Each month the Arrowhead Park Association features one of its members, focusing this month on the previously named First Federal at 417 W Dussel Drive.
First Federal Bank is Now Premier Bank
This last summer, two established, healthy community banks merged to create Premier Bank: First Federal and Home Savings. First Federal of the Midwest would have been 100 years old this February, and Home Savings Bank, headquartered in Youngstown, Ohio, was going on 120 years old.
The new Premier Bank, still very much a community bank, includes 78 banks in Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. “We’ve got all of northern and central Ohio covered, north up to Ann Arbor, and south down into the Columbus,” shared Maumee branch manager Brad Sander. The merger combined leaders from each bank, but the local market is much the same leadership and decision-making team.
Premier Bank is a full-service community bank offering traditional banking services, including loans, deposit account services, and flexible banking options for retail and commercial clients. They also provide wealth management and insurance products. Their motto is “Powered by People,” expressing their community market structure, which keeps clients at the center of the business through local decision making and personalized advice. Together, their seven community markets represent over $7 billion in assets.
Tina Denker, previous manager of the Maumee branch, holds a newly created position of Market Support Consultant. She manages branch operations and client experience at 15 locations in the area.
Brad Sander took over managing the Maumee branch. He previously ran the Perrysburg and Genoa offices. Brad moved to the Maumee branch six months ago and is eager to get out and about in the business community as the Covid-19 problems subside. He leads a staff of seven at their branch, plus there are five additional regional team members in the office.
PPP Loans Made for a Busy Spring
During the Covid-19 lockdown at the end of March, congress came up with the paycheck protection loans, which enabled the bank to help many small businesses. Mr. Sander handled 113 PPP loans in this office! Regionally they lent $53.5 million in PPP loans. Over $430 million was lent bank-wide. The fast-paced month from the program’s announcement through the end of April meant working very long days writing these loans with continually evolving rules and regulations.
Governor DeWine selected Premier Bank as one of only two banks in Ohio to offer the limited JobsOhio loan program to current clients. “We are honored to be chosen!” shared Ms. Denker. The JobsOhio grant is intended to supplement ongoing business activities and includes no origination fees and a low rate.
Company Vision
Premier’s vision is to be the partner of choice in the communities they serve. They empower their employees to deliver value-added solutions to their clients. “We want to maintain a service culture here and be Premier in every sense of the word,” added Mr. Sander.
In this market, Premier employees serve on over 100 non-profit boards. Among other events, the bank is a sponsor of the Maumee Chamber golf outing and is a Silver Sponsor of Ruthie’s Angels fundraisers organized by Deitra Hickey. Tina is on the board and a past president of the Maumee Chamber, so you will likely see her at Chamber events.
Premier Bank views Arrowhead Park as a place of opportunity. Brad has managed the Maumee branch for six months and finds this a great spot to meet people and build relationships. He hopes to do more of this in person soon.
