TAPCO CU and Opportunity Knocks Are United by a Mission to Turn Desperation into Hope

The millions of low-income consumers who turn to predatory lending typically do so out of desperation. Often hampered by poor credit, these consumers take out high-interest loans with exorbitant fees because they feel they have no place else to turn. Predatory loans may provide a short-term fix, but they inevitably make a bad situation worse.

Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) are uniquely positioned to turn these consumers’ desperation into hope. Today, hundreds of not-for-profit credit unions throughout the United States are certified CDFIs, dedicated to helping consumers who have been shut out by the mainstream banking system. A stellar example is TAPCO Credit Union, a CDFI headquartered in Tacoma, Washington, that works tirelessly to help underbanked consumers improve their financial situation.

“Our mission is to bring humanity to financial services,” said President/CEO Justin Martin. “We’re focused on helping everyone achieve financial wellbeing. We hope we’re laying the foundation and building blocks to put people in a position to prosper.”

One detriment to the work of CDFIs is that not enough consumers know they exist. Helping raise awareness is a unique television series called Opportunity Knocks, which illustrates how CDFIs are making a difference in people’s lives through powerful storytelling. TAPCO is featured in the third season of the series, scheduled to air later this spring on PBS.

Affirmed by the American Reality Television Awards to be the “Feel-Good Show” of the year, Opportunity Knocks deploys an effective format each season, following six financially strapped families across 13 episodes as they work with a financial coach to address their challenges. The series highlights the role that CDFIs play in helping these consumers arrive at a better place, primarily through elimination of high-interest debt.

“I think that in the world today, what people need are these stories of hope,” Martin said. “Opportunity Knocks delivers stories of people in real-life situations to show what is achievable. Through the people who are featured and the storytelling that occurs, it’s not about sitting passively but inspiring people to take action that can change their lives.”

A Burden Lifted

In the upcoming season, TAPCO helps remove the weight of predatory loans from the shoulders of Ashley Cote. Cote is a single mother who is struggling to make ends meet. When the season begins, she is working two jobs and spending any spare time as a gig worker delivering groceries and takeout food. She had been relying on her mother to watch her two sons, one of whom is on the extreme end of the autism spectrum. Shortly before the outset of the season, however, Cote nearly reached a breaking point when her mother experienced a life-threatening medical crisis. “It really shook my world,” she told CU Management in reflecting on the emotional and financial toll of this experience.

Still reeling from this crisis, Cote found herself in dire shape because of her reliance on predatory loans. Opportunity Knocks depicts how she connects with renowned financial expert Louis Barajas, who encourages her to reach out to a CDFI to refinance her high-interest loans. Using a resource called The Opportunity Finder, Cote discovers TAPCO Credit Union and makes an appointment to visit the nearest branch. There, she meets with Richard Stirgus, TAPCO’s VP of Community Relations.

“I had the opportunity to sit down with Ashley and, based on her story, determine what TAPCO could do to help her get into a better financial situation,” Stirgus recalled. “What I conveyed to Ashley was, ‘We’re here to help. Let us know things that are keeping you up at night so that we can put a plan in place to help you reroute your financial journey.’”

Cote admitted that initially she was apprehensive about sharing her financial details. “I was embarrassed and ashamed that I had gotten in so deep by having signed off on these predatory loans,” she said. “But when I walked into TAPCO, Richard was so warm and welcoming. He gave me the chance to tell my story and the circumstances that brought me there. For the first time, I felt seen and heard and not judged.”

Cote’s experience with predatory lenders is an all-too-common story. According to the Center for Responsible Lending, in the 30 states that allow payday lending, low-income borrowers took out over 20 million loans totaling nearly $8.6 billion. These loans are small—typically less than $500—but the triple-digit interest rates put borrowers in a position of paying much more in fees than the original loan amount.

Stirgus observed that predatory lenders often exploit the vulnerability of low-income consumers. “One thing I’ve seen in doing this work is that when people are in dire need of funds, they don’t think about the consequences until after the fact,” he said. “If there’s one thing I want people to take away from my conversations with Ashley, it’s that they should not be afraid to ask for help.”

In Cote’s case, TAPCO was able to craft a consolidated loan that has made a significant difference in her life. “The loan reduced Ashley’s overall debt by over $700 a month, all savings to her bottom line,” Stirgus said. “That was a huge win that provided her with immediate cash flow to support her family and give her some breathing room. She was finally able to fully exhale because of how we were able to help her.”

Cote affirmed that she felt relief when TAPCO offered her the loan. “Richard was willing to do whatever he could to help me better my financial situation,” she said. “I couldn’t be more thankful and blessed to have TAPCO help me like that. It honestly changed my life.”

Perfect Alignment

As a CDFI, TAPCO helps members like Cote every single day. With assets of $705 million, the credit union has 32,500 members throughout Washington state with a focus on Pierce County. The 100-plus employees at TAPCO are dedicated to five core values that align perfectly with the theme of Opportunity Knocks. “We are people-centric, we are curious, we are inclusive, we are collaborative, and we are a trusted partner, building long-term relationships based on integrity and reliability,” Martin said. “Those values really connected us to Opportunity Knocks.”

TAPCO was not a CDFI when Martin arrived as CEO in 2022. However, he made it a priority to pursue that certification, which was awarded in May 2023. “We were fortunate that the board supported us undergoing the process of becoming a CDFI,” he said.

Since earning the certification, TAPCO has heightened its ability to work collaboratively with other organizations as a community partner. “Our CDFI designation has helped us gain credibility with nonprofits and other CDFIs in our community outside of the financial space that are looking to come together to solve problems in our community,” Martin said.

TAPCO achieved its CDFI designation with help from CU Strategic Planning, a CDFI consultancy that has obtained over $1 billion in CDFI awards for its clients since 2008. Two years ago, company founder Jamie Strayer and her partners sold the firm to Callahan & Associates, where it continues to do impactful work on behalf of CDFIs.

“We had a relationship first with Jamie and then with CU Strategic Planning,” Martin said. “They did a great job helping us through the CDFI process and identifying opportunities for us to lean further into our mission-driven work.”

Coincidentally, Strayer was a member of TAPCO back in the early 2000s. “I was a single mom at the time, and it was my first credit union,” she recalled.

Strayer’s dedication to CDFIs led her to become the creator and producer of Opportunity Knocks. As a tie-in to the television series, Strayer and her team launched Opportunity Knocks Live, a community event that connects consumers with CDFIs, not-for-profit credit unions, and nonprofit organizations dedicated to improving people’s financial lives and social wellbeing. In October 2025, Opportunity Knocks Live launched a nationwide, 26-city tour in TAPCO’s headquarters city of Tacoma, putting the credit union in a perfect position to participate. From there, it was a natural progression for TAPCO to be featured in Season 3 of the TV series.

“Opportunity Knocks was brought up to us as a mission-aligned storytelling resource that would allow us to highlight what we do as a CDFI,” Martin said. “It made sense to participate because it's connected to what we’re trying to do in terms of shrinking equity gaps and providing hope for the future.”

Helping Underbanked People

Opportunity Knocks complements the mission of CDFIs and not-for-profit credit unions by highlighting the work they do in helping underbanked people in their communities. “What I love about Opportunity Knocks is they don't look to be the hero themselves,” Martin said. “They show people the community resources that are available to help them. In Ashley’s case, we were able to do for her what so many credit unions do for their members, which is lower her monthly payments. For Ashley, being able to save $700 per month was huge. Helping provide her with peace of mind through that financial offer was a big story.”

As someone who was once a single mom herself. Strayer is pleased with that outcome for Cote, especially her ability to reduce her working hours. Cote is already plenty busy working full-time at the University of Washington and doing seasonal contract work. But thanks to the money she is saving through TAPCO, she is ready to make gig work a thing of the past. “As a result of what TAPCO did for her, Ashley no longer has to grocery-shop for other people to put groceries on her own table,” Strayer said.

Strayer’s hope is that people who see Cote’s story will understand that people who take out predatory loans are not lazy or irresponsible. Often, they work multiple jobs, but due to unexpected circumstances, they find themselves underwater financially.  As Cote herself said, “I’m not a bad person. I’ve just had bad things happen to me.”

Circumstances can be especially difficult for single parents, who often feel alone in their financial struggle. “The face of people using predatory loans is different than what many people imagine it to be,” Strayer said. “Seeing people like Ashley, we can better understand why people in desperation make that choice. Fortunately for Ashley, her relationship with TAPCO is not going away. She can give them a call whenever she has an issue. She is no longer going it alone.”

Embracing the CDFI Designation

As creator of Opportunity Knocks, Strayer was thrilled to have TAPCO’s participation in the series to showcase its work as a CDFI. Over the past three years, TAPCO has embraced the designation, collaborating effectively with a wide variety of community partners.

“Having our CDFI designation has allowed us to get into rooms and conversations with nonprofits, government organizations, and community advocates that are doing innovative work and roll out unique programs that have benefited people in our community,” Martin said. “We’ve been able to partner with multiple nonprofits in creating more financial inclusion for marginalized communities that have traditionally been left out of the financial system.”

Among those partners are impactful nonprofits such as HomeSight, a nondepository CDFI that advances affordability homeownership for low-to-moderate income consumers throughout Washington state; United Way of Pierce County, whose mission is to lift 15,000 households out of poverty and into financial stability by 2028; and the Institute for Black Justice, a Pierce County organization that advocates for universal equity and justice with a focus on family wellbeing, advocacy services, and community outreach.

Stirgus is out in the community working with these and other nonprofits, providing education on such foundational topics as how to create a budget and build credit and helping underserved people get started with checking accounts. He also is working to help individuals achieve larger goals, such as buying a home or starting their own business.

“One of our goals is to help people who have been locked out of the financial system get back on track by building out their financial plan,” Stirgus said. “Financial stability is important to every individual. We want to play a role by partnering with organizations to uplift people in our community.”

In her interactions with Martin and his team, Strayer has been impressed with the level of community involvement that TAPCO has achieved over the past several years. “When Justin took the job as CEO, he had the vision to reshape TAPCO’s deep community engagement,” she said. “He has embraced the roots of credit unions’ service to community as its business model, and as a result, the cooperative business has been even more successful in its financial performance and impact on the community. Ashley’s story is a perfect example of that impact.”

Strayer also gives kudos to TAPCO’s newly revitalized board, which has bolstered the credit union’s profitability through an updated lending policy. She cited 2025 figures that illustrate TAPCO’s stellar performance, such as a 6.29% spike in loan growth, compared to 4.75% for its peer group, and a loan-to-share ratio of 87.04%, topping the peer group’s ratio of 59.48%. Strayer also applauded TAPCO’s improving yield on loans, which demonstrates how effectively it is taking member deposits and converting them into community impact.

“It’s phenomenal to see how much difference a board and CEO can make when they’re authentically diving into the work,” Strayer said. “It wasn’t becoming a CDFI that did that. It was Justin’s leadership along with a board that revitalized itself and reshaped its lending policies, which merited the CDFI certification. Doing good is good business, and that’s what not-for-profit credit unions and CDFIs are all about.”

An Ongoing Commitment

In keeping with its desire to do good work, TAPCO will remain committed to its mission of bringing humanity to financial services. Martin hopes that the spotlight that Opportunity Knocks is shining on the credit union will inspire people to come into a branch and have conversations about how to improve their financial situations

“Every day, we have the opportunity to definitively and meaningfully change people's lives,” he said. “It’s easy to show up for people when everything's going well, but at TAPCO, we realize that it’s even more important to show up for them when they need us the most and take the time to listen in a nonjudgmental way.”

This empathetic approach is important for Cote and others like her who have fallen into the predatory lending trap. TAPCO helps ensure this history won’t be a deterrent to improving their lives. “We don’t believe an individual’s past should dictate their future,” Martin said. “Giving them a solution that helps them navigate life’s unforeseen circumstances and allow them, as Richard said earlier, to fully breathe—that means everything to us.”

Based in Missouri, Diane Franklin is a longtime contributor to CU Management.