Vickie Logiudici, GNBank in Girard, Receives 50 Year
Club Award
Congratulations to Vickie Logiudici for her 50 years in banking! Vickie began her banking career in 1971 at The Girard National Bank in Girard as a Teller/Operations. From 1981 to 2005, Vickie was the Teller/Operations at The First State Bank of Arma in Arma, KS. From 2005 to 2016, she worked at the University Bank in Pittsburg, KS, as a Teller/Customer Service. Vickie finished out her banking career from 2016 to 2022 as a Teller/Customer Service at GNBank in Girard. Vickie was presented with a 50 Years in Banking Award plaque by Mark Schifferdecker, GNBank President and CEO, and Ken Bloom, Community Bank President.
George Karnaze Receives 50 Year Club Award
George Karnaze retired in January from First National Bank in Louisburg. He has been in banking for 53 years — since 1970! He’s held positions as Cashier,
V.P./Cashier, Senior V.P., President, Board Director, and Vice Chairman. He continues to serve as Chairman after his retirement. George’s wife, Etta, was employed at FNB KC and worked in the same department with him. They have been married for 47 years. They have two children, Chris and Kelly, and one grandchild, Emma. Congrats, George!
Kansas Chamber Announces 2023 Ad Astra Award Honoree
The Kansas Chamber announced INTRUST Bank is the Chamber’s 2023 Ad Astra Award honoree.
Each year during the Chamber’s annual dinner, it and its members recognize a Kansas company with the Ad Astra Award. The award identifies a Kansas business for its unique contributions to the economic health and welfare of the state. This honor is presented to a business that exemplifies both business and civic excellence within the state.
“For more than 145 years, INTRUST Bank and its employees have focused on advancing the enterprising spirit of Kansas,” said Chamber President and CEO Alan Cobb. “The bank’s ‘Tradition For Today’ philosophy underscores its commitment to innovation, service, and community involvement, leading it to become one of our state’s largest banks headquartered in Kansas.”
White Elected to FHL Bank Board
Lance L. White, Wamego, has been elected to the board of directors of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Topeka — a wholesale bank that serves as a source of credit for member financial institutions in Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, and Oklahoma. White will serve on the Operations and Risk Oversight committees.
White has served as President and CEO of Bank of the Flint Hills since 2007, where he had previously served as a loan officer since 2000. He began his banking career at Commerce Bank in Kansas City, MO, in 1997. White served as a committee member of the Community Depository Institutions Advisory Council for the Federal Reserve in Kansas City from 2017 to 2019, a board member for Ascension Health from 2001-2018, and a board member of the Wamego Chamber of Commerce from 2003-2012.
GSB-Wisconsin’s Dunn Has a New Job Title
First-year students attending the Graduate School of Banking at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have annually been greeted at check-in by Erin Dunn of the GSB staff. She makes a point each year of welcoming every incoming student when they arrive in Madison.
Dunn, who joined GSB in June 2014 and works closely with incoming students ahead of the Graduate School of Banking program, also often serves as a first point of contact for bankers inquiring about GSB online seminars and other programs. She also works closely with GSB’s Vice President, marketing and communications, to assist with targeted marketing projects including database queries, proofing content and creative support.
In keeping with the nature of her role, Dunn’s position title — formerly Administrative Assistant — was changed on Jan. 1, 2023, to Student Engagement and Outreach Coordinator.
BankBeat Magazine Names Michael Felts Amazing Outside Director
Michael Felts, a businessman who — until recently — operated a string of convenience stores across rural Kansas, had already served on the board of Citizens Bank of Kansas for a decade when the unthinkable happened: the man who’d recruited him, longtime owner and Board Chair Max Deterding, died unexpectedly. Deterding had been a larger-than-life figure in Kansas banking. Yet, as he built up his family’s community bank network, Deterding kept many of its most critical credit decisions on a “need-to-know basis,” explained his daughter, Jane Deterding, Chair and Chief Strategic Marketing Officer. Max Deterding was the “ultimate credit cop,” she explained. “Someone who regulators held in the highest regard.” But with Deterding suddenly gone, examiners from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency placed the institution under a memorandum, requiring it to formalize its credit policies. So while family members, leadership and rank-and-file employees grieved, they also had to roll up their sleeves and write loan policies, develop lending structures, form committees and submit lengthy quarterly reports on their progress.
Felts was an integral part of that process, and he has served on the bank’s loan committee ever since. For this and his other contributions to the board, he has been named a BankBeat magazine 2023 “Amazing Outside Director.”
Citizens Bank of Kansas Receives Scholarship
The 2023 Graduate School of Banking at Colorado + Kansas Bankers Association Bolder Banking Scholarship has been awarded to Citizens Bank of Kansas. They were specifically chosen for their innovative Derby High School Finance Project. CBK has selected the bank’s Chief Development Officer/SVP Stacy Gear to attend GSBC’s Annual School Session. Stacy Gear recently celebrated nine years with Citizens Bank of Kansas. As Chief Development Officer and member of the Executive Management Team, Stacy is responsible for the Human Resources department in the bank and serves as unofficial head cheerleader for all things at Team CBK!
Kansas Emerging Leaders in Washington D.C.
Deron O’Connor, Astra Bank in Hays, and Lindsey Snider, Central National Bank in Junction City, recently attended the American Bankers Association’s (ABA) Emerging Leaders Forum, held in conjunction with the ABA’s Washington Summit on March 20–22 in Washington D.C. The purpose of the Emerging Leaders Forum is to connect and develop the current and next generation of bankers to lead the industry. After the Forum, O’Connor and Snider were able to hear from national banking regulators, economists, and Congressional leaders speaking at the Washington Summit.
On the final day of the event, they joined other Kansas bankers in making office visits with the Kansas Congressional delegation members.
Farmers Bank & Trust has New President
Brad Zimmerman, who has been working at Farmers Bank & Trust since October, has recently been named its president. He comes to Atwood from Scott City, where he was president of First National Bank.
Zimmerman, a native Kansan, grew up in Mullinville and received his college education at Fort Hays State University. His working career has been in accounting and banking. “I like numbers,” he said with a chuckle.” I am enjoying getting to know this community and working with a great staff here at the bank.”
He and his wife, Marla, are living in Ludell. She is a retired nurse and RHIT specialist in medical records. They have three grown children, a son and family in Andale, Kansas, a son and family in Elkhorn, Nebraska, and a daughter in New Jersey. They have six grandchildren as well.
Bank of Tescott Promotes Schwerdtfager to EVP/COO
The Bank of Tescott promoted Kathy Schwerdtfager to EVP/Chief Operating Officer. Schwerdtfager joined the bank in 2009 as SVP/Lender at the Lincoln Branch. Since 2019, she has been serving as EVP/Chief Credit Officer. She also is currently on the bank’s Board of Directors.
Schwerdtfager will continue to serve as CCO until the role is filled. She will also oversee the bank’s audit, compliance, training, HR, marketing, and deposit operations functions. She is a McPherson College graduate with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with an emphasis on Finance and a Kansas State University graduate with a Master of Science in Personal Financial Planning and a Certificate in Financial Therapy. Schwerdtfager is also a graduate of the Graduate School of Banking in Colorado and is currently a faculty member. Schwerdtfager serves on the Board of Directors of the Greater Salina Community Foundation and is a Blue Coat Ambassador for the Salina Area Chamber of Commerce.
