Pub. 9 2020 Issue 2

7 s u mm e r | 2020 President’s Message M E S S A G E Undeterred By Steve Yeakel, CAE VACB President & CEO W hat a relief it would be if this magazine were hitting your desk as the pandemic is becoming a fading memory. Hope as we might, I doubt that this will be the case. However, I do hope, with some confidence, that the approach to managing the virus will have altered to the point that the consideration of an in-person mid-October convention in Roanoke is not entirely out of the question. Frankly, the planning processes for the conven- tion and the golf tournament have been sources of encouragement for us, as the loss of in-person meetings continues to be a challenge, personally and professionally. But thanks to Zoom, WebEx, Microsoft Teams and the rest, you can be assured that we have kept “on task,” whether the task is undiluted advocacy, targeted education or quality collaboration. I can’t mention too often the out- standing “synchronicity” we shared in working through the PPP loan process in April and May. Your willingness to be in touch often and promptly, with specific concerns we could communicate to Washington, allowed us to speak strongly as one on your behalf. And as you may have heard, we were excited to add two new bank mem- bers through that trying time. In addition to our work together, we have enhanced our relationships with several primary partners, including: • Weekly sessions of an hour or more with ICBA through Phase I and Phase II PPP distributions, and through the challenging forgiveness process. • Frequent interaction with my colleagues in association man- agement — I meet via webinar with peers in major trade asso- ciations and professional societ- ies across the Commonwealth an average of twice monthly, and even more often with my peers in community banking associations across the nation. • Regular contact with the four pertinent prudential regula- tors: BFI, OCC, FDIC and Federal Reserve. Relationships sustain us through adversity and uncertainty. We’re deeply honored to be building lasting and pro- ductive relationships with you and for you. And we are undeterred. PPP LOAN