April 23, 2025

This year’s BLOK Academy welcomed nearly 100 bankers to Topeka Country Club on Feb. 5. KBA President & CEO Doug Wareham kicked off the event with a warm welcome, followed by remarks from Matt Koupal, Executive Vice President and Chief Mission Officer/Chief Legal Officer at FHLBank Topeka (BLOK Class of 2023), who emphasized the significance of this program.

This year’s event was a definite success! We had an exceptional line-up of presenters, 103 attendees, amazing sponsors and 43 exhibitors. Check out some of this year’s highlights!

With over 40 years in community banking, Tim Ohlde has demonstrated exceptional professionalism and leadership in the industry. Tim has extensive agriculture lending knowledge — he was raised on a dairy farm a few miles from his current residence and has maintained his connection to agriculture. In his career, he has drawn on not only his farm background and experience but also his degree in agriculture education, with an emphasis in agriculture economics, from Kansas State University.

Congratulations to Rick D. Smith on his exceptional 50-year career in banking! Rick’s journey began on Jan. 27, 1975, at Home National Bank (now Home Bank & Trust Co.) in Eureka, Kansas. Starting as an Assistant Cashier, he quickly progressed through several leadership roles, including Cashier, Vice President, Senior Vice President, and ultimately Executive Vice President and Director. His dedication and expertise were instrumental in the bank’s growth and success during his tenure.

At the beginning of this year, my travels on behalf of ABA took me to Southern California at a time when deadly wildfires were still raging through many neighborhoods in Los Angeles and the surrounding area.

Leading the charge to ensure farmers, ranchers and rural homeowners will benefit from competition-driven, low-cost interest rates is nothing new for U.S. Senator Jerry Moran and U.S. Senator Roger Marshall. The steadfast leadership exhibited by our respective U.S. Senators, who joined four other Senators as original co-sponsors of the recently reintroduced Access to Credit for our Rural Economies (ACRE) Act, is a testament to their commitment to supporting growth and prosperity in rural Kansas and rural America.