Page 15 - BusinessWest March 18, 2024

BANKING & FINANCE >>
Community Interest
Area Banks, Credit Unions Stress Philanthropy, Volunteerism
BY JOSEPH BEDNAR
[email protected]
When asked why Country Bank supports local nonprofits, incoming President Mary McGovern gave a simple answer. “It’s a way for us to
make a difference in our community.”
Then she elaborated.
“We have a tagline we adopted two years
ago, ‘made to make a difference.’ We feel that encapsulates what Country Bank is all about, trying to make a difference in our community. It’s something we’ve done over the history of Country Bank, and we continue to make a positive impact by supporting local nonprofits, specifically the kind that rely on donations from their local businesses to help support them.”
Those efforts have focused in recent years on a number of priorities, she added, includ- ing food insecurity, health, education, and financial literacy, as well as homeless shelters, senior-serving programs, youth organizations, and more.
“We continue to make a positive impact by supporting local nonprofits, specifically the kind that rely on donations from their local businesses to help support them.”
To that end, Country reported more than $1.2 million in donations in 2023, with 463 organizations receiving grants. One highlight last year was a partnership with (and $30,000 donation to) the Wonderfund, which aims to improve the lives of individuals in the Depart- ment of Children and Families system.
That large number of supported nonprof- its resonates with Matt Bannister, senior
vice president of Marketing and Corporate Responsibility at PeoplesBank, who was named a 2024 Difference Maker by Business- West last month for his extensive role in the bank’s community-support efforts. Peoples- Bank recorded $1.6 million in donations last year to more than 550 area nonprofits, mak- ing the average grant just under $3,000.
“We give a little to a lot of groups. We don’t tend to do large capital campaigns,” he said. “One big ‘yes’ often means a lot of little ‘no’s.’ So many nonprofits out there are doing good work, so it feels wrong to say ‘no’ to people.”
BusinessWest
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Mary McGovern, incoming president of Country Bank.