Independent Banker - December 2024 - 65

and chairman of the board at the
Cattaraugus, N.Y., bank.
As the third-generation president,
Young is proud to maintain the onebranch
footprint that has defined
Bank of Cattaraugus since it opened
142 years ago. But being a smaller
bank has its challenges when it comes
to accessing certain resources and
making its voice heard.
That's where ICBA has stepped
in to fill the gap. " It's in my blood to
continue to keep Bank of Cattaraugus
as an independent community bank,
and ICBA has been an integral part of
our fabric, advocating for us to remain
independent, " says Young. " We don't
have the manpower, and the advocacy
that ICBA does on our behalf is
priceless to us. "
Through its membership, Bank of
Cattaraugus has also been able to tap
into ICBA's network of vetted vendors
and training sessions without having
to leave the community it serves. " It's
really hard to send a junior loan officer
off to training when we are only a
staff of eight people, " says Young. " So,
getting quality training where we can
log in from here is really helpful to us. "
No matter the size of a community
bank, Young notes that ICBA
membership has something for
everyone. " I firmly feel that all
independent banks should be
members of ICBA, " she says. " It's a nobrainer:
the advocacy, the training, the
networking and the lifelong friends
you make who really care and don't
want to compete against you but help
you along the way. It's fabulous. "
Taylor Hugo is a writer in Colorado.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
on the benefits available to
ICBA members, visit
icba.org/membership
What does ICBA offer you?
Through ICBA, members can access vital resources that work for all community banks. Find out
what's available to you and how you can use these benefits to your advantage.
Education
(icba.org/education):
Whether it's compliance, tech
or marketing, ICBA members
can browse through and
attend informative webinars,
in-person events and
certification opportunities on
the topic of their choice.
Advocacy
(icba.org/advocacy): ICBA
serves as the voice of the
community banking industry
and leads grassroots action. In
addition to communicating to
members about legislative and
regulatory issues and updates,
the association presents
opportunities to speak
directly to Congress members
through its in-person Capital
Summit event and its Virtual
Advocacy Primer toolkit.
Innovation
(icba.org/innovation):
ICBA Innovation connects
community banks with
a variety of vetted third
parties, via the ICBA Solution
Directory of knowledgeable
vendors and the ICBA
ThinkTECH Accelerator,
which identifies and fosters
community bank-enabled
fintech partnerships.
Marketing
(icba.org/innovation/tools/
marketing-toolkit): From
social media to video and
print advertising, ICBA has
customizable marketing and
communication assets in
both its National Campaign
Toolkit and Marketing &
PR Toolkit.
Fraud mitigation
(icba.org/fraud): ICBA's
communications team
broadcasts updates on
fraud trends and mitigation
tools. For example, with
check fraud being a growing
problem for banks and
their customers, ICBA has
established a member guide
and check fraud task force
dedicated to protecting
community banks from
bad actors.
independentbanker.org // 65

http://www.icba.org/membership http://www.icba.org/education http://www.icba.org/innovation http://www.icba.org/fraud http://www.icba.org/advocacy http://www.icba.org/innovation/tools/marketing-toolkit http://www.icba.org/innovation/tools/marketing-toolkit http://www.independentbanker.org

Independent Banker - December 2024

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Independent Banker - December 2024