Independent Banker - July 2017 - 5

From the Chairman
By Scott Heitkamp, chairman of ICBA
Put down grassroots
this summer
I
'm so pleased ICBA is once again recognizing
top community bank lenders in July's
Independent Banker. I look forward to
seeing the results every year. As a community
banker, I love reading about how other banks are
making names for themselves in their communities-how
they fi nd what works for them and
their customers, and how they stay successful
despite market forces like a crippling regulatory
burden and a low interest rate environment.
We often hear that community banks are
nimble and scrappy, but I have to say I think
we're quite a sophisticated group. We are businessmen
and women, and we know how to make
community banking work for our customers. If
there's a need in a community, you can count on
a community bank to fi nd that niche and provide
that service to residents and small businesses.
This year's Top Lenders profi le stories exemplify
that notion and show us that even in the
face of challenge, there is always an opportunity
to change and fi nd what works. After all, isn't
that what being nimble is all about? Having been
a community banker for years, I can't stress
enough how important it is to be open to change.
Take Seacoast Commerce Bank in San Diego
(featured on page 26). Seacoast entered SBA
lending in late 2009 after working to save the
bank from failing. It selected that specifi c program
after realizing that it offered two distinct
advantages that the bank needed. Now, it is
thriving and doing better than ever. What an
impressive account of taking a challenge and
making it into an opportunity. I commend Seacoast
for its tenacity and thoughtful strategy.
Read the other excellent profi les and you'll
see the same. None of these Top Lenders let
challenges get them down. They've only allowed
these challenges to lead them to brighter paths
that make their community banks and their
communities more successful.
This same philosophy that applies to our businesses
should also apply to advocacy. We must
fi nd opportunity in challenge. We've done this
recently, with two high-profi le meetings with
President Trump and members of the administration.
Now more than ever, the White House is
listening, and that's because community bankers
didn't sit back and let challenge happen. We
made it into a platform for change.
Now more than ever, the spotlight is on us.
This is the time to make our message heard, so
don't stop now. We still have a ways to go for
meaningful regulatory relief, but I truly believe
that with more community banker voices and
more gusto, we can make change happen.
That's why I encourage you to make this
year's August congressional recess your time to
shine. Please meet with your members of Congress
while they are at home in their districts,
so they can see you in the community doing the
important work you do. Meet with them and
invite them into your bank. Encourage them to
support the Financial CHOICE Act relief bill,
along with the multipronged CLEAR Relief Act.
(See page 20 for details of how ICBA can help.)
Now is the time. Now is always the time.
We're fi ghting for what's right, and we're fi ghting
for our communities. So, as you enjoy the
summer, I also hope you enjoy standing up for
our industry. We're all in this together!
R. Scott Heitkamp is president and
CEO of ValueBank Texas in Corpus
Christi. Follow him on Twitter at
@sheitkamp.
independentbanker.org
ICBA IndependentBanker 5
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Independent Banker - July 2017

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Independent Banker - July 2017
