Banker News & Moves

First Community Bank of Batesville, AR, has announced promotions in several departments and branches of the organization’s Little Rock locations, according to Renè Julian, community president in Little Rock.

Tami James has been promoted to VP branch manager & loan support. Tami has more than 23 years of banking experience. She is responsible for the effective management of branch staff, lending, operations, and profitability of the branch. She also develops new business and expands existing customer relationships while making and servicing a variety of loans and maintaining a high-quality loan portfolio to minimize loss to the bank.

Sonia Mitchell has been promoted to AVP commercial lines supervisor of Community Insurance Professionals. Sonia joined the bank in 2013, and she holds an insurance license, CISR, and CPIA designations. Sonia promotes our insurance agency’s presence across all markets and helps businesses with commercial insurance needs.

First Community Bank welcomes Jackie Bennett as vice president and commercial lender at the Conway location at 1089 Front Street. Bennett comes to First Community Bank with 30 years of banking experience and most recently served as vice president and lender for Bank OZK.

Jackie is a graduate of Quitman Public Schools and Arkansas Bankers Association School of lending, as well as other banking schools.

Simmons Bank has named John Barber executive vice president and chief credit officer and Jimmy Crocker executive vice president, wealth management. Both executives will be based in Simmons’ River Market building in Little Rock.

John Barber, is the executive vice president and chief credit officer. Barber, who previously served as executive vice president and senior credit officer for IberiaBank in Texas, has been named executive vice president and chief credit officer for Simmons Bank. He will oversee the bank’s asset quality, directing the commercial lending approval process and ensuring regulatory compliance.

Barber holds both a master’s and bachelor’s degree from the University of Louisiana in Monroe and is an alumnus of the Graduate School of Banking at Louisiana State University.

Barber’s arrival also marks a shift in leadership for Steve Wade, Simmons’ former chief credit officer. Wade will transition to the role of assistant general counsel, leveraging his respective 37 and 20 years of industry and company experience to focus on credit and lending in Simmons’ Office of General Counsel.

Jimmy Crocker, has been named Simmons’ executive vice president, wealth management. In addition to overseeing business strategy for this business area, his responsibilities will include driving sales, fee income, compliance and operations related to the fiduciary function of Simmons.

With more than 27 years of experience, Crocker joins Simmons from IberiaBank, where he most recently served as executive vice president and director of trust after being hired to build the bank’s fiduciary business in 2010. In his new role, he will oversee more than 100 trust associates serving Simmons’ entire seven-state footprint with approximately $6 billion in assets under management.

Partners Bank headquartered in historic downtown Helena announces the addition of Shannon Stokes Hirons as a VP, Mortgage and Consumer Loan Officer assigned to the Wynne Branch on North Falls Blvd. Ms. Hirons comes to the team with 18 years in the banking industry and has been a resident of Cross County her whole life. She decided to work for the Bank to offer customers an avenue to pursue dreams of owning, refinancing, or improving a home.

Micah Thompson has been tapped by Partners to lead its expansion into Northwest Arkansas. Thompson, a native of Newport, Arkansas, has lived and worked in Northwest Arkansas for almost 20 years. He will oversee and lead the Bank’s operations and development in the Northwest Arkansas region as the Regional President and the Bank’s Chief Credit Officer.

Friday, Eldredge & Clark has announced the hiring of Madeline O . McElhanon . McElhanon will practice in the Finance & Commercial Transactions Group where she will work primarily on transactions in the banking, healthcare, real estate and technology industries. She will represent corporations and financial institutions on securities and regulatory matters as well as general business and transactional law. McElhanon, a Little Rock native, recently earned her Master of Laws in Taxation from the University of Florida Levin College of Law. She graduated from the University of Georgia School of Law last year and earned a degree in political science from the University of Arkansas in 2016. Jared Carver has been named Vice President of Financial Planning & Analysis for Stone Bank. His focus is the analysis of the bank’s financial reports and forecasting financial performance. He joined the bank as a financial analyst and has worked for Frost Accounting CPA’S. He is a Certified Public Accountant and holds an undergraduate degree in economics and a master’s degree in accounting, both from Hendrix College.

Nick Roach, President & Chief Lending Officer of Stone Bank, announced in June that Tim Mood of Benton, Mississippi, joined the Arkansas bank as Stone Bank’s Business Development Officer in Mississippi working to identify new poultry farm financing opportunities for the bank. Stone Bank is one of the regions leading FSA government-guaranteed poultry lenders.

Mood is a Yazoo County native and resides in Benton, MS. He is a 1982 graduate of Manchester Academy and received both B.S. and MBA degrees from Mississippi State University (1986, 2011) in Agricultural Economics and Master of Business Ad-

ministration.

Arvest Bank has promoted David Norris to mortgage loan manager. In this leadership role, Norris will manage the bank’s mortgage lending teams in Northeast Arkansas, Cabot, North Little Rock, Conway and Little Rock. He most recently was a vice president and mortgage lending supervisor for Arvest in Jonesboro. During his career of 11 years with the bank, he has held management positions in mortgage lending and worked as an assistant branch manager and deposit counselor.

Mark Morrow has been hired to serve as vice president and commercial loan officer for the bank’s northeast Arkansas market. He has more than 18 years of experience as a commercial and consumer loan officer. He also holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Arkansas State University and a graduate degree from the Paul W. Barrett School of Banking.

Josh Neal has been promoted to mortgage loan manager for the bank’s territory in central and south Arkansas. Neal will manage mortgage lending teams in the bank’s Little Rock, Saline county and southwest Arkansas markets. He most recently was a vice president and senior private banker for Arvest. His fifteen years of experience in the fi nancial industry also includes mortgage lending, retail sales management, wealth management and financial advising. Neal holds Series 7 and 66 securities licenses. Arvest Wealth Management hired Jeff Wicks as client advisor for the bank’s Conway/Morrilton market. Wicks provides clients with strategic counsel regarding their financial investments to protect and grow their portfolios and ensure their trust plan is in order. He has six years of experience in the financial services industry. Arvest has also announced the promotion of Tanya James to vice president, branch administrator in central Arkansas. James is one of four branch administrators in Arvest’s four-state footprint. James will oversee branch managers and every aspect of branch operations at every location in west Little Rock, Maumelle, Conway and Morrilton. Additionally, she will assist with business development and community relations in those areas.

Hillis Schild has been promoted to director of communications and community development for central, northeast, and southwest Arkansas. In her new role, Schild will oversee managers of the marketing and community development mortgage lending departments. She also will maintain the responsibility of developing and managing existing relationships with community organizations that serve predominantly low- to moderate-income individuals, businesses and farms, ensuring the bank meets or exceeds its obligations through the Community Reinvestment Act.

Deania Vanhoozer has been promoted to vice president, community and business relationship advisor. Vanhoozer will develop and manage business relationships with members of the community and business account holders, serving as an advisor to meet customers’ financial business needs. She also will be responsible for developing and maintaining relationships with community organiza-

tions and area non-profits. Selena Barber, Arvest's new marketing specialist, joins Arvest with 19 years of bank marketing experience in Jonesboro and across Arkansas. She will be responsible for the development and execution of marketing plans including advertising, public relations, events and seminars for the northeast Arkansas region. She also will help coordinate contributions, sponsorships and in-branch promotions for Arvest. The Arkansas Banker n Fall 2020 49

Chuck Morgan, Chairman and CEO of Relyance Bank, is pleased to announce the following promotions:

Jennifer Ruhlman was recently promoted to Senior Vice President and Senior Retail Officer, leading corporate retail. Ruhlman joined Relyance Bank in January of this year as Senior Vice President of Retail Banking in the Little Rock market. She has twenty years of customer service and management experience in the banking industry. She was recognized as an AR Business 40 Under 40 honoree in 2018. She is a graduate of the Benton and Bryant Chamber of Commerce’s Leadership Saline County program and she served as president of the Arkansas Bankers Association Emerging Leaders Council.

Keith Hefner, President & CEO, Citizens Bank & Trust Company announced his retirement this summer and the appointment of his successor.

Hefner retires from Citizens Bank & Trust Company after a 30-year career with the bank and having served as President and CEO since 2004. He has also served as a member of the board of the Arkansas Bankers Association and on the Advisory Council for the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. Hefner has volunteered, over the years, for many community and civic organizations. He looks forward to continuing his association with the bank as a member of the Bank Board of Directors.

The Board of Citizens Bank & Trust is pleased to announce that P . Brent Taylor will assume the role of President & CEO. He grew up in Crawford County and graduated from the University of Central Arkansas and the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, William H. Bowen School of Law. He is also a graduate of the Graduate School of Banking at the University of Colorado Boulder.

Taylor returned to Crawford County in 2013 to join Citizens Bank & Trust as Vice President working out of the Alma branch. For the last year, he has served the role of Chief Operating Officer. Lauren Sanders was recently promoted to Electronic Banking Retail Officer. She earned a bachelor’s degree in Journalism/Advertising/Public Relations with a minor in Marketing/Logistics from the University of AR at Fayetteville in 2016. She earned her master’s degree in Applied Communication Studies from the UALR while she also worked as a graduate assistant to the Assistant Director of the UALR Communication Skill Center.

Citizens Bank of Batesville is proud to announce the promotion of Lisa Hendrixson to the position of Senior Vice President and Director of Deposit Operations. Hendrixson has many years of banking experience, including management of deposit operations, loan operations and Treasury Management for several multi-billion dollar regional banks.

Ms. Hendrixson earned an Associate’s Degree in Computer Science, Programming, from the University of Arkansas - Pulaski Technical College. She also is a graduate of the Barret School of Banking in Memphis. As a cancer survivor, she has spent many years volunteering and speaking on behalf of the American Cancer Society.

Amanda Morris is now Vice President and Market Retail Manager for the bank’s Central Arkansas region. Morris helped direct the opening of the bank’s new Foxcroft financial center in Little Rock, and will play a critical role as Citizens Bank expands its presence in Central Arkansas.

Her experience in the industry includes management of multiple bank branches, helping create and execute successful operational banking strategies, building and maximizing important relationships with major business clients.

An application filed by Partners Bank, Helena, Phillips county, Arkansas, to establish a branch banking facility to be located at the 3632 Johnson Mill Boulevard, #107 Springdale, Washington county, Arkansas, has been approved. August 10, 2020.

An application filed by RiverBank, Pocahontas, Randolph county, Arkansas, for the relocation of a main banking facility from 1700 Old County Road, Pocahontas, Randolph county, Arkansas, to 203 West Broadway, Pocahontas, Randolph county, Arkansas, has been approved. August 10, 2020.

An application filed by First Community Bank, Batesville, Independence county, Arkansas, to establish a branch banking facility to be located at 17820 Chenal Parkway, Little Rock, Pulaski county, Arkansas, has been approved. August 18, 2020.

An application filed by Encore Bank, Little Rock, Pulaski county, Arkansas, to relocate its main branch bank facility from 12224 Chenal Parkway, Little Rock, Pulaski county, Arkansas to 1801 Rahling Road, Suite 100, Little Rock, Pulaski county, Arkansas has been approved. August 19, 2020.

1. Publication Title

The Arkansas Banker

4. Issue Frequency

2. Publication Number 3. Filing Date

0003 _ 1260 5. Number of Issues Published Annually 9-1-2020

6. Annual Subscription Price

Quarterly 4

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1220 West Third Street, Little Rock, AR 72201-1904

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Contact Person

Michael Spigner Telephone (Include area code) 501-978-3603

1220 West Third Street, Little Rock, AR 72201-1904

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The Arkansas Bankers Association 1220 West Third Street, Little Rock, AR 72201-1904

Editor (Name and complete mailing address)

Michael Spigner 1220 West Third Street, Little Rock, AR 72201-1904

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Arkansas Banking News

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Circulation (By Mail and

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Mailed In-County Paid Subscriptions Stated on PS Form 3541 (Include paid distribution above nominal rate, advertiser’s proof copies, and exchange copies)

(3) Paid Distribution Outside the Mails Including Sales Through Dealers and Carriers, Street Vendors, Counter Sales, and Other Paid Distribution Outside USPS® 659

387

95

0 645

376

91

0

(4) Paid Distribution by Other Classes of Mail Through the USPS (e.g., First-Class Mail®) 0 0

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Outside the Mail) (1)

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(4) Free or Nominal Rate Outside-County Copies included on PS Form 3541

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Free or Nominal Rate Copies Mailed at Other Classes Through the USPS (e.g., First-Class Mail)

Free or Nominal Rate Distribution Outside the Mail (Carriers or other means) 482

43

3

0

57 467

44

3

0

48

e. Total Free or Nominal Rate Distribution (Sum of 15d (1), (2), (3) and (4)) 103 95

f. Total Distribution (Sum of 15c and 15e) 585 562

g. Copies not Distributed (See Instructions to Publishers #4 (page #3)) 80

h. Total (Sum of 15f and g) 665

i. Percent Paid (15c divided by 15f times 100) 82%

* If you are claiming electronic copies, go to line 16 on page 3. If you are not claiming electronic copies, skip to line 17 on page 3. 89

651

83%

PS Form 3526, July 2014 (Page 2 of 4)

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b. Total Paid Print Copies (Line 15c) + Paid Electronic Copies (Line 16a)

c.  Total Print Distribution (Line 15f) + Paid Electronic Copies (Line 16a) 0

482

585 0

467

562

d. Percent Paid (Both Print & Electronic Copies) (16b divided by 16c Í 100) 82% 83%

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If the publication is a general publication, publication of this statement is required. Will be printed in the ________________________ issue of this publication. September 2020

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Director of Communications 9-1-2020

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