Winners exemplify bank’s promise to our customers
North Shore Bank is proud and pleased to announce our 2021 annual SOAR Award winners, in the categories of Community Involvement, Outstanding Service, and Legacy Leaders. We are so thankful for all of the nominations we received — it’s always a challenge to make the final selection. Now see who won and congratulate them in the comments!

Make a plan for handling weather emergencies
This is Tornado and Severe Weather Awareness Week in Wisconsin, so here’s a reminder from the bank’s Business Continuity Plan Committee:

Especially at this time of year, it is important to talk about weather safety with your family and have a plan for dealing with storms, floods, and other weather emergencies. So what can you do? Pat Ingelse has a few tips!

Baumer, staff complimented by longtime customer
Area manager Maria Baumer sent this email to a group of employees last week:

I want to share a heartfelt thank you to each and every one of you. Our team continues to grow, and all of you are a positive influence on each other, which passes on to our customers.

I was at the grocery store last night with my daughter, and a longtime customer, Paul, was behind us in line. Paul has been with North Shore Bank since 1996; his primary branches have been Brookfield Capitol and Silver Spring. He asked if he could give me a compliment, and I of course said yes!

He told me that I hire well! He said he loved the Silver Spring employees, and he loved the Brookfield Capitol employees, but his new loves are the video tellers. He was able to list almost all of you by name and even said he enjoys practicing Spanish with some of you.

I told him I may do the hiring, but the team we have in place were ALL easy to welcome into North Shore Bank. You all are committed to our SOAR practices, our customers, and each other, and it does not go unnoticed.

Nice work, everyone! •••

Get kids started now with a Seymour Savings account
With mascot Seymour the Seagull celebrating his 21st birthday on April 22, now is the perfect time to bring in the kids or grandkids to open their first bank accounts. Specifically for children 12 and under, North Shore Bank’s Seymour Savings accounts earn the same interest rate as our regular Statement Savings accounts and require no minimum balance or monthly fee.

Want to set up Seymour Savings accounts for your favorite kids? Get in touch with the closest branch. Make sure to let family, friends, and customers know too! (Click the pic for a Birthday Seymour to color!) •••

Send, get money fast with Zelle
Looking for a fast, convenient way to send money to people? North Shore Bank account holders can now use Zelle to send payments from their bank accounts with their phone or computer. All you need is the recipient’s email address or phone number, and transactions typically take mere minutes. Give it a try by logging into Online or Mobile Banking and selecting “Send Money with Zelle” under Bill Pay. More information here. •••

Let go of the need to be cool, allow joy to shine through

As kids, we often focus on fitting in, containing our weirdness so we don’t stand out and get made fun of. Unfortunately, that habit often follows us into adulthood, and life loses a bit of its luster. What hobby or interest have you put on hold because you thought it wasn’t cool enough?

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

I ALLOW MYSELF to love what I love. I give myself permission to do what makes me joyful, even if others do not understand.

This meditation was adapted from A Mindful Day: 365 Ways to Live Life With Peace, Clarity, and an Open Heart, by David Dillard-Wright. How did it go for you? Share your thoughts and feelings in Shorelines and you’ll be entered to win a copy of the book! —Pat Ingelse, AVP and PMP

If you would like a FREE daily email reminder to do one minute of mindfulness, email us with the subject line “Mindfulness reminder.” •••

Service Anniversaries for April 2021
The following employees celebrate a milestone anniversary with North Shore Bank this month.

15 years
Stephanie Bluemel, Branch Manager, Muskego

5 years
Farrah Mason, Area Branch Manager

Leave a comment to congratulate them!

New Hires for April 15
It’s always exciting to add new members to our team. Here are some of the fresh faces at North Shore Bank.

Residential loan administrator Rose Koller grew up in Menomonee Falls and moved back there a few years ago, after living in Milwaukee and Germantown. She has temped on and off for North Shore Bank since 2019 and is excited to come on board full-time. She also worked at Wells Fargo for seven years. “I love to sing karaoke and rejoice every spring when the weather starts to get warm,” she says. “It means we are going to be opening up the family cabin in central Wisconsin soon, where we can spend our weekends relaxing on the water, grilling out, and enjoying s’mores around the bonfire at night.”

Franklin teller Adriana Mora grew up in Franklin and now lives in Mount Pleasant. She previously worked as an associate banker at Chase. “When I am not working, I enjoy thrifting and spending time with my son and dog,” she says. “Recently, I also became a licensed aesthetician, following my passion for skin care!” •••

Banzai financial ed program for youth expands
Here’s some of what’s going on with North Shore Bank online and offline.

Last week, the bank announced that 50 Wisconsin schools will have access to more financial education resources through our partnership with Banzai. We’ve invested even more in the program — allowing four times as many schools to participate — after already seeing students’ average financial ed test scores rise by 12 percent during the current school year. You can see the participating schools here. (Note: You will need Chrome or another browser that isn’t Internet Explorer to open that link.)

On Facebook, we shared an article from Intuit on “12 Smart Things to Do with Your Tax Refund” — it applies to stimulus payments too!

And don’t forget that the Racine Kenosha Builders Association hosts its annual Home Building and Remodeling Show this Saturday, April 17, at Fountain Banquet Hall in Sturtevant. North Shore Bank will be there! More info here. •••