Since 1924, Bath State Bank has routinely contributed to the people who invest in it. The Board of Directors of the Bath State Bank recently took a progressive step by investing in the community foundations of the primary area it serves – Franklin County and Union County.
The BSB established $6,000 of unrestricted endowments in both the Franklin County Community Foundation and the Union County Foundation. Thanks to the unrestrictive nature of the endowments, the funds in each foundation will be matched dollar for dollar by the Lilly Endowment, Inc. Giving Indiana Funds for Tomorrow (GIFT) program.
The unrestricted endowments will allow the community foundations to make grants to local non-profit organizations for important projects each year. Because Bath State Bank did not designate how the funds are to be spent, the community foundations may target the areas they believe need funding the most.
“The Bath State Bank Board of Directors felt that by giving to the foundations was a good step for two reasons: supporting the community and identifying ourselves as a community supporter, Marvin Wilhelm, BSB Chairman of the Board said. “As a business, we look forward to many continued years of this enthusiastic support.”
“Our gifting is simply a reflection of the people we serve in these two communities,” Dennis Brack, BSB President/CEO said. “We regularly observe how the citizens of both counties give back through monetary assistance and volunteer efforts. We are a good fit with the people of Franklin and Union County because we share the philosophy of having a responsibility to the community. These funds will allow us to contribute from time to time as we see fit, and will generate funding for community projects for years to come. This whole idea is consistent with the philosophy of our directors and employees. I know that our employees are proud of this and I hope our clients share in that pride.”