Clessie retires on July 8.

Retiring Teller Clessie Blasier has some simple advice for newcomers to the banking world: “Smile and greet your customer, use a soft voice, and listen to what they say,” she says. “Show the customer that you care for them like family!”

Clessie will retire from Sturgeon Bay East on July 8, after 21 years with North Shore Bank. She credits her co-workers old and new with helping her learn those principles herself and practice them every day in the office.

“When I started, Becky Kolstad, Barb Toellner, and Janice Smits took me under their wing to see how they work with customers and make them happy,” she says. “They taught me to actually care about them. [Assistant Branch Manager] Tara Neuville and [Teller] Tiff Theis are always helping me with online banking services, which the young customers — and some older ones, too! — love.”

Branch Manager Becky can attest to Clessie’s great work ethic.

“She prides herself on giving great customer service — she does not like to have her customers wait longer than expected and will go out of her way to respond as quickly as possible,” Becky says, noting that Clessie has a history of bringing in homemade baked goods to share with co-workers and customers. “If you let her, she will be the first person to arrive in the morning and the last to leave.”

Becky also praised Clessie’s loyalty. “She was planning on retiring this spring, but stayed on to help through the closing of our west side office, because she knew we were short employees. All of us, including her customers, will miss her — and I will find it especially hard not seeing her manning her teller station!”

As for what Clessie has enjoyed about her two-decade-plus career, she says she’ll remember the customers most of all.

“If they see me outside the bank, they say ‘What — you have the day off?!’ or ‘They let you out of the bank?!’” she jokes. “They’ll ask me about banking when I am not at work, and I’ll tell them to call me on Monday, so that I can help them to my fullest extent.”

But soon they’ll have to call someone else. Clessie’s plans for retirement are as straightforward and worthwhile as her advice for future bankers. “I plan to enjoy life and have fun with my first granddaughter, Arianna, who is 15 months old,” she says. Good luck, Clessie!