For Maria Baumer, helping out turned into a career
Although she officially celebrates 20 years with North Shore Bank this month, Brookfield Square area manager and VP Maria Baumer has been involved with the company even longer. She started as a teller at the Pewaukee branch in 1998, as a high school student in a co-op program, and then stayed on after graduating and beginning her studies at UW-Milwaukee, where she majored in finance. Needing more time during the day to focus on her studies, she left the bank and took a part-time job working nights and weekends at Home Depot.

“I received a call from the district manager at the time — Lyneen Fischer — asking if I would be willing to help out for a bit at our MLK Drive office, which wasn’t far from campus,” Maria says. “What was meant to be a couple of weeks turned into 20 more years!” Read more about here career now!

DeMain, Staeven win at WMBA Best in Business Awards

Two North Shore Bank employees were recognized as winners at the Wisconsin Mortgage Bankers Association eighth annual Best in Business Awards on April 7. Amy DeMain was named Mortgage Banker of the Year and Brett Staeven was named Best in Processing/Loan Support, both for markets outside Milwaukee and Madison.

“It’s definitely pretty cool to win, especially since it starts out with someone you work with nominating you. To have the people I work with think so highly of me means a lot,” Brett said. “And I work with a lot of great people. The loan officers I work with — Nik Sendelbach, Chris Boland, and Amy — make my life super easy. The openers make my life easy in the beginning, closers make the final stages of the process easy, and many others help along the way. Nicole Daniels, Chris, Cindy Nell, Tony Larke, and Marta Acosta have all either trained me or helped in other ways, and I’m thankful for all of them.”

“Quite honestly, I was just honored to be nominated and be a finalist — I’m blown away that I actually won!” Amy said. “It was so much fun to be recognized alongside other members of my team. Right now I have what you might call ‘the Dream Team.’ Brett keeps my files running smoothly, and Chris is always there for me. The support from them and the rest of our team has allowed me to focus on involvement in the community and representing the bank on a greater level. I could not have done this without my team!”

Six North Shore Bank employees were named finalists for this year’s Best in Business Awards. Once again, congratulations to all of you! •••

BizTimes recognizes Capper as banking leader
Milwaukee’s BizTimes has named North Shore Bank SVP and commercial banking manager Margaret Capper a Notable Commercial Banking Leader.

“I am truly humbled by this,” Margaret says. “Nothing gets done without many hands, and I am truly blessed to work with such a great company, clients, and community.” Read more about Margaret’s achievements and this honor!

Cristo Rey student honored with quarterly award
Earlier this month, Bryan Ramirez, who works with the Deposit Services team as part of Cristo Rey Jesuit High’s work-study program, was recognized with the school’s Work Experienced award for the third quarter of the school year.

The school gives the award to one student from each grade every quarter. Winners have “learned to be dependable, responsible workers of integrity with high ethical standards,” according to the school.

“I am very thankful,” Bryan said. “I think I won mostly based off how well I was trained and led to success by my supervisors — I was just able to follow their directions well. I hope I can keep up the same work and grow from it.”

“We are so happy to have Bryan on the Deposit Services team,” deposit services supervisor Kristin Hoch said. “He is professional, polite, and respectful. Bryan takes on any responsibility he is given, without hesitation. He is a fast learner and stays on top of his tasks. We appreciate all of the help he provides and truly enjoy having him on our team.” Congratulations, Bryan! •••

Waters wins Easter egg contest

Commercial and Consumer Loan Administration held an Easter egg decorating contest. Employees took craft eggs home and returned them a few weeks later, all prettied up for this weekend’s holiday. Voting was close, with consumer team lead Glenda Waters ultimately taking first place — and the coveted bunny ears — for her Minion eggs, VP commercial and consumer closing manager Barb Wisneski reported.

“The contest was a great opportunity for our department to do something as a team,” Glenda said. “That was the best part — everyone was a winner.”

Consumer loan specialist Kelly Schneider, commercial team lead Priscilla Hartling, and consumer loan specialist JoEllen Brisk took second, third, and fourth. •••

Grafton features works by artists with disabilities

The Grafton branch is once again featuring work by an Artist of the Month — although this month, it’s artists, thanks to the creative spirits at Artistry Oasis LLC. The nonprofit serves people with developmental disabilities in and around Ozaukee County, using art to build motor and social skills and more.

“I am so happy we can provide a space to promote the program, as well as offer their works for sale to the public,” branch manager Jennifer Mantooth said. “This spring, they have a wide variety of colorful projects, including stained glass, paintings, and painted pots. I have my eye on the wine-cork birdhouses.”

You can see their work at artoasis15.org, or stop in at the branch’s Stone House Gallery during normal business hours — it’s tucked in just inside the front door. The gallery features work by different local artists every month. •••

Customer grateful for Zarb’s help

Some nice feedback this week from a Brookfield Square customer helped by assistant branch manager Mariella Zarb, as well as another who simply writes, “Love North Shore.” Don’t we all? •••

Customers can win $1,000 just by using digital banking

With our Spring Sweepstakes, customers can win one of ten $1,000 prizes just by using our Mobile App or Online Banking. Each time a customer performs a qualifying transaction, they’ll be entered for a chance to win.

Qualifying transactions include: adding and paying a new bill with Bill Pay; activating an eBill; sending or requesting a Zelle payment; setting up a new automatic or recurring payment; and downloading and logging into our Mobile App for iPhone or Android.

Of course, employees and their families are not eligible to win. You can see more here — let your customers know! •••

Free FAFSA guide helps students apply for federal aid
It’s National Financial Literacy Month, and North Shore Bank is here to help! High school juniors are starting to think seriously about which college they’ll attend after they graduate next year — and that means it’s time to think about financial aid as well. By filling out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, students can get scholarships and grants from the United States federal government — the average award is around $3,900. And yet each year, hundreds of thousands of students don’t take the short amount of time to do it.

Filling out a FAFSA isn’t hard, and our free online guide makes it even easier. If you’ve got a high school student at home, check it out now! And let your customers and family and friends know about this great resource too. •••

Give yourself the essential gift of time spent outside

For peace to be possible, ambition and greed must be greatly restrained. A peaceful frame of mind arises most easily when we can afford a certain leisurely pace, when we have time to reflect and absorb the beauty of nature. The workday must give way, at least for a little while, to walking in the grass and listening to the wind. Mindfulness is a great prize worth fighting for. It’s interesting we need to work so hard to carve out time for what is natural and healing. Take that time, and don’t be concerned about what others think. You can be effective while taking care of yourself.

Try this every day for a week:

TAKE 30 MINUTES today to go for a walk, or just sit outside. In the long run, you will be more helpful to others if you maintain your physical and mental health.

Green-time (time spent outdoors) promotes long-term gains in attention and impulse control — domains which largely shape how well our brain functions, and therefore how well we function in school, work, relationships, and health. Green-time is a truly solid investment in mental wealth. —Victoria L. Dunckley, child and adult psychiatrist

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 April 2022
The following employees celebrate a milestone anniversary with North Shore Bank this month.

25 years
Natalie Canadeo, Deposit Services Manager

20 years
Maria Baumer, VP, Area Manager, Brookfield Square — read more about her career!
Becky Reinhardt, VP, Retirement Program Services Manager

15 years
Ava Howland, Universal Banker, New Berlin

10 years
Orlandrea Lesure, Senior Deposit Operations Specialist

5 years
Erica Hughes, Branch Manager, Germantown

Leave a comment to congratulate them!

Green Bay Welcome Party slated
Looking for something to do? Here are suggestions from the bank’s event calendar.

North Shore Bank’s next Welcome Party will be held in Green Bay, at Titletown Brewing Company, on Thursday, May 19. The Welcome Party brings together new area residents, neighbors, local businesses, and community organizations for an evening of complimentary food, music, and more fun. Our last Welcome Party, held in Kenosha in September, was a great success, and we’re hoping for more of the same! The party is free, and interested folks can sign up here. •••