Citizens Bank

Citizens Bank & Trust Co is the February Loup City Chamber of Commerce business of the month. Businesses are chosen from paid up chamber members by a drawing.

Citizens Bank & Trust Co started in Loup City in 2000 as a Loan Production Office of Citizens Bank and Trust in St Paul in the building currently occupied by Loup City RX Shoppe at 133 S. 7th Street. A drive up ATM machine was available in the alley besides the office. A full service bank, Citizens National Bank, was nationally chartered in 2002. Shortly afterwards, the new bank began the planning for a new Loup City location and employees moved into the new bank building at 650 P Street December 20, 2004. Citizens National Bank converted to a Nebraska State bank in 2006 and the word National was dropped from the bank name. Citizens Bank merged with its sister Citizens Bank & Trust Co in St. Paul in 2009 along with the purchase of Central Bank in Central City.

A recent ad noted “Citizens Bank & Trust provides superior financial service with honesty, professionalism and confidentiality, while promoting economic growth and stability in the communities they serve”. The bank has locations in St. Paul and Central City as well as Loup City “offering convenient locations. All the sites “are experienced in real estate, agriculture, commercial and consumer lending, offer savings accounts, deposits, checking accounts, debit cards and online/mobile banking”. The banks are “proud supporters of all student activities” in the local schools. The bank has made a significant donation every year to the Loup City Library summer reading program for a number of years.

Vice president Tina Chilewski said the bank “prepares snack sacks for all the state qualifying teams from the school”, provides ice cream bars at the Sherman County Fair barbecue and is active in Loup City Area Chamber of Commerce activities including having “Chamber Bucks” available to purchase for use with Loup City businesses that are chamber members.

The Citizens Bank & Trust Co. of Loup City recently began a program at the Loup City Schools after school program. Banking specialist Kelsey Stanczyk said “we just started the “Bonzai Program” which is an online game students can use to learn about earning and saving money for a bicycle”. She said the game has the students “set up a lemonade stand from scratch by learning how to get a loan to buy the supplies they will need for their business”. She said they will learn about “selling, saving, loans, buying supplies and spending their profits”. Stanczyk said there is a similar program available to high school students where they can start a business to earn money to pay for a car.

Employees of the office “are the most important part of the business” and are featured in the yearly holiday issue of Sherman County Times. Lonnie Tvrdik is President of the Loup City Branch, Tina Chilewski is Vice President and Kathy Lutz is Administrative Assistant. Loan officers are Ryan Hircock and Deb Higgins; Darcy Smith is the Loan Administration Clerk and Brittany Orsborn is a Loan Officer Trainee. Banking specialists are Kelsey Stanczyk, Ione Bruha and Gayle Johnson.

Vice President Tina Chelewski said one item the public might not know about the bank is they have a “monthly give away” aimed mostly “for their customers”. She said “it is open to the public and all a person needs to do is enter into the contest at the bank”. Some of the contests have included guessing the number of pieces of candy in a jar or can. Every month something different will be tried.

The bank offers a wide variety of services for customers. Regular checking accounts and budget checking accounts, business accounts and a “Classic Club” package of “banking services for our present and new customers who are the age of 55 and over”. The perks include free checks and regular checking account, discount on a safe deposit box, free cashier’s checks and money orders, free stop payments, free fax services and exclusive social events throughout the year”. Savings services include regular savings accounts, money market accounts, Lil’ Savers Account, Christmas Club, Certificate of Deposits, IRA accounts, All savings accounts are “are insured to the applicable limits of the FDIC. Educational IRA and Health Savings Account. Other services inclue ATM/VISA Debit Card, credit cards, online banking, mobile banking, PopMoney, electronic statements, automatic fund transfer and ICS/CDARS.

Regular lobby hours for the bank are 8 AM to 4 PM Monday through Friday and 8 AM to 6 PM Monday through Friday for the drive up window. The lobby and drive up window is open from 8 AM to 11 AM on Saturdays.