ABA Banking Journal
No Result
View All Result
  • Topics
    • Ag Banking
    • Commercial Lending
    • Community Banking
    • Compliance and Risk
    • Cybersecurity
    • Economy
    • Human Resources
    • Insurance
    • Legal
    • Mortgage
    • Mutual Funds
    • Payments
    • Policy
    • Retail and Marketing
    • Tax and Accounting
    • Technology
    • Wealth Management
  • Newsbytes
  • Podcasts
  • Magazine
    • Subscribe
    • Advertise
    • Magazine Archive
    • Newsletter Archive
    • Podcast Archive
    • Sponsored Content Archive
SUBSCRIBE
ABA Banking Journal
  • Topics
    • Ag Banking
    • Commercial Lending
    • Community Banking
    • Compliance and Risk
    • Cybersecurity
    • Economy
    • Human Resources
    • Insurance
    • Legal
    • Mortgage
    • Mutual Funds
    • Payments
    • Policy
    • Retail and Marketing
    • Tax and Accounting
    • Technology
    • Wealth Management
  • Newsbytes
  • Podcasts
  • Magazine
    • Subscribe
    • Advertise
    • Magazine Archive
    • Newsletter Archive
    • Podcast Archive
    • Sponsored Content Archive
No Result
View All Result
No Result
View All Result
ADVERTISEMENT
Home ABA Banking Journal

Rising to the Challenge

July 3, 2020
Reading Time: 3 mins read
Rising to the Challenge

Photo by Martin Sanchez / Unsplash

By Laurie Stewart

After months of growing all-too-familiar with the interior of my home—and the aisles of the local grocery store where toilet paper, hand sanitizer and all-purpose flour are stored, or not—it’s hard to think back on what I had planned to be doing before COVID-19 became a reality and rapidly changed how our nation lived and worked. In that pre-virus world, I anticipated traveling around the country talking with bankers from Mississippi to Wisconsin about the challenges they were facing at their banks—and what the American Bankers Association could do to help.

As someone who thrives on interacting with my peers, I’ve missed speaking with so many of you in person. But thanks to the efforts of the ABA staff—working hand-in-hand with the state bankers associations—I have benefited from the wealth of resources available to help my bank navigate through this crisis. With a steady stream of breaking news shared through Daily Newsbytes, CEO Updates, ABA Banking Journal stories and a host of podcasts, webinars and other critical resources, we have been able to keep abreast of the biggest developments affecting our customers—while watching with pride at how bankers have risen to the challenge of this pandemic, with its record unemployment and financial pain.

In the process, our industry has shown what it is made of—dedicated employees working around-the-clock to help customers shore up their financial lives. Stationed at kitchen tables, in spare bedrooms, laundry rooms and makeshift basement offices, bankers transformed themselves into an informed and dedicated army of workers in order to assist customers under extraordinary circumstances. From working through the early glitches in the Paycheck Protection Program—so that thousands of small business owners could secure the loans they needed to stay afloat—to helping millions of customers who had lost their jobs find temporary relief through mortgage forbearance and debt restructuring programs.

As I told Marketplace host Kai Ryssdal during an interview, my bank in Seattle received five times the number of PPP applications for loan assistance that we originally anticipated. During that initial lending phase, we had no idea how many small businesses were starving for funds. So, like many bankers across the country, our staff worked day and night to process the loans as quickly as possible, before funds ran out. By the end of the first phase of the program, we had completed the same number of loans in two weeks that we normally handle in six months. It’s a feat that would have been impossible without the willingness of the staff to step up to the challenge, even when it meant working late on a Saturday evening and getting up on Sunday to start all over again.

I couldn’t be prouder of the role my employees—and bankers all across the country—have played in supporting their communities and keeping the economy running. As the beloved children’s television host Fred Rogers once said: “Real strength has to do with helping others.” In this regard, our industry has shown what it is made of. Whether waiving transaction and processing fees, offering payment extensions, providing emergency lines of credit, donating computers to local schools or using bank kitchens to prepare food for homeless shelters, we can all be proud of the important role we’ve played during this daunting time. (For more on how banks delivered PPP relief, see our cover story.)

Perhaps NPR’s Weekend Edition host Scott Simon said it best in an essay marking his daughter’s 17th birthday. He wondered aloud at what his girls would remember when they looked back at this time. “I hope,” he said, “they’ll remember how many good people worked so hard to keep the world running.”

ADVERTISEMENT
Tags: ABA leadershipCoronavirusSBA Paycheck Protection Program
ShareTweetPin

Author

Laurie Stewart

Laurie Stewart

Laurie Stewart, president and CEO of Sound Community Bank in Seattle, is the 2019-20 chair of the American Bankers Association.

Related Posts

The ever-expanding role of chief risk officer

The ever-expanding role of chief risk officer

Human Resources
July 7, 2025

'A new era has emerged in which CROs faced greater nonfinancial risk amid pressure to boost the bottom line.'

ABA, associations urge lawmakers to finalize deal on debt ceiling

Updated: President signs ‘big beautiful bill’ including numerous ABA-backed provisions

Ag Banking
July 3, 2025

Included in the bill were several ABA-supported tax provisions related to banks, including a modified version of the ABA-advocated ACRE Act and the permanent extension of the Section 199A pass-through deduction rate of 20%.

Factory orders increased in May

Economy
July 3, 2025

New orders for manufactured goods in May, up five of the last six months, increased $48.5 billion or 8.2% to $642.0 billion, the U.S. Census Bureau reported today. This followed a 3.9% April decrease. New orders for manufactured...

International trade deficit increased in May

Economy
July 3, 2025

The U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis announced today that the goods and services deficit was $71.5 billion in May, up $11.3 billion from $60.3 billion in April, revised. The May increase in the...

ISM: Service sector expanded in June

Economy
July 3, 2025

Economic activity in the services sector grew in June after contracting for just one month. The Institute for Supply Management Services Index indicated expansion at 50.8%, above the 50% breakeven point for the 11th time in the last...

147,000 Jobs Added in June, Unemployment Rate Steady at 4.1%

Economy
July 3, 2025

Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 147,000 in June, and the unemployment rate was little changed at 4.1%, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. The number of unemployed people, at 7.0 million, changed little over the...

NEWSBYTES

Survey: High interest rates make bank customers want to spend less

July 7, 2025

Texas Bankers Foundation creates donations page in aid of Texas flood victims

July 7, 2025

OCC allows Texas banks affected by flooding to close

July 7, 2025

SPONSORED CONTENT

Navigating Disruption in Ag Lending – Why Tariffs Are Just the Tip of the Iceberg

Navigating Disruption in Ag Lending – Why Tariffs Are Just the Tip of the Iceberg

July 1, 2025
AI Compliance and Regulation: What Financial Institutions Need to Know

Unlocking Deposit Growth: How Financial Institutions Can Activate Data for Precision Cross-Sell

June 1, 2025
Choosing the Right Account Opening Platform: 10 Key Considerations for Long-Term Success

Choosing the Right Account Opening Platform: 10 Key Considerations for Long-Term Success

April 25, 2025
Outsourcing: Getting to Go/No-Go

Outsourcing: Getting to Go/No-Go

April 5, 2025

PODCASTS

Podcast: Inside ABA’s new Treasury Check Verification System API

June 25, 2025

Podcast: Staying close to clients amid tariff-driven volatility

June 18, 2025

Podcast: Old National’s Jim Ryan on the things that really matter

June 12, 2025
ADVERTISEMENT

American Bankers Association
1333 New Hampshire Ave NW
Washington, DC 20036
1-800-BANKERS (800-226-5377)
www.aba.com
About ABA
Privacy Policy
Contact ABA

ABA Banking Journal
About ABA Banking Journal
Media Kit
Advertising
Subscribe

© 2025 American Bankers Association. All rights reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Topics
    • Ag Banking
    • Commercial Lending
    • Community Banking
    • Compliance and Risk
    • Cybersecurity
    • Economy
    • Human Resources
    • Insurance
    • Legal
    • Mortgage
    • Mutual Funds
    • Payments
    • Policy
    • Retail and Marketing
    • Tax and Accounting
    • Technology
    • Wealth Management
  • Newsbytes
  • Podcasts
  • Magazine
    • Subscribe
    • Advertise
    • Magazine Archive
    • Newsletter Archive
    • Podcast Archive
    • Sponsored Content Archive

© 2025 American Bankers Association. All rights reserved.