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What is a Community Bank?  I believe a community bank is a bank that understands its customers’ and community’s needs and is truly vested in their success. That is because the majority of a community bank’s employees, officers, directors, and shareholders live and work in the communities they serve. They are your neighbors and friends, and your success is tied directly to their success. It means making quick, local decisions that are made with the best interest of the customers, communities, and employees in mind. It means volunteering and providing human and financial resources and leadership to help our communities thrive and grow.

In 2020, this stood out loud and clear as the pandemic hit and we were all faced with health and financial concerns for ourselves, families, friends, and businesses. I watched as community banks and their employees all around the country worked tirelessly to meet the needs of their customers, businesses and communities. This was done in many ways, including making Payroll Protection Program (PPP) loans to our farms and businesses that needed help; providing credit and flexibility to customers who faced financial uncertainty; changing the way we did business; providing services to help protect our employees and customers; and providing substantial direct financial support through donations to community non-profits to help people in need. These are the types of things that make community banks special.

I am proud to say Community First Bank (CFB) was one of the community banks that stepped up to the plate during this time and truly put “Community First”.

In 2021, Community First Bank Celebrates 150 years of being a community bank. This is a huge milestone for CFB and it could not have been accomplished without the long-term commitment to helping our communities grow and prosper by our employees, officers, board of directors, and shareholders. It is also because our customers and communities have faithfully supported CFB and for that we are very grateful.

We are excited about the future and look forward to our continued partnership and commitment to the communities we serve as we move into the future together!