Bilingual business: Spanish-speakers welcome

Victor Pantigosa and his wife, Gladys Chavez, couldn't get loan approval to buy a car — and nobody would tell them why. At least, not in a language they understood.

"No credit, no credit," Pantigosa said, his English halting and shy.

Frustration pulls his voice lower, as he talks about having a steady job, a solid apartment rental history, a nice life. And no car.

"Before, any (automobile) dealer said no, no. Need credit, need credit," Pantigosa said.

But how do you build credit unless you have credit, unless someone gives you a chance?

Pantigosa didn't know, and no one would tell him — until about four years ago, when his father-in-law told him about Jordan Credit Union. There was someone there who would talk to him in his native Spanish. That person was Lehi Rodriguez.

"The family came to the credit union because nobody would give them any credit, and they were not able to understand exactly why," Rodriguez said. "It took some time, but we helped them establish small lines of credit, and they built on it from there."

Rodriguez recently was named manager of Jordan's new bilingual branch, 658 W. Center Street in Midvale, which will celebrate its grand opening Monday. The branch will initially employ four people, including Rodriguez, who will serve as manager and loan officer, two tellers and one member support representative.

All will be fluent in Spanish and English. The fully bilingual branch is thought to be the first of its kind in the state.

"We're excited about it, because we think it's going to work well," said Jim Hofeling, president of Jordan Credit Union. "The (Spanish-speaking) community has been underserved for quite a while."

Perhaps not for long.

"Some people may think of this (branch) as a small thing, but I think it's a big step," Rodriguez said. "And other financial institutions have started to realize the importance of serving this community."

Statistics indicate that in 2020, one quarter of the population will be Hispanic, Rodriguez said.

A new census projection indicates that the nation's Hispanic and Asian populations likely will triple in the next 50 years — and minorities could make up half the population by 2050. Utah's Hispanic population more than doubled during the 1990s and made up 9 percent of the state's population by 2000, according to the census.