2024 & 2025 ANNUAL REPORT
2024 & 2025 ANNUAL REPORT
Flying in Formation
Flying in Formation
“It is amazing that in the scheme of nature certain birds should patrol the air, others the fields, others the trees, others the forest-floor, and so on, so that all outdoors is, in a sense, cared for by our feathered friends. It has been said that our very existence depends upon these birds who make it possible for the trees, the flowers, and the grain-fields to grow. And all the while these same creatures are delighting us with their beautiful colors and their cheerful songs.”
GEORGE MIKSCH SUTTON, An Introduction to the Birds of Pennsylvania, 1928
Brant
Flocks of these small sea geese migrate long distances in arctic conditions, symbolizing heroic endurance and triumph.
These birds herald the new hope of spring and symbolize happiness, joy, and good fortune.
Eastern Bluebirds
FROM THE CHAIRMAN
FELLOW ORNITHOLOGISTS AND backyard birders alike treasured Dr. George Miksch Sutton during his lifetime. A keen nature observer, he published his first bird drawing at age eleven, and his enthusiasm for birds never waned.
Thanks to the generosity of our most significant philanthropic partner, Oklahoma City Community Foundation, along with the George Miksch Sutton Avian Research Center, we are shining a new light on Dr. Sutton’s watercolors throughout this report.
A longtime professor, Dr. Sutton enthusiastically taught generations of students and beckoned those he encountered to love nature—and life itself—as much as he did. One of his students, Andrew J. Berger, remembered him as a renaissance man, following his curiosity and caring deeply about people. His kindness to animals, as well as his love of art, literature, history, and music,
align with the values of the Kirkpatrick entities.
As we look back on these past two years, Dr. Sutton is a fitting pairing for our own Louisa McCune, longtime Kirkpatrick Foundation executive director, who passed away in 2024. A journalist by training, she, too, was exceptionally bright, interested in absolutely everything, and enamored with her work. Until the end, she strove with all her being for a better world. Everyone in our organization and the greater philanthropic community embraced Louisa, and she will be greatly missed.
The Kirkpatrick entities carry forward the banners first raised by our forebears: to care for one another and build up community. In everything we do, we seek to improve the quality of life for those in our communities—including animals. We are taking Louisa’s mission, to make Oklahoma the safest and most humane place to be an animal, and keeping it in the forefront of our minds.
Among our philanthropies, Kirkpatrick Family Fund and Kirkpatrick Foundation awarded more than $28 million in grants to hundreds of local nonprofits in their past two fiscal years.
The family fund has concentrated efforts in advancing workforce development through arts education. A growing number of studies in neuroscience and other fields are proving the arts to be a powerful tool for transforming individual lives and entire communities. (I recommend Your Brain on Art by Susan Magsamen and Ivy Ross.) Meanwhile, the foundation has rallied behind nonprofit journalism outlets that have lost funding in recent years, supporting this critical element of democracy. We also celebrate Kelley Barnes as the foundation’s new executive director, leading with heart and cheer and moving important work forward.
For a new initiative in the Oklahoma City metropolitan area, four organizations related to the Kirkpatrick family and Kirkpatrick philanthropies have formed the Arboretum Collaborative with a significant tree collection, considered a “living museum.” Red Ridge Nature Preserve, Park House, Mollie Spencer Farm, and Campbell Art Park (adjacent to Oklahoma Contemporary Arts Center) are dedicated to advancing biodiversity and conservation as part of their work.
I’m proud to share that Kirkpatrick Bank celebrated fifty-five years in 2025 and opened a new full-service branch in the Denver Tech Center, complementing our main Colorado bank in Colorado Springs and a specialized office in Boulder. We at Kirkpatrick hold fast to stability and growth, as we have advanced $396 million to individuals and small businesses in the communities we serve. Kirkpatrick Oil Company, meanwhile, rides the fluctuations of market volatility with aplomb through a diversified portfolio and a strong history of hedging commodity risk. In the past two years, Kirkpatrick Oil has invested $6 million in energy exploration and acquired new opportunities for untapped potential.
These topics brush the surface of our work— read on for more of our recent highlights. Thank you for your interest and partnership in these endeavors, your commitment to the community, and your friendship. I appreciate the confidence that has been placed in me. Together, we are “Flying in Formation.” Join us as we fly forward.
CHRISTIAN KEESEE
Groove-Billed Ani
This social bird is known as an entertainer, moving and singing in amusing yet strategic ways. It values community and cooperation.
To provide attentive and personalized services to a diverse customer base, provide meaningful employment to our employees, enhance the economic viability of the communities we serve, and consistently provide above-peer returns to our shareholders.
Abeille’s Oriole
The oriole is often seen as a symbol of hope, good fortune, and transformation.
The new Kirkpatrick Bank location, which opened in 2025 at the Denver Tech Center
FROM THE PRESIDENT & CEO
KIRKPATRICK BANK EXPERIENCED two solid years in 2024 and 2025, advancing our standards of stability and growth. For 2025, assets climbed 4.5 percent to finish the year at $1.038 billion. Since year-end 2023, total assets have grown $67.5 million.
In keeping with our commitment to further economic growth within our markets of Oklahoma and Colorado, we provided new loans to businesses and individuals totaling over $150 million during 2025, with total loans outstanding growing $90 million over the past two years.
Earnings for 2025 were up just under 9 percent, driven by higher net interest income. Capitalization remains stout, with total capital ranking in the top 70 percent of peer banks, and asset quality is healthy, ranking in the top 5 percent of peers.
This past year, we expanded our footprint in Colorado, opening a new loan and deposit production office in north Colorado Springs, opening a new loan production office in Boulder, and relocating our full-service Denver branch from the north side of downtown Denver to the Denver Tech Center.
Kirkpatrick Bank celebrated fifty-five years of business in 2025. Looking back at my three-plus decades at Kirkpatrick Bank, I am so grateful for and so proud of our past and present board of directors and staff for their continuous commitment to our core values of integrity, respect,
credibility, urgency, and transparency and how these values remain a fundamental component of our achievements and service to our clients and communities. As I prepare to step down as president and chief executive officer of Kirkpatrick Bank in 2026, I do so with unwavering confidence that our current board and staff and those to follow will continue to embrace and instill our core values in all we do, leading Kirkpatrick Bank forward to newer and greater heights.
GEORGE DREW
DYNAMIC GROWTH
THE PAST YEAR HAS BEEN ONE OF the most exciting and transformative chapters in my professional life, as well as a period of strong growth for our Colorado market. After spending fifteen years with my previous employer, I made the leap to join Kirkpatrick Bank—a decision driven by a desire to align with a team and culture that prioritizes service, responsiveness, and community. From the moment I arrived, I was energized by the caliber of our employees and their unwavering commitment to customer service. It’s rare to find a workplace where “service first” isn’t just a slogan—it’s a shared value. Our Colorado market continues to expand at a dynamic pace. We’ve made strategic investments
in talent, adding key business development roles in both cash management and lending. These additions have strengthened our ability to meet the evolving needs of our clients and deepen relationships across sectors. One of the most impactful changes has been the opening of our full-service branch in the Denver Tech Center. This new location is a significant upgrade from our previous location and reflects our commitment to accessibility, community, and growth in the Denver area.
Each of our three Colorado markets—Denver, Colorado Springs, and Westcliffe—is showing strong performance and a deepening connection to the communities we serve. Our team members in every region bring critical expertise and a shared dedication to personalized service. As a smaller regional institution, we benefit from the agility and flexibility to respond quickly to market changes and advocate effectively for our customers.
We’re also expanding our capabilities through a growing partnership with Fulcrum Wealth Management–Raymond James. This collaboration allows us to offer trust and investment management services, providing our clients with a more comprehensive suite of financial solutions. Looking ahead, I’m excited about what’s next. With a strong team, a clear strategy, and a culture rooted in service and community, Kirkpatrick Bank is well-positioned to continue its upward trajectory in Colorado. I’m proud to be part of this team—and even more proud of the impact we’re making together.
MIKE STEPPENBACKER
Colorado Springs bank location
BANKING ON RESILIENCE
Local and bank leaders gather for Kirkpatrick Bank’s Denver ribbon-cutting.
THIS FALL, DENVER’S MAYOR, LEADERS, AND citizens gathered to fete the newest Kirkpatrick Bank location—and the bank’s fifty-fifth anniversary. Chairman Christian Keesee, President George Drew, and President-elect Kyle Powell were in attendance. It was a special day.
“Our success depends on your success,” Keesee told the crowd, “and we look forward to the opportunity to serve you.”
Keesee’s family history in banking started with his great-great-grandfather Samuel Diggs Blake, a man eager to start his own businesses on the Texas frontier after the Civil War. In 1888, after ventures in wholesale clothing and groceries, he led the family’s foray into banking, forging a tradition of service lasting more than 137 years.
Blake, who opened a new business as late as his sixties, passed his ambition and acumen to his equally determined son, Mack Blake. The younger Blake joined an investment group to found Liberty National Bank of Oklahoma City in 1918.
Within fifteen years, the Great Depression was strangling the American economy, and Liberty was on the brink of collapse. Mack Blake—with a wife, daughter, and mercantile empire—mortgaged his own home and cashed in his personal insurance policies, convincing fellow board members to chip in, too, a gamble that kept Liberty alive when so many other financial institutions fell.
That kind of grit set the tone for what would become a family tradition of commitment to community—first by the Blakes and then the Kirkpatricks as the family expanded.
In 1932, then-U.S. Navy ensign John Kirkpatrick returned to Oklahoma to marry the Blakes’ daughter, Eleanor, and quickly became Blake’s protégé.
After Blake’s death in 1947, Kirkpatrick spent four decades leading the bank, one of Oklahoma’s most powerful financial players in the early 1970s. Oil prices collapsed in 1981, Penn Square Bank imploded in 1982, and by 1988, only two of Oklahoma’s ten largest banks remained. Liberty, verging on failure, nearly sold to a national company. The Kirkpatricks, with their daughter, Joan Kirkpatrick, and grandson, Christian Keesee, voted to put $20 million of their own money into saving the bank, keeping it locally owned. The plan worked.
Meanwhile, a new generation—represented by the young, ambitious Keesee—was readying to take the helm. He’d spent summers working his way up from the mail room to bookkeeping at local banks. In 1988, at twenty-four, Keesee acquired an interest in American Bancorp of Edmond, which would eventually merge with Intermountain Bank of Colorado Springs, becoming
Kirkpatrick Bank, named to honor Keesee’s grandfather. Today, the bank boasts additional flagships in Oklahoma City and Colorado Springs; locations in Boulder and Westcliffe, Colorado; and its new highlight in Denver.
With new plans on the horizon, Kirkpatrick Bank leaders hearken back to lessons of the past. Keesee described a paramount focus on maintaining a “fortress balance sheet” as the bank deepens its kinship to Oklahoma and Colorado communities.
TOP TALENT
IN 2025, KIRKPATRICK BANK WELCOMED leaders who immediately began strengthening the bank’s growth and service to communities.
Todd Glass, J.D., joined the bank in December 2025 as executive vice president and head of Oklahoma lending after serving for more than a
decade as a partner and investment committee member for a real estate investment company based in Oklahoma City.
Glass previously served as director of real estate for a large energy company and held positions in banking and real estate brokerage services.
The bank appointed two new board members in 2025: Elizabeth Mee Payne, J.D., and LaDonna Sinning, MBA. Their appointments reflect Kirkpatrick Bank’s ongoing commitment to strengthening its board with experienced leaders who bring diverse expertise and a passion to serve the community.
Payne brings more than three decades of experience in legal practice, corporate leadership, and academic administration, along with a strong history of civic leadership.
She was the first woman in executive management at both Oklahoma Publishing Company and Advanced Financial Solutions. At Oklahoma State University, she taught entrepreneurship, managed strategic relationships, and directed the Spears School of Business mentoring program.
“Elizabeth’s extensive legal background and her proven leadership in both corporate and academic settings make her an invaluable addition to our board,” Keesee said.
Sinning joined the board with more than thirty years of experience in public accounting
Todd Glass, J.D.
Elizabeth Mee Payne, J.D.
Colorado Springs bank location
LEADERSHIP OKC
Kirkpatrick Bank is proud to have strong representation in Leadership OKC, an organization that develops leaders for civic service. Its Signature program elevates experienced leaders, and the LOYAL program—Linking Oklahoma’s Young Adult Leaders—serves ages twenty-three to thirty-five. Current and past participants from the bank include:
Jim Shane, Signature graduate
Blake Overland, Signature participant
Kathy Frankenfield, Signature graduate, past alumni president, and current board development chair
Gina Britt, LOYAL graduate
Tyler Kirkpatrick, LOYAL graduate
Kyle Powell, LOYAL and Signature graduate
and bank regulation. Her addition strengthens the bank’s governance with comprehensive expertise in audit, financial reporting, and regulatory compliance.
Sinning previously worked as a bank examiner for the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City,
where she served as the central contact for the five largest banks in Oklahoma, led training sessions for bank boards, and reviewed banks’ audited financial statements. Her exceptional work earned national recognition. The former president of a public accounting firm, Sinning oversaw the company’s tripling in size.
“Sinning’s integrity, strategic insight, and deep understanding of financial statements and internal control systems have made her a trusted adviser and valuable asset to management teams throughout her career,” said Kirkpatrick Bank President and CEO George Drew.
“Her unique combination of regulatory experience and private sector success will provide valuable perspective as we navigate an increasingly complex financial landscape,” Keesee said.
Longtime Kirkpatrick Bank board member and employee Robert R. “Bob” Kirby retired in 2025 after fifty years of service.
“During his tenure, he has helped thousands of individuals and businesses achieve their financial goals, contributing greatly to both the growth of
Kirkpatrick Bank and the communities the bank serves,” said Christian Keesee, board chairman.
“Mr. Kirby is a man of the highest level of character and integrity.”
MATTHEW JACKSON SHEVAUN WILLIAMS
Robert R. “Bob” Kirby
LaDonna Sinning, MBA
CELEBRATING COMMUNITY
KIRKPATRICK BANK SUPPORTS
clients and community nonprofits connected to our clients and employees, whether through board membership or personal impact. The bank counts many nonprofits as clients and prioritizes giving back to their missions. For example, radio station KCME banks with Kirkpatrick, and besides direct sponsorship, the bank provides a donation to a different nonprofit each month to advertise on KCME. We are proud to do our part to make our communities vibrant and strong.
LEFT PAGE, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT:
Cash McEachern participates in the Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon 5K. Melissa McGregor and her family celebrate with the Kirkpatrick Bank float in the Edmond LibertyFest Fourth of July parade. The bank has packed a float with employees for seventeen years.
Kirkpatrick Bank sponsored the 2025 Breakfast of Champions benefiting the Peak Valley Community Health Centers Foundation, a new bank client in Colorado. Here, Lisa Rutherford, senior vice president at the bank, meets keynote speaker and Olympic legend Carl Lewis. The event raised money for medical, dental, and behavioral health services for patients without insurance.
Kirkpatrick Bank Danforth celebrates its grand reopening—following a remodel and expansion— with a ribbon-cutting in August 2024.
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP:
Dee Shaver, Colorado mortgage lending processor, presents scholarships on behalf of Kirkpatrick Bank at an awards ceremony in Westcliffe.
Employees represent the bank’s sponsorship of the new Midtown Oklahoma City event Winter Wonderland, benefiting the local nonprofit Boys & Girls Clubs of Oklahoma County.
Left to right: President George Drew, event speaker Steve Agee, President-elect Kyle Powell, and Chairman Christian Keesee at the bank’s fifty-fifth anniversary celebration.
Doris Rigoni, Denver market president, is recognized for the bank’s three-year commitment to sponsoring the University of Colorado Real Estate Forum.
of December 31, 2025
OF CONDITION
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Craig M. Boelte, CPA
George Drew, Kirkpatrick Bank
John D. Garrison, CPA
Christian K. Keesee, Kirkpatrick Family Fund
Elizabeth Mee Payne, J.D.
LaDonna Sinning, CPA
Trenton Stafford, Kirkpatrick Bank
David L. Sutter, Kirkpatrick Bank, retired
EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP
Christian Keesee, Chairman of the Board
George Drew, President & CEO
Kyle Powell, President-Elect
Trenton Stafford, Senior Executive Vice President & Chief Lending Officer
James A. Shane, Senior Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer
Blake Overland, Senior Vice President & Chief Financial Officer
Grace Meyer, Senior Vice President, Corporate Secretary
In 2025, we reflected on fifty-five years of bold decisions and relationships that continue to shape who we are today. Some of the best moments have come from showing up for the community and celebrating together. We have a passion for local banking and a focus on helping families, businesses, and communities thrive.
kirkpatrickfamilyfund.org
1001 W. Wilshire Boulevard Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73116 (405) 767-3702
kirkpatrickfoundation.com
1001 W. Wilshire Boulevard
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73116 (405) 608-0934
Christian Keesee Charitable Trust
1001 W. Wilshire Boulevard Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73116 (405) 842-3827
kirkpatrickoil.com
1001 W. Wilshire Boulevard Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73116 (405) 840-2882
kirkpatrickbank.com
Main Branch
15 E. 15th Street Edmond, Oklahoma 73013 (405) 341-8222
Business Banking Center
5801 N. Broadway Extension Paragon Building, Suite 101 Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73118 (405) 241-0805
Oklahoma City
222 Northwest 63rd Street Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73116 (405) 254-2510
West Edmond
2245 W. Danforth Road Edmond, Oklahoma 73003 (405) 348-3200
Colorado Springs
102 N. Cascade Avenue, Suite 100 Colorado Springs, Colorado 80903 (719) 866-6300
Denver Tech Center
8450 E. Crescent Parkway, Suite 150 Greenwood Village, CO 80111 (303) 474-5000
Westcliffe
8 Bassick Place Westcliffe, Colorado 81252 (719) 783-2030
kirkpatrickfamilyarchive.com
1001 W. Wilshire Boulevard Oklahoma City, OK 73116 (405) 767-3705
A new acquisition: Audrey Hepburn dancing with Fred Astaire on the set of “Funny Face,” March 28, 1957, detail, by Richard Avedon. Gelatin silver print, 2003.
Our purpose is to improve the lives of the people and animal friends in the communities we serve.
ZOOLOGY PROFESSOR, AVIAN ARTIST, AND author George Miksch Sutton was a dear friend of John and Eleanor Kirkpatrick. Their paths crossed during Sutton’s long tenure at the University of Oklahoma.
In the late 1970s, Sutton donated seventy-five paintings of Mexican birds to the Kirkpatrick Center in Oklahoma City, some of which are represented in these pages, in the company of several pieces from the George Miksch Sutton Avian Research Center in Bartlesville, Oklahoma.
The Kirkpatrick philanthropies and companies extend a special thank-you to Oklahoma City Community Foundation and President & CEO Trisha Finnegan for helping to bring the Sutton artwork back to life for future generations to enjoy.
THE GEORGE SUTTON ARTWORK ON THE OPENING SPREAD AND OPPOSITE THE TABLE OF CONTENTS WAS PHOTOGRAPHED BY DAN REINKING, SENIOR BIOLOGIST, GEORGE MIKSCH SUTTON AVIAN RESEARCH CENTER. WE EXTEND OUR SINCERE GRATITUDE FOR THE USE OF THIS ARTWORK.
2024 & 2025 Annual Report
activities, Kirkpatrick Bank
55th anniversary celebration 6, 85, 89, 93 celebrating community 88–89, 93
Colorado market expansion 6, 82
Fulcrum Wealth Management–Raymond James partnership 82 with KCME radio station
Leadership OKC, representation in 87 LOYAL program, representation in 87 new locations 6, 80, 82–84, 85 nonprofit client support 88–89
Agee, Steve 89
Avedon, Richard, Audrey Hepburn dancing with Fred Astaire on the set of “Funny Face”
Drew, George 81, 89
“Flying in Formation” theme [2], 6
Glass, Todd 86
Keesee, Christian 85, 89 family history in banking 85
Kirby, Robert R. “Bob” 87
Kirkpatrick, Joan 85
Kirkpatrick, John and Eleanor 85, 108
Kirkpatrick Family Archive 106
Lewis, Carl 89
McEachern, Cash 89
McGregor, Melissa 89
Oklahoma City Community Foundation 6, 108 Payne, Elizabeth Mee 86
Powell, Kyle 85, 87, 89, 92
Rigoni, Doris 89
Rutherford, Lisa 89
Shaver, Dee 89
Sinning, LaDonna 86–87
Steppenbacker, Mike 82
Sutton, George Miksch 6, 108
An Introduction to the Birds of Pennsylvania, 1928 [2] bird illustrations and symbolism [2–3], 4, 7, 79 “Flying in Formation” theme [2], 6
KIRKPATRICK FAMILY FUND
KIRKPATRICK FOUNDATION
CHRISTIAN KEESEE CHARITABLE TRUST
KIRKPATRICK BANK
KIRKPATRICK OIL COMPANY