${brands.bankFullName}’s corporate social responsibility and community outreach efforts focus on eight core elements which will help us to meet our goal of successful communities in all the places we operate. Independently each of these elements is an important component of a community, yet we realize they often impact one another. A community cannot have a strong local economy without an educated workforce; a neighborhood is not vibrant without stable housing and financially self-sufficient families; families cannot enjoy the cultural elements of their community without adequate income provided by a job. For a community to be successful, each one of these elements must be present, but also work in harmony with one another.
Stable Housing
Every family deserves a stable place to call home; a home that is safe, of quality, and affordable. Whether it is a house you own or an apartment you rent, stable housing is a foundation for well-being. To support stable housing, ${brands.bankFullName} provides support to affordable housing development, housing rehabilitation, specialized mortgage programs, homeownership education, and foreclosure prevention programs and services that primarily serve low-to-moderate income families and communities.
Vibrant Neighborhoods
A vibrant neighborhood is one that is safe, promotes opportunities to engage with one another, is diverse and has character, and is aesthetically pleasing. Living in a vibrant neighborhood creates a sense of belonging and security, while living in a distressed neighborhood exacerbates the effects of poverty on educational achievement, economic prospects, and health. To promote and develop our neighborhoods, ${brands.bankFullName} targets our investments, grants, contributions, and sponsorships to key neighborhoods that are struggling the most.
Educated Workforce
Education is the ultimate equalizer; the rising tide that raises all ships. With an education in hand individuals are given an opportunity to work, earn a livable wage, support their families, and be financially self-sufficient. To ensure all of our communities have an educated workforce, ${brands.bankFullName} supports adult basic education, vocational and employability training, life skills education, and youth educational programs and supports such as afterschool programs and tutoring.
Strong Local Economies
A strong local economy is one that contains a variety of business types and sizes, producing an array of goods and services, and is home to stable employment, a good livable wage, encourages entrepreneurship, and is always growing. Effects of a good economy reverberate throughout all other community elements such as access to housing, a good neighborhood, positive health outcomes, and opportunities to experience culture. To contribute to the strength of our local economies and to help grow jobs, ${brands.bankFullName} invests in the strategies that create and grow local businesses through training, technical assistance, education, and microfinance.
Community Cohesion
A successful community is one that embodies the definition of community: a place of fellowship with others as a result of sharing culture, interests, and goals. A community provides unity among the things that bind us together. Members of a community support one another and encourage their success. To build community cohesion, First National Bank supports organizations, events, activities, and initiatives that are unique and important to our local communities and contribute to their success.
Access to Culture
A successful community needs the basics of life, but also needs things for people to enjoy spending their time doing. Whether it is enjoying a day at the zoo, taking in a play, or attending a local sporting event, experiencing the culture our communities have to offer is what makes our communities unique and prosperous. To ensure our communities offer exciting, unique, and stimulating opportunities for its residents, ${brands.bankFullName} supports organizations that focus on enriching people’s lives through arts, culture, humanities and athletics.
Good Health
A healthy population results in an economically successful community as a healthy population also costs its community less through decreased health insurance premiums and, in the case of low-income families, less frequency of unpaid emergency room visits. To support positive health outcomes, ${brands.bankFullName} provides support to organizations that are working to create access to health care services, make life more comfortable for the ill, and those that are working to find a cure to diseases.
Sustained Environment
The communities we are a part of include the earth and air around us, and a successful community recognizes that their success will not be sustained without a stable environment. To sustain the environment, a community must engage in proactive efforts to decrease its negative impacts on the environment, and where possible, take strides in improving its physical environment.
