By rescuing horses, Scherff makes a dream come true
Information Systems vice president Dana Scherff has loved horses since childhood. But outside of taking riding lessons for a couple of summers when she was very young, her love has gone unrequited until now.

Four years ago, Dana started volunteering with Riding With Angels, a Palmyra nonprofit dedicated to rescuing abused and neglected horses. She worked with all of the group’s rescues, but bonded with one horse in particular — and now that horse, Hope, is Dana’s. Read about Hope’s story and Riding With Angels’ upcoming open house and fundraiser now.

Volunteers wanted for Wagfest!
Looking for volunteers: Elmbrook Humane Society’s Wagfest 2022 takes place Saturday, September 10, at Mitchell Park in Brookfield. As a sponsor of the event — which raises funds by offering a day full of activities for dogs, as well as food, drink, and raffle sales — the bank needs employees who can help out at our booth.

“Wagfest caters to both dogs and the owners who love to spoil them,” said veteran volunteer district manager Cristen Baumann. “There are food trucks and music for the humans, along with ‘puptinis,’ lure courses, and vendors selling every dog treat you can imagine. And it’s the only place you’re going to see 25 Great Danes in one spot.”

If you’re able to pitch in, email Cristen. And check out photos of some of the fur and fun from the 2019 event. •••

Lots of fun at Racine County Fair

Burlington and Union Grove branch employees helped out at Kids Day at the Racine County Fair on Thursday, July 28. Burlington branch manager AVP Robin Callis estimated they gave out 200 “swag bags” containing sunglasses, painting sheets, color-changing straws, and bike reflectors to children. For parents, we had hand sanitizer.

Employees who helped out included Robin, teller supervisor Jayme Clarey, and Union Grove teller supervisor Jackie Miller. •••

MLK Drive sets up table outside to talk banking

MLK Drive employees got some sunshine and fresh air on a recent Friday afternoon, setting up a table on the sidewalk outside the branch to greet the public and talk to passersby about North Shore Bank’s products and services.

“We felt that our inbound/outbound calls and teller line conversations weren’t generating quite enough business, so we decided to take it a step further and bring it outside,” branch manager Angela Byrd said. “We wanted to increase our lending, checking, and investment opportunities.”

Choosing a day with nice weather was one way the branch set itself up for success, she noted. “Also, make sure you have proper staffing, and choose a day when other neighborhood events are happening. Invite people to stop and ask questions, and make sure to have lots of colorful balloons out to attract attention,” Angela said. •••

Shorewood Feast, Southside Dining Week returning
Get your forks ready for these North Shore Bank events: The Shorewood Feast returns on Saturday, September 10, followed by the second annual Southside Dining Week from September 17 to 24.

As in past years, the third annual Shorewood Feast will be a daylong street festival that culminates with a family-style harvest dinner in the middle of Oakland Avenue. Members of the public can learn more about and sign up for a chance to win $500 in gift cards for local restaurants at shorewoodwi.com.

Southside Dining Week is back after a successful inaugural event in 2021. Organized and presented by the bank, this celebration of Southside Milwaukee’s international cuisine offers the chance to enjoy a signature dish at each participating restaurant for under $15. North Shore Bank customers will also receive a $5 statement credit when they spend $15 or more with their North Shore Bank Debit Mastercard® at participating restaurants! (Restrictions may apply.) Members of the public can enter a giveaway to win $100 in gift cards for participating restaurants at southsidediningweek.com. •••

White takes over at Union Grove
New Union Grove branch manager Jonathan White is from Greensboro, North Carolina. He spent almost 10 years at State Employees’ Credit Union there. “I was a teller, teller manager, and then a senior loan officer, providing personal lending services, mortgages, tax prep services, and financial counseling,” he says, adding that he also provided life, auto, and home insurance. He spent another year and a half in the Loan Servicing department at Union Grove’s Community State Bank.

He is excited about the opportunities offered by his new position at North Shore Bank.

“As a manager, I’ve always most enjoyed the opportunity to help others reach their goals — both customers and co-workers,” Jonathan says. “I’ve also enjoyed getting involved with the communities I serve outside of the office, especially since moving to Wisconsin.”

When he isn’t at work, he says, he most enjoys spending time with his kids — “and not spending time with them!” he jokes. “My son and I enjoy going to baseball games — go Braves! — and my daughter and I are becoming regulars at the Milwaukee Ballet. In my own downtime, I enjoy playing video games and going to concerts.” •••

Metro South branches score high in internal survey
In July, the Metro South District* invited internal customers to take the internal SOAR Together survey and rate their satisfaction with the level of service they’ve received from our branches. We received 187 responses to the question “How easy was it to do business with the branch?” Respondents could answer with a rating between 1 and 7, where 1 meant “Not easy to work with” and 7 meant “Very easy to work with.”

I am proud to announce the Metro South District scored 6.47 overall. The highest scores in our group were Brookfield Square, with 6.81, and Muskego and Wauwatosa, which each scored 6.67.

The survey also asked if the respondent wanted to recognize a particular person in the Metro North District, and we received 115 employee recognitions. The branch that led the way with most recognitions was Muskego, with 23.

These outcomes demonstrate without a doubt the amount of care each Metro South location has for its internal customers. Thank you to everyone who completed the survey — your feedback is greatly appreciated and will be shared with the entire district. —Lauri Lunde, district manager

*Metro South District branches are: Brookfield Square, El Rey, Forest Home, Franklin, Greendale, Jackson Park, Milwaukee Capitol, Muskego, New Berlin, Southridge, Southwest, Wauwatosa, and West Allis. •••

Stop a moment, get in touch with the heart center

When your mind grows tired of continual effort, you can always take a step back and get in touch with the heart center through deep breathing and mindful awareness. Breathing into the heart center releases us from the mental side of life, from nonstop internal dialogue.

Try this meditation for one minute today, or longer if you wish:

FOCUS ON YOUR HEART. Notice the feeling of relaxation as you turn away from all the chatter in your mind.

I find in my heart the source of all inspiration. I do not need to solve my
problems through overthinking or ceaseless toil. The correct course of action unfolds automatically. I only need to go along with my inner guide, and everything will be accomplished naturally.

How did this meditation go for you? Share your experience with your fellow North Shore Bank employees at shorelines@northshorebank.com and you’ll be entered to win a copy of Mindfulness in Plain English, by Bhante Gunaratana.

If you’d like a daily email reminder to practice one minute of mindfulness, email us with the subject “Mindfulness reminder.” •••

Service Anniversaries for August 2022
The following employees celebrate a milestone anniversary with North Shore Bank this month.

30 years
Nancy Hanson, Corporate Receptionist — read more here!

25 years
Rosanne Pulvermacher, Teller Supervisor, Brookfield Capitol

15 years
Megan Kubichek, Teller, Pewaukee

5 years
Cathy Degner, Senior Loan Funding Representative

Leave a comment to congratulate them!

New Hires for August 11
It’s always exciting to add new members to our team. Here are some of the fresh faces at North Shore Bank.

Customer care representative Tanicca Ellis is from Chicago and previously worked as a team lead at Associated Bank. “I love being around my family and friends — it gives me such great energy,” she says. “And we always have the funniest and most amazing times during any family functions.”

Green Bay East assistant branch manager Mariah Hintz is originally from Shawano and has lived in Green Bay for about eight years. She previously worked at Midland Plastics and was an assistant store manager at Victoria’s Secret Pink. “I enjoy spending time with my family, and enjoy taking my 1-year-old daughter on new adventures,” she says. “We recently took her on a trip to Door County, where she got to experience feeding farm animals, playing at the beach, and discovering rocks.” •••

Germantown library celebrating readers with concert
What’s going on with you? If you or someone in your family has a special event — a concert, show, sporting or charity event, or another important moment — send the details to shorelines@northshorebank.com. We’ll include information about select events to let your colleagues know about all the cool stuff happening with the North Shore Bank team.

Looking for more to do? Here are suggestions from the bank’s event calendar:

And Greendale Village Days is taking place today through Sunday, August 14, in downtown Greendale. There’s music, games, fun, food, and drink — and North Shore Bank will have kindness rocks to decorate this Saturday, August 13. Visitors will also have a chance to win $500 of gift cards for local businesses. More info here.

To celebrate all the readers who participated in the summer reading challenge, the Germantown Community Library and North Shore Bank will host a concert by the Germantown High band on Saturday, August 20. More info here.

And North Shore Bank will host a Community Cleanup event at our North End branch on Saturday, August 27. Volunteers will be working with local organizations and community members to get things looking beautiful, with refreshments provided. This is part of our ongoing Bank on Kindness initiative. More info here. •••