Jeanine, Madge, Margie, Diane, and Dave at Bravo for lunch.

While every customer at North Shore Bank is special, a few stand out — and Madge is one of them.

A customer at our Brookfield Square branch for at least 20 years, Madge is 95 years old. She moved into an assisted living facility last year and also stopped driving — which meant she also stopped visiting the bank.

“She is extremely spry — when I first met her, she was in her mid-80s, but didn’t appear much older than in her 60s,” says district operations manager Margie Brusa, who managed Brookfield Square until last month. “She loved coming to visit, and we loved listening to stories about her worldwide travels. Since she loves to read, she is well versed in many topics. Of course, when she was not able to drive anymore, we really missed her.”

However, as a direct result of the excellent service Madge has received from North Shore Bank over the years, her niece Diane’s family started banking with us a couple of years ago. Diane and her husband, Dave, promised to arrange a visit. Last month, they invited Margie and personal banker Jeanine Wielepski (who retired a week ago) to lunch with Madge at Bravo Italian restaurant.

“We saw how Margie and Jeanine took care of Madge,” says Dave. “They’ve always been very kind to her, and very knowledgeable, and they’ve been friends to her, rather than just having a business relationship.”

One time, Madge called the bank after being told she’d supposedly won a lottery — but would need to bring cash to cover the tax payments when she picked up the prize money.

“Obviously a scam situation,” Margie says. “She was disappointed, but took my advice to call the authorities.”

That was the kind of service that led Dave and Diane to become North Shore Bank customers, too.

“It was the quality of the people involved. We saw Margie and Jeanine work well with Madge’s attorney during her transition to assisted living, among other things,” Dave says. “We got to know the two of them quite well, and as a result of that experience, decided to put some accounts with North Shore.”

As for lunch, Margie says it was delightful.

“We had a lovely time,” she says. “Madge is still sharp-witted as ever. I promised her I’d bring Jeanine someday to visit her new home. She told me to make sure I called first. I asked, jokingly, if that was so she could make sure she wouldn’t get caught with her boyfriend. To which Madge promptly replied: ‘No, he fits fine underneath the bed!’

“Madge is a special person,” Margie adds. “I’m honored to know her and her family. She is much more than just a customer.”