SPC Credit Union Hosts Poverty Simulation with Leadership Hartsville

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Meghan Godwin Title: AVP of Marketing & Community Development

Phone: 843.332.4506 Email: meghan.godwin@spccu.org
SPC Credit Union Hosts Poverty Simulation with Leadership Hartsville

HARTSVILLE, S.C. — May 27, 2026 — SPC Credit Union recently partnered with the Greater Hartsville Chamber of Commerce's Leadership Hartsville program to host a poverty simulation at the Hampton Inn & Suites in downtown Hartsville on Thursday, May 14. The immersive exercise brought together SPC Credit Union staff, Leadership Hartsville participants, and community volunteers for a firsthand experience of the financial pressures and difficult decisions faced by individuals and families living in poverty.

Brooke Humphries, SPC’s Community Impact Liaison, modeled the simulation after a similar activity that the Carolinas Credit Union Foundation, of which the credit union is a Member, hosts. Humphries says of her goal for the activity: “I wanted to transform the numbers for people. We see statistics that share how much of our community is struggling financially, but until we feel the stress and heartache of the hard choices that people may have to make, it will remain just numbers. I think this activity helps to break down stereotypes and bridges a gap in empathy." To help bring the activity to life, SPC’s staff volunteers were supplemented by representatives from Genesis Healthcare, Darlington County First Steps, and Rubicon Family Counseling Center, helping to facilitate the simulation and bring a range of community perspectives to the experience.

Each participant began the exercise with a $1,000 bundle of “play” money. This amount reflected a strained household budget. Participants were then paid roughly $300 weekly for their "work," and tasked with navigating real-life financial decisions: securing housing, managing household expenses, covering childcare, and addressing medical and insurance costs, among others. As the simulation progressed, participants encountered the kinds of sobering choices that many in our community face on a daily basis: whether or not to pay for tutoring for a child who’s struggling academically, whether to report a broken piece of workplace equipment and risk the financial and professional consequences, or whether or not to pay the property taxes on a vehicle, among other scenarios.

Wendi Sutherlin, Executive Director of Rubicon Family Counseling Center, was one of the nonprofit volunteers. She shared, “I felt the poverty simulation was super helpful for those in our community to learn that anyone can fall on hard times. It’s not just about poor choices. Many people in our community struggle and are just one step away from having to choose medication versus rent or jobs versus childcare, or

shoes on their feet versus food on the table. I thought it also created an opportunity for those that participated to build some empathy for those that struggle every single day. As a leader of a nonprofit organization, it helped me identify several needs that we have locally that we need to fill! I plan to address some of these needs at some of our community meetings to see what we can come up with to fill these gaps!”

The poverty simulation aligns with SPC Credit Union's mission as a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) committed to serving the financial needs of individuals and families across Darlington, Florence, Marlboro, and Chesterfield Counties. As a CDFI, SPC is uniquely positioned at the intersection of financial services and community impact, working not just to offer affordable products, but to help members build lasting financial stability.

Leadership Hartsville, a program of the Hartsville Chamber of Commerce, develops emerging leaders in the Hartsville community through a nine-month series of educational and experiential sessions. The poverty simulation is one of many ways that participants are encouraged to approach their leadership roles with greater empathy and awareness.

For more information about SPC Credit Union and its community development initiatives, visit spccu.org or contact spcmarketing@spccu.org.

About SPC Credit Union SPC Credit Union is a federally insured, member-owned financial cooperative and certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) serving Darlington, Florence, Marlboro, and Chesterfield Counties in South Carolina. Headquartered in Hartsville, SPC is committed to providing members with safe, affordable financial products and services — guided by the mission of putting Members First. Always.

About the SPC Cares Foundation The SPC Cares Foundation helps to support neighbors in our community whose lives are reflected in the poverty simulation. The Foundation was established in 2024 as a way for SPC Credit Union to strategically support four key development issues within the organization’s field of membership: hunger, housing, employment, and education. The Foundation supports local communities through student scholarships; community impact, down payment, and member hardship grants; in-kind donation drives; and volunteerism. To learn more about the SPC Cares Foundation, go online to spccu.org/spc-cares-foundation or email spccaresfoundation@spccu.org.