, marked the opening of the community financial institution’s fifth location and its first in Jackson Heights. In addition to the new location, Four Leaf currently has branches in Sunnyside, Ozone park, Forest Hills and Bayside.
Four Leaf operates as a credit union, a kind of not-for-profit financial institution that prioritizes providing financial literacy and accessible banking services to the communities it serves. Friday’s opening comes after an eventual 2025 for Four Leaf, formerly known as Bethpage Federal Credit Union, with the credit union opening its Bayside location just a few months prior.
According to Four Leaf Vice President of Governmental Affairs Robert Suarez, the Jackson Heights expansion is just part of the credit union’s broader push to expand throughout the Tri-State area, with a Brooklyn branch opening planned for the near future. It all fits into the Four Leaf’s goal of making a range of financial services accessible to New York’s diverse communities.
“Every institution has a segment or target audience that they focus on,” Suarez told the Queens Ledger Friday. “We like the diverse communities because to be inclusive, and for everyone to join the credit union.”
The point is autonomy in decision-making when it comes to finances, Suarez added. Banking should be about more than just finding the institution that’s the cheapest, he said. With its range of available services — from student savings accounts to credit lines and affordable home equity and auto loan programs — Four Leaf members get access to an array of financial tools to help them build wealth and economic autonomy.
“We’re really helping the individual make a financial decision,” Suarez said. “How do they want to bank? No one should go to an institution saying, ‘which one’s going to charge me less?’ It’s always nice to have options.’”
