fbpx

Tag: york traditions bank

Traditions Bank forms holding company

Traditions Bank of York, which formerly went by the name York Traditions Bank, has completed its reorganization into a holding company structure.

The change was effective May 1.

The bank is now a wholly-owned subsidiary of Traditions Bancorp Inc., a corporation recently formed by the bank.

Traditions Bancorp Inc.’s common stock will trade OTC Pink under the symbol TRBK.

“The holding company structure has been adopted by many banks because it provides greater flexibility in terms of capital formation and the creation of new business lines,” said Eugene J. Draganosky, president and CEO of Traditions Bank and Traditions Bancorp Inc. “The holding company structure will also facilitate the organization’s ability to issue subordinated debt to finance our continued growth and to repurchase outstanding common stock.”

Existing shareholders of the bank will receive an equal number of shares of Traditions Bancorp common stock in exchange for their bank common stock.

York Traditions Bank becoming Traditions Bank under brand change

Eugene Draganosky President & CEO York Traditions Bank has announced the bank will now be known as Traditions. PHOTO/SUBMITTED

 

York Traditions Bank of York will now be known simply as Traditions Bank.

The bank revealed its new name and brand at its Associates’ Annual Meeting this week.

The new name comes with a new logo, but the bank ownership and staff remain the same.

Eugene Draganosky president CEO, and Michael Kochenour, founder and chairman, said the bank began looking into the change about a year and a half ago. Traditions partnered with Financial Marketing Solutions of Franklin, Tenn., to come up with the new brand and help it evolve into the future.

FMS, which is a full-service branding and strategic marketing agency that works exclusively with community banks, conducted meetings and interviews with the bank’s leadership and associates as well as creating a dozen focus groups to speak with customers and community members in York, Hanover and Lancaster.

The goal was to learn how the bank was perceived internally and in the community so it could best express its values, philosophy and mission.

As a result of the research, the bank decided to change the name to Traditions Bank to be inclusive of everyone the bank serves across its footprint.

“This does not mean that we are going to be any less committed to York,” said Kochenour. “It is simply a natural progression. York is at the heart of who we are and it will always be with us. While it’s important to embrace new traditions, we think it’s equally important to honor our roots.”

The new logo the bank came up with is built upon six rectangular shapes to represent the bank’s original six core values.

There is also a new tagline, “Make Your Mark”, which represents Traditions Bank’s desire to make a difference in the community.

York Traditions Bank to move into Lancaster

Eugene Draganosky, CEO and President of York Traditions Bank, called Lancaster a target market for the financial services institution. – CPBJ/JUSTIN HENRY

York Traditions Bank announced plans this week to open a full-service branch location in Lancaster County with an expected opening date in the fall of 2020.

The 3,600-square-foot office will be located at 1687 Oregon Pike in Lancaster, according to York Traditions Bank executives.

President and CEO Eugene Draganosky said he expects the Oregon Pike branch will be one of multiple branches to be opened in the coming years to serve the wealth of clients in Lancaster County, a target market for the York Traditions Bank.

“We feel a strong connection to Lancaster County,” Draganosky said in an interview this week. “We do have a base of clients in Lancaster. We have a number of contacts from over the decades, and a lot of us have spent time in the Lancaster market.”

Draganosky said the bank is currently recruiting for the Lancaster County team of nine, to be headed by a senior market executive who will report directly to Draganosky.

York Traditions Bank Founder and Chairman Michael Kochenour said the bank is excited to provide full-service banking to clients in Lancaster County, whose community he said shares York Traditions’ mission of offering community-based services.

“[Lancaster County] is rich in history, arts, and culture while providing vast economic opportunities,” he said. “Even though the names of our towns and cities throughout our markets are different, we all share remarkably similar values connected by a common love for the places we call home. This expansion is one more step towards our strategic vision to be the bank of choice for our target markets.”

The York Township-headquartered bank signed the 1687 Oregon Pike property lease on Jan. 24, 2020. Renovations are set to begin during the second quarter of 2020.

 

Inclusion, diversity in view for York Traditions Bank’s first ‘Her Traditions’ director

Director of Her Traditions Nicole Shaffer was recruited by York Traditions Bank to fill the newly-created role. Company officials say it builds on diversity and inclusion efforts from the bank’s inception. – PROVIDED PHOTO

York Traditions Bank, a locally owned community bank operating in York and Hanover, has added a new director position to advance the organization’s Her Traditions initiative, a program to support women to become financially independent and successful.

Her Traditions officially launched in 2012 to make banking a more inclusive space by providing financial counseling for area women. York Traditions Bank organizes networking events, annual scholarships for York County women with “exceptional leadership potential” and personalized financial support based on a “financial personality” index.

Nicole Shaffer, formerly the vice president of development and communications with the United Way of York, was recruited at the beginning of 2020 to work as the director of Her Traditions. Shaffer said she wants to make each bank branch — six in York and one in Hanover — an inclusive, non-judgmental space for area women to achieve success and independence when it comes to money.

“A goal for me is to connect with each of the branches,” said Shaffer. “I’m going to be working closely with them to work with women in our community to have conversations about their financial health and encourage them to not be intimated. We want to help them achieve their financial dreams.”

Shaffer serves on the board of York City Dollars for Scholars, chairs the York YWCA’s Racial Justice Committee and volunteers for Junior Achievement, for which she has taught resume preparedness and credit cards in local schools.

“A personal goal for myself is that everyone knows about Her Traditions,” she said. “Another important part of this is that we have diversity and inclusion. It’s important that we’re engaging in every aspect of our community.”

Although Shaffer’s position is new to the bank, it builds on York Traditions Bank’s abiding commitment to the financial success of York women since the bank’s founding in 2002, said President and CEO Eugene Draganosky. At the time, the bank had no female managing directors until Carolyn Schaefer was recruited and spearheaded Her Traditions with network events and educational outreach efforts.

“Each year, the focus has become more defined,” Draganosky said. “The addition of Nicole in this newly-created role allows us to take this important work to the next level.”

Schaefer, a 54-year veteran of the financial services industry, has since retired from her managing director post but stays on the team as founder and champion of Her Traditions.

She said the initiative started to take shape in 2006 when the bank conducted a series of interviews and developed the idea of financial personalities for clients, which the bank assess using a 15-minute test. Results qualify respondents as a “security keeper,” “relationship protector,” “opportunity seeker,” “freedom finder” or some combination.

“Financial personalities identify your relationship with money,” Schaefer said. “What are your strengths when it comes to financial decisions and what are maybe some challenges that we might be able to help you with? It’s a way for women to take a step back and assess where they are in their financial life.”

York CEO given ATHENA award for women’s leadership

Victoria Connor, left, was recognized with the 2020 ATHENA award by former award recipients like Lynda Randall, right. – PHOTO/JUSTIN HENRY

 

Victoria Connor was named this year’s York ATHENA Leadership Award recipient by the York County Economic Alliance for her impact on the local community in her role as CEO of the York County Bar Association.

The award was announced on Thursday at York Traditions Bank in York, which officials called a fitting piece of synergy because of the bank’s ongoing efforts to help women achieve financial successes through the “Her Traditions” initiative. Connor herself was an original member of the women’s council in 2011 that paved the way for the Her Traditions initiative in its current form.

“I’m deeply touched to be nominated, let alone selected, to receive this award,” Connor said when she accepted the award. “The selection committee includes many of the people who have influenced me personally and professionally since making York our home over 20 years ago. …Joining this group of accomplished women that I greatly admire is meaningful to me beyond measure.”

Connor said she was recruited eight years ago at a time when the association sought to strategically invest in the York community through its charitable arm, the York County Bar Foundation.

“When they decided they really wanted to get strategic about how they wanted to make investments in the community through grant making, they looked around and said who might have the capability to run both the association and the foundation?” she said. “We have a laser-light focus on law-related initiatives in the community with things like truancy prevention and the expansion of the wellness courts — things that really make a systemic impact on the community.”

Under Connor’s leadership over the last eight years, the York County Bar Foundation has grown its endowment fund from $600,000 to more than $5 million.

Former ATHENA recipients consider three qualities when naming each year’s winner, said Lynda Randall, a 2010 ATHENA recipient and partner with New Level Advisors. Nominees are considered for their contributions to the York community, their efforts to support other women leaders and success in their fields.

“Our committee goes through a very rigorous selection process,” Randall said. “I am so thrilled to say our 2020 ATHENA selection has absolutely exceeded expectations in every area…As a breast cancer survivor, Victoria’s perseverance and her energy and her very open attitude has helped to inspire many women.”