Community Bankers of Iowa Monthly Banker Update April 2014 | Page 4

From the Top

Written By: John H. Buhrmaster, Chairman of ICBA

Don’t Hit the Snooze Button
During my inaugural speech at the ICBA
national convention last month, I said
something that seems to have struck a chord
with many of you. The line I used has spurred
tweets and a lot of interesting discussions with
you—my fellow community bankers. And I’m
so glad that it has. That was my intention after
all.
I asked that you never hit the snooze button.
And as your new ICBA chairman, I realize
that seems like a big request. After all, we all
get tired sometimes. I get it. But as a fourthgeneration community banker—with a passion
for this great industry and for what we do—I
won’t hesitate to ask that of you again as I
write my first IB column. Why?
Because we’re all a team, and we’re all in this
together. I may be your humble leader over
the next year—and believe me, I couldn’t be
more excited about that—but that doesn’t
mean that I’m not going to ask for help. That’s

“We are a living legacy to the
community banking industy.”

what we do as good leaders after all, right?
As a community banker, you are a differencemaker in your community. Every one of us
needs to speak up and advocate for what is
right and what is important to keep community
banks strong. I said it in my speech, and I’ll
say it again, advocating is about people. It’s
about passion. Advocacy is about telling your

4

CBI BANKER UPDATE | APRIL 2014

story. And if anyone is up for a big task it’s
you!
As community bankers we know our
purpose—we were called to this great industry
for a reason. We have something big to
protect and grow. We are a living legacy to the
community banking industry. I ask that you join
me this year in helping to advocate our cause
for a higher purpose. I know that with your
help, there’s nothing we can’t accomplish.
And accomplish we must. We have a lot on
our “to do” list for 2014, including addressing
too-big-to-fail, ensuring fair tax treatment of
credit unions and fostering regulatory relief
and tiered regulations for community banks.
So go ahead and make it a goal this year to
contact your members of Congress, reach
out to regulators to mitigate new regulatory
burdens and to sign petitions on key issues.
Stand up for what you believe in. Stand up
and make your voice heard. Be the advocate
for change. And again, never hit the snooze
button with your advocacy. Your voice is what
makes the difference for this industry, and
actions are what make a difference in people’s
lives.
I know many of you already are tireless
advocates for this industry, and others are
just getting started. Let’s make it a point to
join together as one this year so that we
can accomplish even more. After all, it’s our
actions today that will affect communities and
generations to come. Now that’s what I call a
higher purpose—a higher calling.
So let’s turn off the alarm, get up and make
today and tomorrow an even better one for
community banking and the customers and
communities we serve.