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Brian Marshall, BCL of Texas director of
entrepreneurship; Rosa Ríos Valdez, BCL of
Community Banks Texas CEO; Dick Wosniak of the Wharton Tractor
Company; and David Brennan of Extraco Banks
Help Bring Relief
for Hurricane-
Struck Businesses
In Wharton
n all the headlines about destruc-
Ition and rebuilding in the wake
of Hurricane Harvey, one narrative
has been virtually ignored: the
small Texas towns outside of the
Houston area that are dealing with
the same devastating impacts as
the metropolitan area, but with With City of Wharton leadership ber bank. Most of the small, local
less infrastructure, less national represented on BCL’s board, the businesses affected by this disaster
attention and less support. company knew the community lacked such connections, as well as
Wharton, Texas, about 60 miles well. Working with the Wharton the expertise to navigate the appli-
southwest of Houston, is one such Economic Development team, BCL cation process. BCL helped by lever-
town. An estimated 60 percent or helped bring much-needed grant aging connections between business
more of the residents had flood wa- funds to the Wharton-area busi- owners and sponsoring banks.
ter in their homes or on their prop- nesses that experienced flooding Fortunately, BCL partner banks
erties in this city of less than 10,000. during Hurricane Harvey. stepped up to help, too. First Na-
Countless businesses were damaged. Another important piece in this tional Bank of Eagle Lake, Extraco
During tough times such as these, recovery effort was the community Banks and Woodforest Nation-
businesses need urgent support and banks. The Federal Home Loan al Bank all sponsored affected
it takes solid leaders to step up. Bank (FHLB) offered $15,000 grants businesses. In total, partner banks
BCL of Texas, an economic for businesses to rebuild. However, sponsored $220,000 in grants that
development firm with offices in to be eligible, businesses had to were awarded to recovering Whar-
Austin and Dallas, did just that. be sponsored by an FHLB-mem- ton businesses.
“We know the Wharton com-
munity and are committed to its
IBAT Marketing Acquires Bankers Digest local recovery,” says Rosa Ríos
Valdez, BCL’s president and CEO.
BAT Marketing Inc. acquired Bankers Digest earlier this year. It has been “We’re honored to have the oppor-
I published weekly since 1942 and covers Southwest banking industry tunity to help where the need is so
news in Texas, Oklahoma, Arizona, Louisiana, Arkansas, New Mexico and great, and to provide value to the
Mississippi. communities we serve.”
“We are dedicated to maintaining
Bankers Digest’s content elements that
have made it one of the most reliable Moody Bank
and widely read publications through-
out the Southwest,” says IBAT’s Chris Rolls Out Rebrand
Williston. “We have given our assur- oody National Bank has re-
ances that the publication will remain Mbranded to reflect the bank’s
devoted to all banking news and open services, goals and values. Founded
to all advertisers—exactly the way it in Galveston in 1907, Moody Bank
currently is published.” has grown to serve the greater
Banks are encouraged to continue Houston, Galveston and Central
forwarding news of employee and Texas regions with new products,
officer promotions, merger-and-acqui- services and technologies.
sition announcements, new locations “Our research confirms that
and other pertinent bank news to our customers count on us for the
[email protected]. personal service of a community
14 | THE TEXAS INDEPENDENT BANKER