Pub. 8 2017 Issue 4

www.wvbankers.org 14 West Virginia Banker Community Involvement is the Core of First Exchange Bank F irst Exchange Bank was hon- ored as a 2017 recipient of the Governor’s Service Award in September. This prestigious award is granted to an outstanding individual, organization, family or business that puts “West Virginia First” through service to others and volunteerism. This award and its definition fits nicely with the Bank’s core values. In the wake of receiving this recognition for their good work we talked with Bill Goettel, President and CEO; Jennifer Beach, Digital Champion/CSR; C. Brent Skidmore, Senior Vice President/Chief Lending Officer and Katelyn Lester, Marketing Coordinator at First Exchange to learn more about their community involvement and mission. WVBankers: “When listening to the vid- eo from the Governor’s Service Awards I was struck by the sentiment of a bank doing well by doing good. Would you say that was accurate?” Bill Goettel: “Yes, essentially our mis- sion statement indicates that if we take care of our customers and employees our shareholders and community will be taken care of. Being involved in the community does get people involved and engaged”. Community service is one of First Exchange Bank’s five core values, employees are encouraged to be active, contributing members of their communities. First Exchange Bank’s Core Values • Passion for Serving the Customer • Honesty and Integrity • Creativity and Drive to Solve Customer Problems • Active in the Community • Strong Work Ethic WVBankers: “I see you are involved in multiple organizations and projects. Do the employees direct where the funds and resources go?” Bill: “Senior Management does not direct in any way where that goes, our employees direct where money and time goes, their involvement is para- mount in giving”. Brent Skidmore: “We are Partners in Education with schools in the commu- nities that we serve. They will come to us with needs or projects that they need that last “but for money” to complete”. WVBankers: “How does being em- powered to be active in the community impact the employees?” Jennifer Beach: “It is one of the big- gest benefits I have for working here. For people who want to work for a socially conscious company and feel like they are doing some good through their work, it is a huge benefit. It makes me feel really good to work here.” WVBankers: “Not only have you helped with flood relief all over the state, your community was directly hit by recent flooding. How has this impacted your programs and ability to serve your neighbors and customers?” Jennifer: “Thankfully, we as a business were not impacted by the flooding, but many of our customers were and they have special needs now. We are trying to help them out with that.” Bill: “When you have a disaster that is that close to home, the effort really moves down to the individual level. It is happening to your neighbors, and is really boots on the streets effort. Katelyn: My first week at the bank was the Monday after the storm had hit. It was crazy, the devastation, and then seeing how the bank pulled together. I