April 2023

Washington, MO – The Bank of Washington’s Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, L. B. Eckelkamp, Jr., recently unveiled a new mission statement and vision statement that are deeply rooted in the history and community of the bank and strongly focused on the future.

“Our mission is simple, memorable, actionable, and encompasses the root of what we are focused on every single day,” stated Bank of Washington President Louis B. “Buzz” Eckelkamp, III. “The Bank of Washington’s mission is to do good – by prioritizing employees, customers, community, and relationships. This mission statement outlines our purpose, why we open our doors every day, and formalizes our priorities.”

Eckelkamp announced this mission statement, along with the bank’s new vision statement at a town hall meeting with all of the bank’s employees.

“Each quarter, we pull all of our employees together, provide lunch, and update everyone on where we are as a bank, highlight employee accomplishments, recognize employee milestones, and communicate about different projects that we are focused on over the next quarter and beyond,” stated Eckelkamp. “This has been a great way to have everyone together, keep everyone informed, and also continue to foster a team environment as our teams and our bank continue to grow.”

Eckelkamp commented that growth is a main focus for the Bank of Washington and has been weaved into their new vision statement along with their long-standing tagline, Grow with Us.

“The Bank of Washington’s vision is to build dreams – by providing the best financial experience to help our customers and employees grow with us,” stated Eckelkamp. “Using Grow with Us as a piece of our vision and our tagline encompasses our dedication to customers and employees. As our customers grow, our bank grows, and our employees grow with new opportunities. I’ve always said we are focused on one goal: the customer’s goal. As long as the customer’s goal is met, the rest will fall into place.”

The Bank’s Grow with Us tagline has been in use for many years now and was inspired by an old tagline used by the bank in the 1960s, Growing with the Community. “Our history is important to us and tells a great story that is wrapped around the growth of the community along with the bank,” stated Eckelkamp. “When we have the opportunity to pull something nostalgic from the past and tie it to today, it feels authentic and genuine, almost comforting and reassuring that we are executing the vision that our past leaders had for the Bank and the community.”

“The evolution of banking has exploded over the last five to ten years. It takes more than deposits and loans to make a bank work today. Technology, cybersecurity, digital transformation, third-party management, risk, product development, and more. These are positions inside our bank that either didn’t exist or barely existed ten years ago,” said Eckelkamp. “Banking is not static, our bank is not static, but we know these two statements, our mission and our vision, will continue to take us through our future growth, our evolution as the Bank of Washington, banking industry changes, economy fluctuations, and more. These two statements pinpoint our focus, which will remain on our employees, our customers, and our communities.”

The Bank of Washington is a full-service bank headquartered in Washington, MO. It is the oldest and largest community bank in Franklin County, serving the community for more than 145 years. The investments that the Bank of Washington makes in the local community and surrounding area ranks it as one of the largest commercial lenders in the St. Louis area. The Bank of Washington is consistently voted the No. 1 bank and mortgage lender in the Washington Missourian Readers’ Choice Awards and consistently selected by the St. Louis Small Business Monthly readers as one of the Best Banks in St. Louis and Best in Customer Service in St. Louis.