Relay for Life – 2013

Each year since 1996, the Citizens Bank Minnesota Relay for Life team has been active with fundraising efforts in Brown County in support of the American Cancer Society and the fight against cancer.  In 2012, we surpassed our goal by raising $17,304, to bring our team’s overall total effort to an amazing $139,065.85!  Through a variety of events, including lunches, acting as guest servers at area restaurants, a crafters’ retreat and donations from friends and family, the Citizens team continues to contribute to the American Cancer Society every year.

The dollars raised through Relay events help with education, prevention, treatment, and support for all cancer survivors and patients.  At our local Relay event, we celebrate all cancer survivors, remember loved ones lost and learn how each of us can do more to fight back against this dreaded disease.  The event also increases awareness of the importance of prevention, early detection, treatment and patient support.

Please join us at the Brown County Relay for Life event on Friday, July 26 at 5:00 p.m. at the Brown County Fairgrounds. Together we will create more Birthdays!

By: Barb Marti, Receptionist/Administrative Assistant

Citizens Bank Minnesota’s CR8 Committee

Mission Statement: Create a fun and inviting workplace to energize employees and create a buzz for clients.

At Citizens Bank Minnesota, we have a fun group called CR8 (Create). CR8 consists of several employees from different departments and branch locations. The employee serves a two-year term and when their term is over, someone else from their department or branch will take over.

The main purpose of CR8 is to plan fun events for our clients and employees and to create a fun light-hearted work environment while still keeping things professional. Some of the ongoing, fun ideas that we celebrate are supporting Minnesota sports teams by wearing our Vikings or Twins apparel, supporting our local high school teams during Homecoming by wearing their school colors and handing out beads at the local games. We also participate in wearing red on Fridays to support our troops.  Our employees have fun celebrating weird and wacky national days including National Chocolate Chip Day, National Root Beer Float Day, and National Apple Day. Our clients really enjoy those because they end up on the receiving end of chocolate chip cookies and root beer floats for FREE! Our employees also wear pink in October to support Breast Cancer awareness, and we celebrate Moms and Dads on Mother’s Day and Father’s Day.

This year the CR8 Committee is challenged with planning our annual team building event. We are very excited about this one! We have called it the R.A.K. Challenge and have left the employees in suspense with what the event is all about. All I can tell everyone is that it will have a great impact on the communities we serve, so be ready to be amazed!

So the next time you stop into your local branch, and we’re not in our normal ‘banker’ attire, you just might be part of a fun day we are celebrating.

By: Missy Marti, Marketing Officer

National Teach Kids To Save Day

National Teach Children to Save Day is April 23. Citizens Bank Minnesota is excited to once again go into our local schools and teach the second graders about saving. The day is aimed at raising awareness about the important role that banks and bankers play in helping young people develop lifelong savings habits.

One of the ways we help the students learn about saving is by discussing what they might save for, why it is important to save, and where they can save their money. To emphasize how banks are a better place to save their money than at home in their piggy banks, the students play a game with laffy taffy. After the class is divided into two, they each take turns to “make a deposit” with their taffy, one group to their piggy bank, the other to the bank. After the first round, the students who deposited their taffy at the bank receive interest in the form of more taffy. After five rounds, the bank students have an overflowing bucket of taffy, while the piggy bank students have only the amount of taffy they started with. This is a good visual and interactive example for students to see the benefits of saving.

Following the laffy taffy game, the students talk about different ways they can add to their savings accounts, such as receiving money as a gift, earning money from jobs at home, or their allowance. They also talk about their savings goals, such as buying video games or toys now, or saving for a car or college in the future. The students then can ask questions in regards to saving and the bank. In the past, the students have been excited to talk about the security of the bank, specifically the vault and motion detectors!

Through Teach Children to Save, the students really gain a good insight into saving that we hope will stay with them through their lives.  If they don’t already have a savings account, we encourage the kids to stop into Citizens and open one up.  They will then join the Savings Force and receive educational newsletters and be involved in our Power Rewards Program, which is geared towards saving money and getting good grades in school to earn rewards.

By: Kelly Blick, Marketing Assistant/Youth Coordinator

Five – $100 Gift Cards from a local business of your choice to be given away May 31, 2013!

Citizens Bank Minnesota is excited to roll out our new Go! Green Online Banking enhancement.  Go! Green gives you the opportunity to sign up for E-Statements with the ability to view your check images as well as additional electronic documents at no charge!

So how would you like a chance to win one of five $100 Gift Cards to a local business of your choice*?    All clients enrolled for E-Statements by May 31, 2013 are automatically entered to win!

If you do not have Online Banking, you can enroll at www.citizensmn.com, then follow the steps listed below.

If you already have Online Banking, enrollment is easy! Simply follow these 3 eZ steps!

1. Login to your Online Banking
2. Click the Go! Green tab

• Click on Sign Up/Changes
• Select the accounts and notices you would like delivered electronically
• Agree to the terms and conditions

1. You will receive a confirmation e-mail from Citizens (customerservice@citizensmn.com)

That’s it! If you have any questions or need help, please contact our Citizens Connection department at 507-354-3165 or 800-549-0194.

Hap E-Spring!

 

*Every Citizens Bank Minnesota client enrolled in E-Statements by May 31, 2013 will automatically be entered to win one of five $100 gift cards to a local business of their choice. In order to receive E-Statements you must have Online Banking. You must be 18 years of age or older to win. No deposit required. Do not need to open an account or be a client of Citizens Bank Minnesota to win. Winners will be notified on Monday, June 3, 2013. You do not need to be present to win.

By: Sarah Seifert – Online Marketing Administrative Assistant

Balyeat Promoted To Assistant Branch Manager

Juliana Balyeat has recently been promoted to the Citizens Bank Minnesota management team as the Assistant Branch Manager for their Lakeville Branch.  Balyeat joined Citizens in 2004 as a Client Services Representative.  She lives in Lakeville with her husband Dennis.

Congratulations Juliana!

Spring Planting

Spring is here, at least by the calendar. As I look outside, we are getting snow and the cold temperatures just don’t seem to want to leave us. We know, however, that it will change and we will be in the fields shortly. This is a very busy time of year as we get our start on planting this year’s crop. We all know that timing can be everything when it comes to optimum conditions.

Now that we have reviewed our crop insurance and have our best plan in place, we work hard to get machinery ready to get to the fields timely and plant in best ground conditions to give the crop its best start possible.

Just a couple reminders on key dates to remember: the earliest planting date for corn is April 11th and soybeans is April 21st. If you decide to plant ahead of these specified dates, you do lose replant benefits on those acres. Once the crop is planted and you certify your acres with FSA, those acres and planting dates need to be submitted for your crop insurance acreage report.

Spring tillage and planting time is always a great time to review future needs in your farming operation. Now is the time to analyze everything from low areas requiring additional tile, to tillage and planting equipment that need updating, enhancing or replacing. We see how, time and again, a good drainage system gives you certain efficiencies that pay rewards. Good planting conditions in the spring, being able to handle the large rainfall at one time and proper drainage at harvest time after a fall rain is key to the larger yields to be obtained. Tillage and planting equipment also have efficiencies that need to be considered. Trips over the field, proper seed bed and plant spacing all have impact on profit dollars. As always, every operation has to work with their lender for what is feasible for your size farming operation, debt load and a pay back analysis needs to be done. As always, we have your best interest in mind as we talk these things through and develop a loan package, if needed.

We look forward to a great 2013 crop year and wish the best for our farmers. Even though it is a busy, fast paced time of year, please remember to get your needed rest and stay safe.

By: Tim Hoscheit, Vice-President

Making A Difference…

Citizens Bank Minnesota employees wanted to do something to make a difference, so on December 10, 2009 Citizens teamed up with Operation Minnesota Nice and sent our first packages to our newly adopted Soldiers/Marines who are overseas.  As of March 15, 2013 our employees have sent a total of 374 packages to over 70 adopted Military personnel (totaling 4,158 pounds of hope).

Why do we care?   Read the following letters, and you will understand…

“My name is Jason…. I was first deployed to Iraq in 2007.  This time, I am a sapper in Afghanistan.  We do route clearance driving at about 2 mph looking for roadside bombs. Jan 6th we took our first bad hit. We had 4 KIA and 1 wounded. That was a tough one. I knew those guys pretty well and it hurt and still does but we have a mission to do….Things had been pretty quiet until recent. Don’t get me wrong we have taken IED blasts and the occasional small arms fire but everyone has been ok. In middle of June our FOB was attacked. 8 insurgents had gotten on base.  The chow hall had been blown up as well as some other buildings. Only one person was injured.  Again things calmed down. July 16th is a day that will live with me for the rest of my life. “Nick” was my youngest soldier, he was 20. And you talk about a model soldier, the best nicest all around great kid. His smile that would just melt away any anger or anything ya know. I couldn’t go on mission. My commander had me on a different mission….anyway, Nick, the rest of my guys, along with a few other squads went out on mission and were the victims of a Complex attack. Nick and “Sergio” were KIA that day, and I wasn’t there…. To this day I’m still haunted by not being there asking myself the same question – was there anything I could have done? I’m not asking for pity but if you could send prayers to their families, and for them and my soldiers- they need them. Thanks again for the packages!  From SSG Jasonlee “

“Just got another package from Citizens Bank. I would like to thank you all for keeping me in your thoughts while I am gone. I know it has been hard on my mom, so thank you also for being there for her J I will be stopping in once I get back – when I get out of the Marines. Thank you all again.  Jake”

“…  I cannot thank you enough for the care packages.  What an adventure.  You should have seen my co-workers when I was opening up those boxes.  We are just like little kids at Christmas time.  This means so much to us. I have two more days left here in Kuwait before I make my way home.  I have been here a whole year and it felt like a whole year at times.  I cannot believe that I have spent two years out of the past four here in the Middle East.  I just wanted to say thanks for all of your boxes of goodies that you guys have sent to me and my guys.  We really appreciate it.  Thank you.  CPT Jared “

“First off, I would like to apologize for this “thank you” being so late! I truly do appreciate the packages that you and Citizens have sent to me! Also, thank you for the special cards for me to send back to my family.  Please let everyone know that I appreciated their letter!  Thank you, and please extend my gratitude to the whole staff at Citizens as well! I loved each of the packages, as did my buddies!  Jarrett”

This is not a matter of whether you believe we are overseas for the right reasons, but a matter of supporting our Military who have received their orders and have been called to duty.  Make a difference in someone’s life today!  For more information go to: http://www.operationminnesotanice.com/.

By: Jill Derksen, Loan Processor/Admin. Professional