Doggone cute: Gizmo surprises fans at Green Bay West

The team at Green Bay West got a surprise visit last month from a woman they’d never seen before — but someone else they had.

“An adorable dog came in with this woman,” assistant branch manager Hali Thompson reports. Universal banker Shanna Krause looked at the human, and then at the dog, and back at the woman, and exclaimed, “Oh my god, it’s Gizmo!”

It was Gizmo, along with his owner, senior deposit operations specialist Erica Kuik. And though branch staff had never met Erica in person, they recognized the shih tzu — who has appeared in Shorelines a couple times before — because of the unofficial “fan club” updates she sends out.

“In the beginning of COVID, I would send weekly updates of my ‘new co-worker,'” Erica says. Around 20 people are on the Gizmo mailing list. “Once I came back to Corporate, it changed to monthly, but I do like to surprise them every once in a while with a random email.”

“I had emailed Erica about how cute Gizmo was, and she began sending emails periodically for those who were fans of him,” Hali said. “The emails include pictures and little quips about what Gizmo has been up to, and we just love it. Seeing his little face just makes our day!”

Erica was visiting her parents in Manitowoc County when she decided to stop by the branch with pup in tow.

“We all immediately fangirled over Gizmo, and we all agree that he’s even more adorable in person!” Hali says. “He followed me into the back room, and I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t tempted to make a run for it with him. I was also super excited to meet Erica, as we talk frequently about customer situations or paperwork needing something else.”

Erica agreed it was great to finally meet the Green Bay West crew. She says she’s not sure she and Gizmo are available for a tour of every branch, but noted, “We have visited Corporate, so all of his fans on the 2nd Floor and elsewhere could meet him.” •••

Flyer leads to fruitful encounter for Mequon’s Quinn

Mequon personal banker Tyler Quinn recently told VP branch sales manager Craig Witz about a very successful encounter with a customer, which took place on October 1, the first day of our new fiscal year, and involved teamwork from multiple departments:

Tyler Quinn

I just wanted to enlighten you about a customer interaction I had yesterday. She received our flyer regarding the new free checking account. Recently, her bank had started charging new fees, and it was safe to say she was not a happy camper, because she had been with them for quite some time. She went out to her mailbox yesterday, saw our letter, and drove right over to the Mequon branch. After some discussion, I was able to get her set up with our free checking and a savings account as well.

We talked about the daycare business she owns that is right down the road from the branch. I went over our business accounts and the perks that come with them. After hearing our options, she set up an appointment to bring her business accounts over to North Shore Bank next week as well.

I brought up merchant processing while diving deeper into her business needs. Earlier this week, her business’s card reader broke, so they have resorted to an online service in the meantime. I introduced her to Elavon and our partnership with them. I pulled out the comparison sheet between Elavon and Square that I enjoy showing customers. She was extremely interested in the services, but said her assistant takes care of all the merchant processing and payments. She asked if I had a phone number for the assistant, so he could reach out to that department. I gave them Elevon rep Harrison Loveall’s card, and she is going to have her assistant give him a call. I reached out to Harrison, sent an EAGLE referral, and informed him of their situation so he can be prepared when they call.

As if all of those amazing services were not enough, I was also able to have an investment and mortgage conversation with the customer!

She is a homeowner and currently has a 15-year mortgage with about 12 years left, at a rate around 3.30 percent. From previous conversations with mortgage loan originator Claudio Lanzo, I was aware that we have a 10-year option lower than 3.00 percent. Without quoting rates, I explained that it is a great time to refinance, because rates are on the lower side. I told her that Claudio would be happy to run some numbers past her, and that if in the long run it would not save her much, he would tell her. I passed her information on to Claudio, and he is going to reach out to her.

Her son’s certificate of deposit is also coming due in October, and they were a bit unhappy with everything going on recently and rates offering little to none. I told her that investment consultant Andrew Eichel has been able to help copious amounts of our customers recently to earn great returns on their funds. I briefly filled her in on the services he provides and that I have been introducing him to our customers recently and they have been extremely happy with the results. She is going to pass the information on to her son and give me a call to hopefully set up that appointment. She said afterwards that she is going to tell her son to come bank with North Shore Bank as well, given the service she received.

I thought you would appreciate this customer encounter as much as I did. Safe to say it is a wonderful start to our new accounts rollout! Without that flyer, I’m not sure she would have stopped into the branch.

Indeed, a nice way to start the fiscal year. Great work, Tyler and everybody else! •••

MLK Drive branch helps customer struck by tragedy

The team at MLK Drive recently had an opportunity to help a special customer.

“Mr. Woods lost two family members in a tragedy, and we noticed he had also lost his high spirits and laughter,” branch manager Angela Byrd said. So as part of our Bank on Kindness initiative, the branch decided to help with a small monetary gift for flowers and food. “This made him smile and also brought some tears of joy. He said our kindness was very much appreciated and that he truly appreciates being a customer at North Shore Bank.” •••

Mindful Minute: Week Two of the Gratitude Challenge

Your Zen minute: Every one of us has this superpower. Calm helps us maintain clarity and focus when things get crazy. When it gets nuts, move your focus to your breath and slow it down. Notice how your body relaxes a bit, the chatter in your mind slows, and you are better able to focus clearly on what is occurring. Your breath is a great partner — unleash that superpower!

How did your first week of the Gratitude Challenge go? Any “aha!” moments? Keep it going! Here are your prompts:

• Day 7: What is a trip you loved? Who was with you, or did you go alone? What made it special?
• Day 8: Who is a role model who inspired you?
• Day 9: What is a dessert you can’t get enough of? (Confession: It’s Ben & Jerry’s Chubby Hubby for me!)
• Day 10: When was a time you were given a helping hand? Were you able to pay that forward and help someone else?
• Day 11: What is a book you are grateful for?
• Day 12: What is a lesson you are grateful for?

If you are participating in the Gratitude Challenge and willing to share how it’s going, please let us know at shorelines@northshorebank.com. More prompts next week — we’re grateful for the opportunity to share this with you! —Pat Ingelse, AVP, PMP •••

Promotions for September 2020
The following employees were promoted in September:

• Mary Benz was promoted from Branch Manager at Regency to Area Branch Manager.
• Erica Kuik was promoted from Deposit Operations Specialist to Senior Deposit Operations Specialist.

Leave a comment to congratulate them!

New Hires for October 8
It’s always exciting to add new members to our team. Here are some of the fresh faces at North Shore Bank.

Business relationship specialist Lauren Dod is from Northbrook, Illinois. She just graduated from Marquette University with a major in finance and entrepreneurship in the College of Business Administration. “I am a huge country music fan!” she says. “My favorite thing to do pre-COVID was go to concerts. I’ve been to ten country music festivals and over 25 individual country concerts over the last five years. The last one I was able to go to, before everything shut down, was at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville!” She names Toby Keith as one her favorite of the performers she’s seen.

Kenosha Central universal banker Joshua Stewart is from Racine, recently graduated from UW-Parkside in Kenosha, and previously worked as a teller at Johnson Bank. “I love, love, love sports and especially the Packers, Bucks, and Brewers,” he says. “I also own over 100 pairs of ‘crazy’ and colorful socks and love to show them off. It started as something that I bought because I liked how they looked and how different they were, but then it got kinda out of hand.” •••

Lyrenmann weds in Magic-themed event

Southridge and Forest Home area branch manager and AVP Carolyn Lyrenmann got married last month, in a Magic: The Gathering–themed wedding at home.

“We were originally going to do a 300-person indoor wedding in December, but due to COVID, we decided to have immediate family only in our backyard,” she said. “We wished we could have had everyone with us, but were happy we were able to do something.”

Carolyn’s husband, Jeremy, played Magic competitively before they met. “I showed interest, and he got me my first deck for Valentine’s Day in 2018. I have been hooked ever since,” she said. A Reddit post with a picture of their wedding cake got over 3,000 likes and 121 comments. Forbes dubbed Magic the “world’s most complicated game” in an article last year. •••

Lohrey marries in socially distanced celebration

Temporary employee Emily Lohrey got married last month in Hartland. “It was really great!” said Emily, who is the daughter of payroll and benefits manager Cindy Lohrey. “We had a wonderful outdoor area that allowed people to distance and celebrate safely! We did cut our guest list in half, but other than that, we were still able to celebrate with our close family and friends, and we had the best time!”

“It was perfect!” Cindy agreed. “Having a COVID wedding was very stressful, but it all worked out in the end.” •••