Silver Bells in the City is coming up, so we decided to ask the event's broadcast sponsors why they decided to get involved.
For Mercantile Bank, it's all about supporting the community.
Why did you decide to get involved with Silver Bells?
Kurt Hanus: "It has to do with supporting the community, we have a reach history of supporting our communities. For 26 years, Mercantile Bank has been around there are three areas we focused on, the first is customers, second is employees but the third is community. We feel financial institutions can best serve their communities by being local and having those strong ties in the communities and that’s what we want to do. That’s what community banking is all about and that’s where we feel we can have an impact so with a program like Silver Bells, I think it’s a great way to not only get the name out there but more importantly to have an impact in and again demonstrate our desire to support the community with an event like that."
Are there any other community activities that you're involved in?
Kurt Hanus: "We just had our bins delivered for Toys for Tots program which is something we’ve done for years and years. We partner with the Lansing Food Bank and do some things with them from time to time. A month ago we had a grand opening of our new office over in East Lansing and we partnered with the Food Bank and raised money and food for them. Aside from that, individually and across our whole organization we have deep ties with lots of organizations but locally here too we individually are also on different boards. I’ve been on the Boys and Girls of Lansing Club Board for 21 years. I’m on other boards as well and we take a lot of pride in being involved, and not to just be involved and show our face but to have impact."
How do your employees feel about you being involved in the community?
Kurt Hanus: "They love it. I love it when anyone gets involved in the community and I think we see it together. They don’t view me as a leader getting involved in the community, they just view me as one of the people on the team that shares in the responsibility to share the Mercantile Bank message and to deliver value and commitment to the community. So, we all love being involved, that’s why we do what we do."
Where will you be when Silver Bells is happening?
Kurt Hanus: "At Silver Bells! My family will be down there, we’ll be enjoying it and we have for a lot of years. So I’m looking forward to it."
Silver Bells in the City will be happening in downtown Lansing Friday, Nov. 17, and you can watch the Electric Light Parade on FOX 47 News.
Want to check out other Morning Blend segments? Visit the FOX47News Website.
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