Independent Banker - September 2022 - 47

bank celebrated Law Enforcement
Appreciation month by bringing
meals to local police and emergency
agencies. April is Thank a Lineman
month, with breakfast and treats for
local electric companies during storm
season. In August, FCB hosted several
back-to-school bashes, taking goodies
and handwritten notes of appreciation
to teachers. Bank team members also
purchased school supplies to donate to
area schools.
" Some of our efforts are guided by
where the hearts of our employees lie, "
says Leah Bennett, FCB's branch and
marketing manager. Bennett gives an
example of an employee whose son,
a lineman, served as inspiration for
April's event. " We saw a need, and
they're not recognized enough. We see
all [their] hard work and dedication and
wanted to show that appreciation. "
Bennett, a former blood recipient,
was also one of the associates behind
establishing a bank blood drive in June.
That's been part of the Make a
Difference Program's success: FCB
employees are encouraged to propose
additions to the calendar that they're
personally interested and invested
in. " We try not to do what the status
quo is doing; things that people
will acknowledge. We want to be
intentional, " says Bennett.
According to Hamrick, FCB asks all
108 employees to participate in the
Make a Difference Friday initiative
each month and encourages them
to propose activities and participate
in as many as they like. " We really
encourage the branches to look at other
opportunities, " she says. " To allow them
to do what they're interested in, you get
better participation. "
Different branches can undertake
different initiatives; Ballard County
branch employees observed World
Down Syndrome Awareness Day on
March 21 by wearing fun socks.
fService is inherent in staff
FCB employees are well acquainted with
service to others, with many serving as
members of Rotary, Kiwanis and Lions
Team members from First Community Bank of the Heartland collect canned goods and teddy
bears for duffel bags used in some of the community bank's monthly Make a Difference
volunteer programs. Bottom photo, from left: FCB's Leah Bennett, Courtney Morris, Daniel
Kimbell, Amy Walters and Greta Purvis.
Clubs, school boards and elder abuse
committees. They also volunteer at
senior centers and school and teacher
appreciation efforts throughout
the year.
Then there are the impromptu
rescue efforts. In December 2021,
when the bank's own chief operating
officer lost her home in a tornado
that ravaged parts of Kentucky and
Tennessee, members of the Clinton
branch joined forces to salvage,
wash and clean her china, dishes
and crystal.
The following day, three Tennessee
branches handed out sandwiches to
everyone in town when the power
was still out. That same month, one
employee took off a week from work
and logged 67 hours volunteering
with emergency management
following the tornado.
In 2021, FCB logged a total of
nearly 1,658 volunteer hours for fewer
than 100 employees, and according
to Hamrick, the community bank is
already tracking to be 30% ahead of
that number for 2022.
The Make a Difference campaign
illustrates how community service
and helping others is more than just a
choice for FCB employees. It's a need.
" It's a sign of the good folks we
have on our team, " says Kimbell. " You
hear of all these events, and being a
rural community bank, our folks are
attached to the community. Most of
these communities are home to these
folks for most of their lives. They are
going to constantly be looking for
ways to serve. "
Paul Sisolak is deputy editor of
Independent Banker.
independentbanker.org Q 47
http://www.independentbanker.org
Independent Banker - September 2022

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