After doing it all for over 30 years, Pat Ingelse retiring
“This was definitely not an easy decision to make!” says Pat Ingelse of her plans to retire next week. But after over 30 years at North Shore Bank, during which she worked in multiple departments and successfully battled cancer, the project manager knew it was the right time.

“These last couple years have shown us that we should not take anything for granted, and should appreciate each day to its fullest,” she says. “My family is needing more help, and now I will be able to step in more easily.” A regular Shorelines contributor who started the bank’s popular Zen Minute daily mindfulness email, Pat notes that her Cedarburg energy-healing and meditation practice, Inner Ki, has also been growing. “So if not now, when, right?” Read more about her plans now!

Weber helps Girl Scouts provide for Milwaukee kids

Last month, Shorewood area branch manager AVP Shannon Weber helped a local Girl Scout troop make it a happier Christmas season for Milwaukee children in need.

As part of earning their Making Choices patches, the scouts talked about the differences between wants and needs and learned that some families lack the resources to meet all of their children’s needs, much less take care of their wants. In response, the troop identified gifts that other local kids could use and would like, and put together gift bags to be donated to the nonprofit Milwaukee Rescue Mission for distribution. The bags included necessities like socks, pants, T-shirts, and toothbrushes and toothpaste, along with some more fun surprises.

For our ongoing Bank on Kindness initiative, North Shore Bank and Shannon helped fund the gift-bag project. Shannon also surprised the young scouts with their own bags of North Shore Bank goodies, including a piggy bank, sunglasses, and a plush Seymour Savings.

“The girls had a bit of a hard time understanding why they couldn’t keep some of the items being donated, but also truly understood it was to help others,” Shannon said. “When they finished putting everything together and then received the North Shore Bank bag with goodies inside, they were so so excited.”

She added: “I think my favorite part was seeing these girls be given an opportunity to learn how they can help others. And I appreciate North Shore Bank giving me the opportunity to help make it happen.” •••

Gingerbread houses earn praise from customers

Burlington has gotten into the spirit of the season with some sweet construction projects. “We each decorated a house as a team-building exercise,” branch manager Robin Callis said. The houses are on display at the branch through next Saturday, January 15, for customers to judge. “They have been a huge conversation piece and very well received. We are having fun with all the great comments and hope to make it an annual event!” •••

You can earn a $2,000 bonus by referring an MLO
Know any good MLOs? The bank is looking for qualified mortgage loan originators and will pay a $2,000 bonus for successful referrals for the position. To qualify for the bonus, you must currently be actively employed by North Shore Bank. All employees are eligible except senior executives, HR staff, and managers if the referral is for a position they are responsible for.

For your referral to qualify, the candidate must remain employed by North Shore Bank for 180 days, and both you and the candidate must be employed here on the payment disbursement date. The first half of a referral payment will be paid out after the new hire’s first 30 days, with the remainder paid out after the 180 days are up. Get more information about our job referral program here! •••

Take a few minutes and let go of mental busyness

To live authentically, we need to hang on to the present moment; some of our mental busyness needs to go. Devote a few minutes at the start of the day to tranquility.

Try this meditation for one minute every day, or longer if you want to:

LET GO OF YOUR THOUGHTS. Pay attention to your breath. Just notice it — don’t think about it.

How did this meditation go for you? Share your experience at shorelines@northshorebank.com and you’ll be entered to win a copy of A Mindful Day: 365 Ways to Live Life With Peace, Clarity, and an Open Heart, by David Dillard-Wright.

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

See where you stand with financial wellness assessment

Even if we’re in decent shape financially, many of us could improve our spending and saving habits. But to make the most useful changes, we have to know where we’re starting from. North Shore Bank’s Financial Wellness Assessment will ask questions about your financial situation and then give you feedback on which areas you should work on. It also suggests other helpful online resources.

Give it a try, and make sure your customers, friends, and family know about this handy tool too. The assessment takes only five minutes, and you can find it here. •••

New Hires for January 6
It’s always exciting to add new members to our team. Here are some of the fresh faces at North Shore Bank.

Video teller Maria De La O Sanchez was born and raised in Milwaukee, and previously worked at CapTel, captioning phone calls for the hard-of-hearing. She is majoring in art education at UW-Milwaukee. “I’m a traditional artist, and I work with a variety of different paints!” Maria says. “I’ve had a lot of success over the course of the year with my artwork, so I hope that continues. My goal for the next few months is to get into digital art and expand my portfolio that way.”

Green Bay East teller Ashley Wasielewski was born and raised in Green Bay, and has worked at Target for the past three and a half years. She is majoring in finance at UW-Green Bay and wanted to get more experience in the financial industry. “I love adventuring,” Ashley says. “I frequently go on short road trips and hikes around Wisconsin, even in the dead of winter. I’m not a fan of the cold, but I love being outdoors for even a short amount of time before I decide my hands are too numb! My favorite memory from this year was skydiving in mid-October. Besides the freezing weather, it was an amazing experience!” •••