Press Releases / News

It Takes a Village

Monday, June 26, 2023

Photo Caption: Showing off some of the more than 100 new swimsuits Unified Bank donated to the Martins Ferry Swimming Pool are Unified Customer Service Supervisor Melissa Clegg, Daily Bread Director Lisa Bell, and Unified Customer Service Supervisor in Training Sharon Roberts.

Unified Bank Community Development Executive Don Feenerty was filling up his gas tank one day when Lisa Bell, the Director of the Daily Bread in Martins Ferry, pulled up at the gas pump beside him. The two started talking, and Bell informed Feenerty that she was helping out at the Martins Ferry Swimming pool and that she was saddened to see kids being turned away from the pool because they didn’t have swimming suits. Feenerty immediately pulled out his phone and texted Unified Executive Vice President Randy Greenwood asking if the Bank could help.

Greenwood said, “When Unified heard children and families were being turned away from the swimming pool in Martins Ferry because they couldn’t afford swimming suits and were trying to swim in street clothes, we decided we had to do something about it. Two days after learning of this community need, our Team went shopping with swimming pool representative Lisa Bell and purchased a wide variety of swimsuits to supply the new swim closet that the staff and officials at the City Pool will now maintain.”  

Unified President, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer Scott Everson said, “At Unified, we care deeply about the well-being and success of ourselves, our organization, our customers, and our communities. We also strive to create better lives and futures for the people and communities we proudly serve.” “I am proud to see our Team taking such an active role in our communities,” Everson added.

When hearing of Unified’s plan to help, Martins Ferry Mayor John Davies said, “Unified Bank is a great partner for the City of Martins Ferry. They are so generous to the residents with everything from: Lights on the ball field, the Splash Pad, Breakfast with the Easter Bunny, Fireworks celebration in the park, turf for the splash pad, and now help to make sure our youth and less fortunate can enjoy the same things as everyone else does.” Davies added, “Thank You, Unified Bank, for being a great partner!”

Unified Bank is a full-service Member FDIC-insured, state-chartered commercial bank headquartered in Martins Ferry, OH and has eighteen locations that serve the Ohio counties of Athens, Belmont, Carroll, Fairfield, Harrison, Hocking, Jefferson and Tuscarawas and Marshall County in West Virginia. Unified Bank is the sole operating subsidiary of United Bancorp, Inc. (UBCP), a publicly-traded bank holding company, and has been serving the financial needs of the Ohio Valley since 1902 from its headquarters in Martins Ferry, Ohio.