This month Wilson & Muir Bank President and CEO, Frank B. Wilson, reflects on the bank's hours of service initiative in December...

The commemoration of WMB’s 154th anniversary this year was marked by our efforts to give back to our communities during the month of December. The idea was to show our appreciation to our clients and the communities that have supported us and trusted us with their financial needs dating back to 1865. A big part of our motivation was to truly say thanks.

The list of the generous acts of kindness so many of our employees displayed was amazing! We far surpassed the goal of 154 hours of giving! We more than doubled our goal with nearly 400 hours of service! More important than the time was the display of compassion and kindness shown towards our neighbors and those less fortunate. The types of activities ran the gamut of generosity, from taking out the elderly neighbor’s trash to working for hours serving food at the homeless shelter. The impression made on the neighbor was likely just as impactful as the warm meal served. It is not about the biggest, the most, or the best, or the amount of money donated; it is just about doing, or better stated, about giving.

Ryan Bratcher, Vice President & Branch Manager in Leitchfield, said it best when he said, "The personnel at this branch are honestly the most faithful and generous people I have ever met in my life. Words cannot express how big their hearts are. I've witnessed their works myself and promise their reach goes far and wide. With that said, they are also the most humble people I know. We are truly blessed to have them in our lives and especially to have them as employees and good stewards of WMB. Most of them will not provide a list or assign a time to these acts because they insist on not getting any praise for their work. I encouraged them to share but they say these works are not done for any type of notoriety."

These initiatives speak about who we are as community bankers. We all recognize we can only be as successful as those in our communities. Having vibrant civic-minded groups led by like-minded people are important factors to the quality of life metrics. That is why it is important that we foster civic involvement with all the WMB associates. This helps put a face on WMB. We just measured a few weeks of volunteer activities, but we know our employees are out there lending a helping hand all year long. Because, together we build communities.