First National Bank and Trust Company Hosts International Speaker

First National Bank and Trust Company presented the second year of FNBT Promise on Tuesday, March 14 with motivational speaker Jon Pritikin who spoke to over 1,125 middle school and high school students in the local area.

First National Bank Trust Company hosts this annual event as a way to reinvest in area youth and provide a speaker to schools at no cost. This year assemblies were held at Arcadia School District and Independence School District with students from Holy Family Catholic School and St. Boniface School joining onsite in Arcadia and Saints Peter and Paul Catholic School joining onsite in Independence.

Jon Pritikin, known for breaking two Guinness World Records, combines his attention-grabbing “feats of strength” with an even more impressive message of how he overcame incredible challenges throughout his life. He positively motivates student to make the kind of important daily choices that affirm the value they place in themselves and in others.

“I know Jon’s message resonated with our students. I could see it on their faces when he was speaking, and I could hear it in their voices when they talked about it later. Several students spoke about how they were moved by his message,” said Wyatt Anderson, High School principal & co-athletic director for School District of Arcadia. “Jon has a way of connecting with those that have been or are hurting, and it is great for those students to know that there are others that share a similar story.”

Independence Public Schools reacted similarly as shared on their Facebook page, “Thank you to First National Bank and Trust Company for sponsoring speaker Jon Pritikin. He shared an emotional message of hope and resilience with our middle school and high students emphasizing the need to help each other and spread kindness.”

Pritikin teaches every child is worth investing in, no one should feel alone, and a person’s future is not defined by their past. He has travelled the world for over two decades inspiring over 10 million people across 40 different countries with his “Feel the Power” presentations since 1994.

“Jon did an excellent job relating to the students through his feats of strength and his life story. The students were impacted by his raw emotion and how people struggle to fit in at a young age,” added Leanne Haines representative with Holy Family Catholic School.

“Jon had a great message that resonated with some many children in our community. With having two boys that were able to attend the assembly it gave me a great opportunity to continue the conversation at home. I am honored First National Bank and Trust Company was able to bring Jon into our community and share his story. Thank you to all the school districts who joined us,” concluded Josh Grzadzielewski, vice president of community banking with First National Bank and Trust Company.