Independent Banker - July 2019 - 77

letes both on and off the field. Coaches at the
five participating high schools in Marion County,
Ohio, nominate one male and one female athlete
each month who have participated in a sport that
has just ended or is currently going on. In their
nominations, the coaches talk about not only the
students' athletic achievements, but things that
they do outside of school, such as volunteering in
youth programs, mentoring students and participating
in other activities.
" When you walk in the
high schools, you see
Fahey Bank's name all
along the hall of fame
walls. "
The coaches present nominations to their
schools' athletic directors, and the athletic directors
bring their nominations to $280 million-asset
Fahey Bank's monthly lunch meetings, which
are also attended by a representative from the
Marion Star newspaper, a representative from
the WMRN radio station and Fahey Bank branch
manager Krista Biederman.
" All of us read all of the nominations, and then
the athletic directors and the newspaper and
radio station representatives vote, " says Biederman,
who has been managing the program for
the past 10 years. " I don't vote. "
Each month, the male and female student athletes
with the most votes win the award. If there's
a tie, then the judges vote again.
To make sure that as many athletes as possible
are considered each academic year, no student
athlete can win more than one award each
year. However, it is possible for a student to win
the award once a year for all four years of high
school. " For example, we have one female athlete
who is a senior this year and has won an award
four years in a row, " Biederman says.
One might think that each athletic director
would automatically vote for the athletes who
represent their own school. However, that's not
always the case, according to Biederman. " When
the athletic directors look at all of the statistics
and service projects of all of the student athletes
who have been nominated in a given month, they
may end up voting for students from high schools
other than their own, " she says.
Source of pride
In terms of publicity for the winners, each high
school has its own hall of fame. Biederman
arranges to have two plaques made for each winner
each month. One plaque goes in that high
school's hall of fame, and the other is presented
-Krista Biederman, Fahey Bank
to the student. The program has been going on
for so long that at least one of the high schools
has had to add a new area to increase the size of
its hall of fame.
In addition, the Marion Star writes an article
each month about the two winners. " We also feature
the winners on our Fahey [Bank] Athlete of
the Month Facebook page, " Biederman says.
As the person who manages the program for
the bank, Biederman's most important role is
setting up and running the lunch meeting each
month. She is also responsible for getting the
plaques made and delivered. " Personally, I also
enjoy the opportunity to present the plaques to
the student athletes in person each month, which
usually takes place at sporting events, " she says.
Obviously, the program provides positive publicity
for Fahey Bank in the community, not only
in the local newspaper's reports and at plaque
presentations, but in the high schools as well.
" When you walk in the high schools, you see
Quick stat
Over the past
38
years, Fahey
Bank has
nominated two
local high school
students each
month as part
of the bank's
Athlete of the
Month program
Fahey Bank's name all along the hall of fame
walls, " Biederman says. " We also hang our bank's
sponsor flags at all of the high schools' sporting
events. "
According to Biederman, when the students
are getting to the point in their lives when they
want to open up bank accounts or handle other
banking needs, they already have a personal connection
with Fahey Bank.
And some of the benefits are personal. Biederman
recalls an incident with an athlete whom
the bank honored. The week before he won, his
father passed away unexpectedly. " It was really
special for me to be able to present his award to
him, " she says.
William Atkinson is a writer in Illinois.
independentbanker.org Q 75
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Independent Banker - July 2019

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