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The Tide was high in CA earlier this year as AL rolled over TX 37-21 to win
the National Championship, making the 2009 season arguably AL’s best
ever. In one of many firsts, Bama brought home 14 wins, and FSB presi-
dent Ken Vaughan & wife Ann were there to see it firsthand. RB Mark In-
gram brought the Tide their 1st Heisman Trophy, and LB Rolando McClain
won the Butkus Award, as 6 players were named to the AP All-American
Team. The entire SEC will profit from the win, including academics in need
of new funds. Even Auburn fans can find something to smile about in that!
My Community, My Bank...
If you would like to tell Congress exactly what you think about the economic downturn in America, we would like to introduce
you to a site created exactly for that purpose: MyCommunityMyBank.org The Independent Community Bankers Association
has created this site which will automatically send your feedback on to Congress, in a written letter or uploaded video. This
presents a first-time opportunity for everyday American citizens to bring the common sense of Main Street directly to Congress,
that is more accustomed to hearing from Wall Street. The bigger banks of our nation that have dragged the country to near
financial ruin are likely to continue their practices until they see waves of their customers switch to safer Community Banks. At
FSB we support ICBA’s initiative to
bring community voices into the discus-
www.MyCommunityMyBank.org sion. After unprecedented taxpayer aid
flowed into the megabanks last year,
consumers continue to suffer from their
actions; the latest being a hike in credit
card interest rates before new laws to
protect customers had time to pass.
The bigger banks know that the incon-
venience involved in switching banks is
usually what keeps customers staying
put. To simplify things, we would like
you to know that FirstState Bank has
outlined the bank-switching process in
our Nov/Dec 2009 issue of The Bank-
Note. Reprints can be emailed to you at
Time to let Congress hear your voice your request, but the three main steps
of a switch are summarized as follows:
1) Open the New Account first. Get the new account open and ready to start handling transactions.
2) Make a list of your creditors. Notify any that would be affected. Direct Deposits are the most time-consuming part.
3) Close the old account. Monitor all pending transactions, then move your remaining balance to your new account.
For more helpful hints on switching to FSB, see our Nov/Dec 2009 issue of the BankNote at www.facebook.com/firststatebank
Page 2 T HE B A N K N O T E
Mumbo Jumbo...
FirstState Bank prides itself on breaking down the “mumbo jumbo” of banking
terminology in order to clear the air on how we are looking out for customer
security. This issue will resume the discussion of Financial Literacy with a
focus on Principal Reduction, and how it can help your loan pay off quicker.
Principal Reduction...
A due date and a dollar amount are pal amount financed. Paying more
usually all that is remembered when than your regular monthly amount
making a loan payment, but one sends the overage directly toward
wise way of wearing it down sooner the principal, thereby leaving less
(and cheaper) is to make a Principal to be financed. The way it makes
Reduction. This option helps bor- your loan “cheaper” is that interest
rowers reach their payoff sooner by is figured on your principal. If
shaving off “pieces” of principal with there is less principal, then there
additional money in their monthly must also be less interest. There-
payment. In an installment loan, fore a Principal Reduction causes
each month’s regular payment is you to spend less total money in a
split into two parts: one part interest, shorter amount of time. If you
and one part principal. In the early TIME have any missed payments, partial
stages of the loan, more of your pay- payments, or late charges in-
ment goes toward interest, but as volved, then this scenario may of
time goes on, more of it starts going principal financed course not apply. In general
toward principal. Once each install- though, paying more than your
ment’s accrued interest has been minimum due will only help you
reached, the rest of the payment interest due pay off your loan sooner, and with
automatically goes toward the princi- less total interest out of pocket.
NOTE: FirstState Bank does not charge for pre-payment but many institutions do. Check your loan agreement first to be sure.
FirstState Growth...
At this time of the year, FirstState Bank likes
to reflect on the recent past, and how we are
doing as a whole. In a tough economy, we
are pleased to see that our total growth went
from $157 million in 2008, to $175 million in
2009 (an 11% increase). Teller transactions
stayed steady in 2009, hovering around
250,000 for the year. From the FDIC website,
we are especially proud to see that our Ash-
land Office made a significant spike in its Mar-
ket Share of 61%, up by 22% from 2008’s
even split of 50/50. Lineville’s Market Share
closed at 60%, which does not include num-
bers from the 3rd & 4th quarter that are likely
to be a notable boost. Wedowee’s Market
Share made a slow but steady increase up to
7%. The addition of Susan Kimball Brown as
Branch Manager in May of 2009 also has us
positioned for optimism in Randolph County.
M A R - A P R 20 1 0 Page 3
In The Spotlight: Matt Roberts on TV
FSB is an active participant in the Clay County Co-
Op program, which gives local HS students credit
for on-the-job training. Our current student Matt
Roberts is a senior at Lineville High School, and
fills our traditional Co-Op role of Data Processing.
Matt’s talents go far beyond entering computer
data, as he has gained recognition both from the
school and from the bank for his tremendous suc-
cess in fund-raising for LHS in his role as president
of the FFA. A natural salesman, Matt finds ways of
connecting with every employee in the bank and
engages them in an energetic manner that gets
people excited about helping their community grow.
His knack for activism recently garnered attention
from Bobby Jon Drinkard, former Survivor contest-
ant who now hosts the PBS TV show, “On The
Job”. The public television show gives viewers a
glimpse of the behind-the-scenes routines of vari-
ous jobs in AL. It is has been especially successful
"You know you want to help!" in helping students in Matt’s demographic convert
their ambitions into real-life opportunities. Through
the link with Matt Roberts, “On The Job” is ex-
...words to live by from Matt Roberts pected to film an episode at LHS this Spring, so be
sure to stay tuned and see our student in action.
If you have a digital picture of life in our community that you would like to share in a future issue of The BankNote, please email it to:
Vaughn.Samuels@FirstStateDirect.com. Submissions are not guaranteed to be published and stories may require editing.
www.FirstStateDirect.com