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Waukesha State Bank is proud to announce the retirement of Devon Arnold, senior vice president – retail banking manager. After 45 years of dedicated service and numerous contributions to the bank’s success, Arnold will embark on a well-deserved journey of retirement, effective June 16, 2023.

“Devon’s loyalty to Waukesha State Bank’s values, employees, customers, and our community over the past 45 years is immeasurable. His commitment to excellence and exceptional leadership created a strong, successful and dedicated retail banking division for our organization, and we owe him a huge debt of gratitude,” said Ty Taylor, Waukesha State Bank president & CEO. “On behalf of the entire bank, I want to thank Devon for his years of service and the enduring legacy of excellence that will continue to inspire and guide our team. We wish him the very best as he enjoys a well-deserved retirement.”

Arnold began his career with Waukesha State Bank in 1978 as a coin wrapper while in high school. He fondly remembers helping wherever was needed, including processing mail, filing checks by hand, preparing checking statements, counting cash, running errands, and performing maintenance tasks.

Arnold continued his career with the bank as a part-time teller while pursuing his bachelor’s degree at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. After graduating, Arnold became a full-time teller, worked for multiple years in the loan servicing department and took on consumer lending responsibilities. In 1990, he began his retail career focus with his first bank manager position at the Waukesha State Bank’s “Sun Branch” (now closed) adjacent to Sun Foods grocery store on Manhattan Drive in Waukesha. During this time, he was promoted to an officer of the bank and also held the assistant cashier title. Arnold went on to open the bank’s Silvernail Road office in Waukesha (now closed) and also served as the interim manager of the bank’s W. Sunset Drive office in Waukesha for a year.

In 1994, Arnold was promoted to assistant vice president and was chosen to open the bank’s Delafield office. Arnold immersed himself in the Delafield community, connected with Delafield businesses and was an integral part of the success of Waukesha State Bank’s newest branch. During this time, Arnold was an active board member and held numerous leadership positions with the Delafield and Hartland Chambers of Commerce, the Delafield-Summit Lions Club, and the Greater Delafield Community Fund. He was recognized for his service to the Lions Club organization with the distinguished Melvin Jones Fellowship Award. In 1998, Arnold was promoted to vice president in recognition of his success in Delafield.

In 2003, Arnold was promoted to fill the newly created position of retail banking manager. In this role, Arnold oversaw the opening of 10 additional retail offices, the creation of the Customer Service Center, the development of Waukesha State Bank’s retails sales program, and the evolution of the bank’s retail products, staffing structure, systems, and procedures. In addition, he was responsible for employee growth and leadership development. Arnold also managed the bank’s Waukesha Investments division, which has seen consistent growth in assets under management, revenue, and staff. In 2021, Arnold was recognized with a promotion to senior vice president.

“I am so proud to be a part of the bank’s story and it has been quite a journey,” stated Arnold. “My career has been filled with such rich and rewarding experiences with customers, community organizations, and a great team of bankers. I am looking forward to this new chapter and filling my time with family and friends as well as new adventures and experiences.”

First State Bank recently announced the promotion of Brian Wood to vice president – loan operations. In his new role, Wood will oversee all aspects of application, processing, and servicing of First State Bank’s loan portfolio while ensuring adherence to loan policy and regulatory compliance.

Wood has held various credit and loan processing supervisory roles during his eleven years at the bank. Promoted in 2021 to senior credit analyst/assistant vice president – special projects, Wood led several process improvement initiatives in the bank’s credit and lending operations.

“Brian is a creative leader in our organization,” commented bank President Bob Van Asten. “He thoroughly understands the loan process and has great vision for balancing all of the behind-the-scenes details of lending with making the loan process as easy as possible for our customers.”

Wood is a 2010 graduate of the University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire where he received his bachelor’s degree in business administration with majors in finance and economics. He also graduated from the Graduate School of Banking at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2021. Wood is located at First State Bank’s new Stevens Point office at 5500 Carrie Frost Drive, which opened mid-April.

Community State Bank (CSB), Rotary Club of Burlington and the Burlington Rotary Rescue Squad Fund have raised funds to donate a total of 237 meals to the 2021 Love, Inc. and Rotary Club of Burlington Thanksgiving Meal Campaign. This campaign is hosted annually by the club and has been providing meals to local families in need for over 20 years.

“Our annual drive is about community,” said Rotary Club of Burlington president, Amanda Seifert. “Burlington has given much to us, and we have a responsibility to pay that forward. We want our neighbors to have the same wonderful holiday we share with our families. Having Community State Bank and the Burlington Rotary Rescue Squad Fund join this effort shows that Burlington feels the same way. The assistance from CSB nearly doubled our reach!”

Community State Bank employees, along with the bank, donated a total of 64 meals and members of the Rotary Club of Burlington collected a total of 70 meals. The Burlington Rotary Rescue Squad Fund then agreed to match those donations up to $3000 for a grand total of 237 Thanksgiving meals.

“This is our second year participating in the campaign and it’s just as exciting as the last,” said CSB Burlington market president, Becky McClelland. “Our bank team rallies together with their very own funds to provide as many meals as we can. Community State Bank then matches our personal employee donations. It’s a group effort and we’re grateful to be a part of it.”

Thanksgiving boxes were distributed to families mid-November at Love, Inc. where families had the choice of a ham or turkey, an apple or pumpkin pie, and all the fixings.

In addition to the Thanksgiving boxes, for the second year, Love, Inc. was able to hand out grab-and-go style meals on Thanksgiving Day to ensure that the needs of the community are met. In years past, St. John’s held a Thanksgiving Day meal, but COVID restrictions prevented them from being able to safely serve.

“Our mission here at Love is to be a community network helping our neighbors in need,” said Southern Lakes Area Love, Inc. executive director, Patti Wojciechowski. “This partnership is a great illustration of our mission in action. We are truly grateful to be able to provide a positive experience for our guests.”