Community Bank Wins ABA Foundation Community Commitment Award

DEWITT, N.Y. — Community Bank’s community-development program has been nationally recognized with a 2024 ABA Foundation Community Commitment Award from the American Bankers Assoc. Foundation. Community Bank was chosen for its efforts in the volunteerism category and was presented with the award during ABA’s annual convention on Oct. 29 in New York City.

In 2023, Community Bank broke records for volunteerism and philanthropic investments across its network of more than 200 branches in Upstate New York, Northeastern Pennsylvania, Vermont, and Western Mass. Last year, more than 500 bank employees served on nonprofit boards and committees and spent more than 16,000 hours volunteering to help customers and community members. The bank supported more than 2,100 organizations, and branches collected more than 5,600 non-perishable food items for 100 food banks. Community Bank also contributed $3.7 million in donations, grants, and sponsorships, a nearly 24% increase in financial contributions from 2022.

Entries were submitted in seven categories: affordable housing, community and economic development, financial education, economic inclusion, protecting older Americans, supporting military families, and volunteerism. Award winners were chosen by a field of nationally recognized experts in each field.

The selection committee chose the winning banks based on the creativity and thoughtfulness of programs — traditional or innovative in nature and structure — that embody the ideals of corporate social responsibility and demonstrate success in making an impact.

“Community Bank’s community development program demonstrated the extraordinary impact that banks can make in the communities they serve,” said Lindsay Torrico, executive director of the ABA Foundation. “We’re proud to recognize them as one of the 2024 Community Commitment Award winners and hope their efforts will inspire others throughout the industry.”

Added Maureen Gillan-Myer, Community Bank’s chief Human Resource & Administration officer, “there’s a reason ‘community’ comes before ‘bank’ in our name. Giving back to our community is embedded in our culture. Our team collectively strives to make a measurable impact on the communities we serve through more than just financial means, and we’re honored to see those efforts recognized by the ABA Foundation.”