Community-Minded: Church honors Johnson with award
“I’d turned it down several times,” checking service manager Erica Johnson says of the annual Trailblazer Award, which Siloah Lutheran Church’s gospel choir gives to members of the congregation for their ongoing service. She prefers to let others shine. “But they kind of twisted my arm.”

It was certainly time. Erica has been a member of the Milwaukee church since 1991, and her service comes in many different forms. She and her late husband, Fred, operated Sunshine Catering until his death in 2005 and routinely prepared the food for large church events. She still cooks, handles money, plans events — and of course, sings in the choir. Read more about Erica’s recognition for her outstanding service.

The forecast for spring at NSB
Several of you shared what you were excited for, now that the weather is warming up. Here’s what you said you were looking forward to.

Kelly Kading, Personal Banker, Northland
Ahhh. Finally spring enough to eat lunch at the picnic table. Gotta love it! Although we can still make a good snowball…

Casey Nogalski, Teller, Brookfield Capitol
Spring has always been my favorite season. Trees start budding, flowers start blooming, and I get to hear the birds singing again. It puts me in a great mood, especially after a winter like this one. This year I have an added bonus with this upcoming spring: I’m getting married!

Dan Fregoso, Systems Analyst
Brewers baseball — and Opening Day the most! Hopefully we can get some nice weather for it!

Ryan Halloran, Teller, Brookfield Square
I’m looking forward to playing ultimate Frisbee. I’ve been playing for almost 10 years. My friends and I usually try to play once a week or so during the summer. •••

Bank donates money, pet supplies to honor Beaudin

North Shore Bank donated a carload of pet supplies along with a check for $1,825 to the Wisconsin Humane Society this week, in honor of Carlie Beaudin, the nurse practitioner murdered at Froedtert Hospital in January. She was a big supporter of the animal protection organization.

“The gentleman from the Humane Society said our timing was perfect, as they had just taken in 43 dogs today on an emergency basis!” said Molly Schissler, SVP, human resources and compliance, who dropped off the donations (pictured above) on Wednesday. “We are happy to be a small part of remembering Carlie’s beautiful life.”

Branches raised money for the Humane Society, while Corporate held a collection for the supplies. Corporate employees enjoyed a jeans day on Friday, March 22, which is when debit risk specialist Peggy Theisen caught the photo above of customer assistance specialist Melissa Baccash in a cute, very event-appropriate sweater. •••

Employees catch some hockey

North Shore Bank employees saw the Milwaukee Admirals hockey team take down the Rockford IceHogs on March 22 at UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena. Because it was “Zamboni Night,” presented by the bank, the first 2,500 fans through the gates received zamboni banks.

Up top, Greendale personal banker Samantha Damman and her daughter Layla pose at the arena. “This was Layla’s first hockey game, and now she said she wants to play hockey,” Samantha reported.

Above is video teller Erika Garcia’s son Uriel, who attended with his mom and dad. It was their family’s first game, too.

Greendale teller supervisor Valerie Kochanski and daughter Savannah, above, came with Samantha and Layla as well. •••

New Hires for March 28
It’s always exciting to add new members to our team. Here are some of the fresh faces at North Shore Bank.

Fox Point universal banker Gabe Apostol is from the Philippines and came to the U.S. six years ago. He was previously a teller for US Bank for two years. “I enjoy playing the ukulele and blues music,” Gabe says. “And in my spare time, I volunteer as a chess instructor for a group of formidable yet fun-loving young people.”

Universal banker Karyn Baumann grew up in South Milwaukee and lives in Milwaukee now. Before coming to North Shore Bank, she worked for Coverall as a lead generation sales associate and for Bank Mutual as an assistant bank office manager. “I am a single mom of three children, and summer is our favorite time of year,” she says. “We love riding bikes on park trails, going swimming at different lakes and park pools, the Brewers, and tailgating. We also enjoy festivals and free movie nights in the park. I love photography and taking pictures and scrapbooking.”

Mequon teller Nathan Cardosi is from Springfield, Illinois, and has lived in Milwaukee since summer 2017. He has applied to the educational psychology master’s program at UW-Milwaukee and expects to hear back soon. ” I’m a MASSIVE international soccer fan,” Nathan says. “I’ve been playing in some capacity since I was 4 years old, and I hope to one day be able to coach a competitive team.” His favorite club is Arsenal, based in London. “They were the first international team I ever saw on TV, way back in 2004 while on a trip to Europe. They went undefeated that season — which still has yet to be replicated — and their organization on the pitch and fluid style of play left a lasting impression.”

Muskego personal banker Matthew Cieslak is from Pewaukee and was previously a financial professional associate with Prudential Advisors. “I enjoy cosplaying — which is over-glorified dressing up as movie and comic-book characters — and attending comic cons,” he says. “I started about two years ago — my girlfriend is an exceptionally talented artist and costume designer who really got me into it. It’s basically having an extended Halloween party multiple times a year. My favorite thus far has been participating in a photo shoot as Superman” (as seen above).

Sussex teller Samantha Fletcher is from Lisbon and recently graduated from UW-Milwaukee with two bachelor’s degrees — one in political science and one in international politics and world affairs. A singer and guitarist, Sammi is in a band with friends and also provides music therapy for dementia patients in hospice care. “My band and I were at Guitar Center in Brookfield one day, and I was reading the fliers on their bulletin board,” she says. “There was an advertisement by Compassionate Care Hospice for music therapy volunteers, so I thought that would be a great way to share with others what I love to do. Hospice work can be quite difficult, but I have grown so much as a person doing it. It really has given me a new appreciation of how short life is and to make each day count (to quote Titanic).”

Northland teller Yasmin Hossain is from Long Beach, California, and previously worked as a night auditor for a hotel. She is also a psychology major at the University of La Verne online. “Spending my entire life in Southern California, I never once saw the snowfall or made a snowball,” Yasmin says. “When I moved here last summer, I used to tell everyone that I couldn’t wait for winter to see how beautiful snow was; I now do not like the snow anymore. Driving is absolutely HORRIBLE, especially when my tires lose traction, or the plows haven’t come by yet and the car just shakes side to side. Other than that, it’s great to take my 1-year-old out to play in and make little snowmen for him. It can stop now, though!” •••

North Shore Shape Up: Do weighted blankets work?
Long used to help children with autism or sensory challenges, weighted blankets have become increasingly popular among the general public as a purported remedy for anxiety, stress, and insomnia. But is there evidence to support those uses? Harvard Health takes a closer look:

While some people swear by these blankets, concrete evidence is unfortunately lacking. There are really no reputable scientific studies to back up the claims, says Dr. Cristina Cusin, an assistant professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. “A randomized clinical trial to test the blankets would be very difficult,” she says. A blind comparison is impossible because people can automatically tell if the blanket is heavy or not.

So it comes down to trying a weighted blanket and seeing how it works for you. However, make sure you check with your doctor before doing so if you have sleep apnea or another sleep disorder, a respiratory condition, or if you want to try one for your child. •••

Upcoming Events
The annual Kids & Family Expo takes place this Saturday, March 30, at the RecPlex in Pleasant Prairie. North Shore Bank is the title sponsor, and admission is free. More upcoming events here.

Internal Job Postings •••

Friday, March 29

• Teller, Jackson Park, full time (40 hrs/wk). Pay grade: N02. Referral bonus: $300.

Monday, April 1

• Business Relationship Manager, Corporate, full time (40 hrs/wk). Pay grade: E13. Referral bonus: $750.
• Personal Banker, Southwest, full time (40 hrs/wk). Pay grade: N05. Referral bonus: $500.

Ongoing

• Customer Assistance Rep, Corporate, full time (40 hrs/wk). Pay grade: N12. Referral bonus: $400.
• Video Teller and Video Teller Supervisor, Brookfield Square, full (40 hrs/wk) or part time (20). Pay grade: N03. Referral bonus: $400.

For complete information regarding internal job postings, application procedures, and our referral program, click on the Job Postings tile found on the home page in Ask Seymour.