Press Releases
Darcey Reed Leads First Independent's Orchards Branch
Vancouver, WA – Darcey Reed has returned to First Independent to manage the bank’s Orchards branch. She has more than 17 years of experience in banking, including four years with First Independent from 1996-2000.
Darcey is a 2007 graduate of Leadership Clark County. She is actively involved with the Greater Vancouver Chamber of Commerce and Women in Networking. Darcey recently served as Secretary of the Board of Directors for the Arc of SW Washington.
Kathy Calcagno Joins Wealth Management Team
Vancouver, WA - Kathy Calcagno has joined the Wealth Management Team of First Independent Bank as a Private Banking Relationship Manager. She has more than 25 years of experience working with high net worth individuals and families, most recently as Executive Development Director for the Brian Grant Foundation. She also worked as a Wealth Consultant and Business Development Officer for Wells Fargo Private Bank and as a Senior Trust Officer and Business Development Officer for Bank of America in Portland. Kathy is an honors graduate of the ABA National Graduate Trust School at Northwestern University in Chicago. She has been actively involved in the community, serving on several charitable boards.
First Independent Names New Branch Managers at Hazel Dell and Cascade Park
Jo Ell Zumwalt has been promoted to manager of the Cascade Park branch. She has worked for the First Independent for over 22 years with positions in proof and operations and as assistant manager in the downtown and Cascade Park branches . She is a volunteer instructor with Junior Achievement and lives in East Vancouver.
Summer Arbogast has been promoted to manager of First Independent's Hazel Dell Branch. She joined the bank in 2010 as manager of a smaller branch in Cascade Park. She has more than 14 years of banking experience. She is on the Board of Salvation Army, a Junior Achievement instructor and a member of the Greater Clark County Rotary. A Camas resident, she did coursework at Chemeketa and Blue Mountain Community Colleges.
First Independent Announces $15,000 in Scholarships and Grants
First Independent Bank has provided $5,000 grants for education to three organizations in the Vancouver area. A $5,000 grant went to the Teaching Learning Center at Clark College to provide for professional development for faculty and staff. A $5,000 grant was awarded to Peace Health to support continuing education for clinical staff and a third $5,000 grant went to the Salmon Creek Hospital Foundation to assist employees with clinical training.
Clark College Graduates Say First Independent Scholarships A Key To Their Success
Vancouver, WA - Recipients of a $2,000 First Independent Bank scholarship say in a survey that it was critical to their career success and urge businesses to continue to support the cost-effective options available for students at community colleges. The recipients also encourage today's students to finish school as quickly as possible and avoid piling on more debt than absolutely necessary.
These were some of the findings of a recently completed survey of recipients of freshman scholarships over the past 24 years. The scholarships were funded by a $300,000 endowment presented to Clark College in 1984 by the late E.W. Firstenburg, longtime CEO and chairman of First Independent. At least 156 students have received the scholarships.
Using a list provided by Clark College Foundation, First Independent contacted the 138 people with address information available. Responses were received from more than 19 percent of those surveyed. This is a good sample considering the difficulty of maintaining current addresses for former students.
Donna Rush, who heads learning and development for First Independent, has coordinated the program since 2005 and was involved from the beginning in 1984. "The survey gives us important information during a crucial time for education," said Rush. "College tuition is soaring at the same time that First Independent and other organizations are being asked to do more than ever to support community causes. We wanted to find out how important the scholarships were to student success and also find out what else could be done to make the program more effective. We got some great information.”
About 40 percent of the responses came from those who went to school between 1984 and 2000, and 60 percent came from those attending between 2000 and 2010. Overall responses were very similar for both groups.
Students were asked to rate the importance of the scholarships to their educational success using a five point scale with 5 being critical and 4 being important. Everyone ranked the scholarship in the four and five category and no one responded with a 1, 2 or 3 ranking.
Bill Firstenburg, son of the founder and First Independent CEO, said the results emphasize the importance of supporting the community college system and not overlooking the direct impact that money spent on education can have. "It is very gratifying to see the student comments on what a difference these scholarships made in their lives. It’s a reminder that we need to make sure that education receives a healthy portion of our philanthropic dollars in both good times and tough times."
