54 - Amy Price - Washington Trust Bank

Amy Price from Washington Trust bank joins the podcast to share her story . From SW Washington dreaming about carrying a gun and being part of law enforcement to a career in banking . Amy gives back to the community through various non-profit organizations . This is great ! 

https://www.watrust.com/vancouver 

https://www.linkedin.com/in/amy-price-1a50703b/ 

https://www.instagram.com/watrustbank/ 

https://www.trevorbuckco.com/

Edited & Produced by Daisie Media 

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:13

Welcome to the Trevor Buck Podcast, episode 54, and I'm really excited to have Amy Price with the Washington Trust Bank on with me today. Welcome.

SPEAKER_02 0:22

Thank you. I'm so excited.

SPEAKER_00 0:24

This is really fun. And uh, so where you grew up here in Southwest Washington?

SPEAKER_02 0:28

I did. I'm born and raised whole life.

SPEAKER_00 0:32

Where'd you go to school at?

SPEAKER_02 0:33

I am a Glenwood Lauren Prairie Girl.

SPEAKER_00 0:36

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 0:37

Yes, Battleground School District all the way.

SPEAKER_00 0:39

Well, that's that's interesting because I'm a Lauren.

SPEAKER_02 0:42

Uh-huh.

SPEAKER_00 0:43

So I went Lauren to Battleground, and then from Battleground I went to Prairie.

SPEAKER_02 0:46

Uh-huh. So half of my eighth grade class went to Battlegrounds and the other half went to prairie.

SPEAKER_00 0:52

Yep, yep, yep. Okay, and so then after high school, what did you do?

SPEAKER_02 0:55

Oh, after high school, let's see. I uh I worked at Fred Meyer. Okay. Uh in orchards in the lawn, you know, flower department or whatever. Um and I was going to school at Clark College. Okay. And I wanted to be a police detective.

SPEAKER_00 1:17

Okay. Okay.

SPEAKER_02 1:18

So my grandfather was a Vancouver PD. Okay. A homicide detective. My uncle ran Clark County Juvenile Hall.

SPEAKER_01 1:26

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 1:27

And I wanted to carry a gun too. So that was my plan. Okay. Yes.

SPEAKER_00 1:33

Okay. And so you're not doing that currently. How how did the career path take a little turn?

SPEAKER_02 1:39

So, um, you know, as young girls do uh silly things and and lie about silly things. I told Fred Myers that I was quitting because I got a bank job and really I just wanted to go camping and they wouldn't let me off. And so when I got home, I drove past Northwest National Bank and I was so convicted in my heart. I swung in and applied. I thought, well, if I apply at a bank, it's not a lie. Right? Like, okay, so Amy's crazy, but it it was great. And I will tell you, Northwest National Bank was wonderful. Okay. Um, I worked part-time uh in the afternoons. I went to Clark College in the mornings, and that's where I met my best friend. She was a customer in my drive-thru.

SPEAKER_00 2:22

Okay, really? Yeah. Wow. Tell us about that.

SPEAKER_02 2:25

Well, she would come and make little deposits for her lawn company she was working for. Okay. And we would chat in the drive-thru like girls do. And we bonded through the glass.

SPEAKER_01 2:34

Right.

SPEAKER_02 2:35

And one day, US Bank came out and bought my bank, and they said, Hey, you know, you can't answer that question. You have to go tell your customers to use the phone in the lobby. And I thought, uh-uh, over my dead body. And I told her, I was like, I can't do this. She's like, come work for me. It was the one time, the one year in my 30 years that I didn't work in banking.

SPEAKER_00 2:56

Okay. Yeah. So what were you doing for her?

SPEAKER_02 2:58

Uh accounts payable, receivable. It was horrible, boring. No customers came in the door. I had nobody to. I mean, I had talked, I got to talk to her. We ran the whole company. The owner lived in Montana. Okay. These us girls, do you think we worked? No, we played all day. Anyway, we've been best friends for like 28 years. Oh, that's amazing.

SPEAKER_00 3:18

Okay, so then at some point you ended up at Riverview.

SPEAKER_02 3:21

Well, yeah, so I went from the lawn care to first independent.

SPEAKER_00 3:25

Okay, okay, yep. Right? Because I said, I can't do this long care thing.

SPEAKER_02 3:28

This is this is uh killing me. Right, right. So I went to first indie and um I worked for one week at 164th. Okay. And I said, Hey, do you want to open new accounts in Stevenson? I'm like, sure. Okay, at the time I lived in Washugal. I'd moved out of my mom's, I was living in Washugal, so it was 30 minutes either direction. It you know, why not? Still going to school, by the way. Okay, you know, finishing up my associate's degree. Now I'm going to Portland State University, still studying criminology.

SPEAKER_00 4:00

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 4:00

Uh, still thinking I'm gonna be a police officer. Still want to carry the guns. And I do have them, they're my own. Okay. I'm sure they're just not police issued. So I went up to First Independent Bank and I spent six years uh in Stevenson up there. Well, actually nine. Gosh, nine years. But at first independent, that is the only bank I've ever worked for where I personally have been robbed and I didn't even have money.

SPEAKER_00 4:27

Wow. So at the bank. At the bank.

SPEAKER_02 4:30

Yeah, I was a new accounts rep. I had the most beautiful view of the gorge and Bridge of the Gods. I loved all my things.

SPEAKER_00 4:37

Yeah, I go, I go coateboarding there.

SPEAKER_02 4:39

See? Yep. And uh this guy walks in, he sits at my desk, and he says, This is a robbery. Well, I'm like 23, and and this is Stevenson. Sure. Right? And I laughed.

SPEAKER_00 4:48

Small town. Stevenson is very small.

SPEAKER_02 4:50

Oh, yeah. 10,000 people in the whole county, right? And so I'm laughing at them. I'm like, yeah, right. Like, what kind of account do you want? Because people in Stevenson would do stuff like that.

SPEAKER_00 5:00

Okay, okay.

SPEAKER_02 5:01

And he says, I'm being serious. Now I had a three-ring binder. Remember old school days when we did paper? Yep. It had wire transfers in it, about an inch thick. And I had the binder open. I was who knows what I was doing. And he goes, No, I'm being serious. And he took out this hunting knife and he stabbed it right through my binder. And I'm looking at it and I'm going, Oh. Okay. So I, you know, I walk over to the teller line and I'm like, hey, we're being wrong. And she's like, is this a test? I'm like, no, it's not a test. And so I'm like, give me your money. And she gives me like a couple of bills. And I'm like, I'm not going back over there with a knife like that. I'm like, give me all your you know, tellers collect all the ripped, grody, bloody nails. I said, give me all your muds, right? And it's this crumply wad of garbage. So I put the pretty ones on top. Okay. So it looked like there was something. Okay. And I set it on the corner of my desk. I said, Here's your money, sir. Because, you know, you're you're like, what do you do? And he's still sitting there, his head, at this point, his head is in his arms, kind of like like this. He had emptied his pockets out all over my desk. There's like little gum wrappers and whatever, right? And this guy smelled like campfire and fish.

SPEAKER_00 6:16

Oh, sure.

SPEAKER_02 6:17

And I'm like, oh. And he goes, It's okay. You can call the cops. And I said, Well, sir, they've been called. You know, and I'm thinking, what do you do? Right. You know, I'm young, I'm looking around, and I said, Well, um, can I get you any coffee or water? He goes, I'm okay. I said, I'm gonna sit down now. So I'm sitting there with me, the knife, the smelly guy. And then I look at the tellers and I'm like, where are the police? Now, if you've been to Stevenson, uh, which is now it's now, well, first independent sterling Umqua Columbia Bank.

SPEAKER_00 6:53

Okay, sure, yep.

SPEAKER_02 6:54

The behind the drive-thru is the jail. So it's like they have far to go. Right, right. And so she points and she's pointing at the check writing stand, and I see uh Monty Butner, he's one of, was one of the detectives at the time, and I'm like, oh, okay, he's taking notes on the back of a deposit slip. All right. But in true Skemania County fashion, they come bursting through the doors with their rifles, and they're like, get on the ground, put your hands up, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. And I'm like, whoa, don't point that at me. They're like, move the knife. I'm like, I take the whole binder, pick it up, and I put it on the ground, done. Okay. I'm like, what is happening? This guy is obviously not a threat. Right. He's he's like so sad.

unknown 7:35

Right.

SPEAKER_02 7:36

Come to find out, he was really just looking for a warm place to stay and a hot meal. And so he did six months in the county jail. And and I don't even know what ever happened to that poor kid, but well, he wasn't a kid, he was probably more like a 40-year-old man. Okay, but that was the I will say every branch that I've ever worked at has been robbed, but that was the only time me personally.

SPEAKER_00 7:57

Wow. Well, that was a great story. Thank you. I had to share it.

SPEAKER_02 8:01

It was weird.

SPEAKER_00 8:03

Okay, so and you were still interested in being a cop? Yeah, oh sure. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 8:08

And so I was going from Stevenson to Portland State University at night for night school. Uh that's an hour and a half drive each way. And uh back in the old days, you you couldn't go to school online for the last portion of your degree. And so what happened is all the classes were only available at 8 a.m. And so, you know, we're fast forwarding. I'm married, I have a house, I have a full-time job, and I love what I do.

SPEAKER_01 8:35

Right.

SPEAKER_02 8:36

And I looked at the advisor and I said, I'm just gonna quit. So I did. I was like, ah, babies instead. So I just walked away and said, I'm kind of burnt out, been eight years in college trying to part-time it. Yeah. I was like, no, I I I love what I do too much.

SPEAKER_00 8:51

So well, that's awesome. It's turned out well for you.

SPEAKER_02 8:54

Well, and and then so then Riverview stole me from First Independent up in Stevenson. Okay, okay, okay. So that's how I ended up there. I I did that for gosh, I want to say probably three years in at the Stevenson branch. Okay. Right?

SPEAKER_00 9:09

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 9:10

Four, five, six, uh, maybe five.

SPEAKER_00 9:12

Okay, okay.

SPEAKER_02 9:13

I'm trying to think of my answer.

SPEAKER_00 9:15

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 9:15

But yeah.

SPEAKER_00 9:16

Okay, so then from Stevenson, did you end up in Oh, well, so you know I am a Battleground girly.

SPEAKER_02 9:23

Okay, right? And life blows up sometimes, and I said, I I need to go home. Uh my mom does daycare, and I needed mom to watch my kids, and life wasn't just happening in a great spot. Yep. So in 2008, I transferred to the Battleground branch of Riverview. Okay. So that's kind of when I went back home. Okay. Right.

SPEAKER_00 9:47

Okay, and when you were there, at some point you started dealing with business lending versus personal financing, or how did you get into that?

SPEAKER_02 9:57

Real quick, yes, just so I can say it. Everybody can hear. Yep. Uh, Washington Trust Bank is FDIC insured. We're an equal housing lender, and no opinion on this podcast is theirs. They're entirely my own. Just saying. Okay, now we can have fun.

SPEAKER_01 10:12

Yep. That's great. Perfect.

SPEAKER_02 10:14

Well, you know, my time at Riverview was many things, and um, they did not have a lending program where branch managers could participate because they were tiny, you know, 200 employees-ish, you know, 18 branches. Um, they were locally headquartered. And so my job was to figure out what did somebody need. I I I look at it as I'm the GC, and everybody on my team are my subs. And so I get a problem in, I figure out the solution, and I hand it off to the right place. And I took care of a lot of folks for a lot of years. I was 15 years at that office in Battleground, and lending didn't come into the picture until I changed over to Washington Trust.

SPEAKER_00 11:01

Okay, okay. I didn't know that.

SPEAKER_02 11:03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 11:03

Okay, interesting. So when you were at Riverview, you were dealing with personal and business. Okay, but just not the lending aspect.

SPEAKER_02 11:11

Well, I would take in information and get it to my teammate Brian Dennis, who is also here at Washington Trust, with me. So Brian and I were like the the dynamic duo. Okay.

SPEAKER_00 11:22

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 11:23

I had somebody that had a need, and I he Brian was the only one I trusted.

SPEAKER_00 11:26

Okay. So how did you end up from Riverview to Washington Trust?

SPEAKER_02 11:30

Well, COVID had a lot to do with that.

SPEAKER_00 11:32

Tell us about what happened.

SPEAKER_02 11:34

During COVID, I probably worked harder during COVID than I had my entire career. Uh staffing issues. You know, the minute you have uh a cold or a sniffle, all of a sudden they don't get to come to work for two weeks. There were times where it was just me and another kid from downtown Vancouver running the battleground office with the doors closed and nobody got breaks and lunches. Uh it was insane. And so in May of 21, I lost my entire staff, meaning they did not die. Sorry. Um, I had a client who will go remain unnamed that stole my darling Stephanie. Uh, there's probably a lot of people out there, maybe you're listening, you remember Stephanie Grudaye. She was the bomb diggity best assistant manager ever. Uh, but thank you so much to an unnamed plumbing company that realized that she was bomb diggity. Uh, and then I had two retire, and one went to be a stay-at-home mom, and another one went to work for uh a large animal vet tech. And you know, when you're sitting there and you're by yourself, I ugly cried one whole day. And then I was like, you know what? Okay, now we gotta rebuild the team. So rebuilt the team. Um, and at the time the CEO, the CFO, the chief retail banking officer, the chief marketing, chief HR, everybody got retired. And I had been with these people for 20 years. Right. And I looked around and I nobody didn't know anybody and nobody knew me. And sometimes when you stare down a 3% increase over the next 20 years, does that look pretty? Is that gonna take care of your kids as a single mom? Uh there was a lot of challenges. And so I put my branch back together, got it operating, um, and just was like, what's my next thing? I can't I can't keep repeating this and and take care of my kids. Sure. And so um, you know, tried out business development at Riverview for a little bit, uh, got a new manager, transitioned in and and to take care of my people, but we're still my people because I can't let go. I have massive FOMO, and realized I didn't want to collect relationships to give to other people. Like I'm I'm I'm selfish. Like those are my friends, those are my people, and I I don't like this. Nobody needs me. Like I was so lonely. And Brian had called me, Brian Dent had called me in about November, and he said, Hey, I'm just letting you know uh I'm going to Washington Trust Bank. And I was like, What? You can't leave me too. Like, how dare you? Like this is my life's over. And he goes, Um, but you know, I I think you need to come with me. And I trust Brian wholeheartedly. We've worked together for six years, and I said, say less. So the position was to be a commercial lender uh in the space that is maybe more geared towards folks that are just getting started or maybe they've ran their company for a couple years. Brian's my big bean, he's the big bean down the hall. He does the big hotel construction, multifamily, all the big projects.

SPEAKER_01 14:44

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 14:44

Probably that you've worked on. Sure. Right? And then I don't get to do all that fun stuff, but I get to focus on helping smaller clients build their businesses up and be the big bean. Okay.

SPEAKER_00 14:55

So I want to ask you this. So do you end up almost being a for these small companies, which a lot of them can be younger people, you almost end up being a coach for financing.

SPEAKER_02 15:05

Start out as the mama. Right. These are my kiddos. Right. I have massive, um, selfish, you know, these are my babies.

SPEAKER_01 15:13

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 15:14

Uh a lot of them come to me and they don't even know they need commercial insurance, or how do I get my business license? Or uh, you know, what do I do? You know, what are my options?

SPEAKER_00 15:25

This is great. So have you seen, and how long have you been doing this?

SPEAKER_02 15:29

Uh, three years. I've been with the Washington Post.

SPEAKER_00 15:31

So have you seen some that have just started as a very small company and have grown? Oh, yeah. It that has to be so rewarding.

SPEAKER_02 15:39

Well, it is. It it makes my little mama heart just so proud, right? And I I know we've struggled. We maybe we can't do something today, but let's sit down and figure out how are we going to get you in a position that when it comes time next year, that you're ready to do what you need to do. And whether that's making a plan to pay off some big rocks, maybe the plan is we need to do some operational reshuffling. Maybe you just need a really good big bookkeeper. You know, I I didn't take any accounting classes. I don't know how to use QuickBooks, but I can sure tell you when that balance sheet is wrong. Oh, who's doing your books? My my cousin's sister's nieces, friend. Okay, or it's my wife. And then I'm like, you know what? Do you value your marriage? Because um she may not really love that.

SPEAKER_00 16:26

Yeah, no, and I think that's important because a lot of these um young people that start businesses, they're probably passionate for what they're doing, but and I agree, their wife should not be their bookkeeper because that's a recipe for disaster, and it's very important to get a good bookkeeper. Um, but this are all these are all things that sometimes these young people don't think about when they're you know, they can be working for a big company which has its perks and its disadvantages, but they think, oh, I'm just gonna go buy a truck and a van and start a company and start making a lot of money.

SPEAKER_02 16:59

Yeah, and it it doesn't really work that way. You know, uh so for startup companies. Let's say I've worked at an electrician's uh big corporate for five years. I have a house, I have a wife, I have four kids. Yep, and now I want to do it myself. Fantastic. My favorite beginner, right? And it's like, oh, by the way, I know I'm gonna send you to my friend behind Taco Bell to go get your business set up completed. When that's done, she's gonna send me the documents. I'm gonna send you down the street to my buddy that does your commercial insurance, and he's gonna school you on what that looks like and why you need certain things. And then you might need a bookkeeper, and I have several depending on what you do, how you do it, and what software you're using will tell me where I want you. But but the best thing is these bookkeepers work with me directly. So it lets you work and lets us work before you behind the scenes. Um and then it's like let's sit down and talk about what what does being successful look like? What is that whole package? You sure you can bootstrap a van and some tools and go out and start working jobs. Who's your network? Who are you getting your jobs from? Who's giving you referrals? Do you know where to get referrals? What is your lines of income gonna be? What's your income streams? Do you what services are you providing? What makes sense and who's helping you figure out those margins? A lot of times they're like, What's a margin? Well let's let's start baby steps here.

SPEAKER_01 18:30

Right.

SPEAKER_02 18:31

You know, and then I have friends that specialize in helping contractors figure out, you know, what makes sense in their reports and are they losing on the back end of that job? Did they did they build in, you know, change orders or are they using that as a tool or I call it a weapon to underbid other contractors to get the job and then they're gonna zing them in the end. And it's like having those conversations, like please be mindful. And who do you know and who do you need to know?

SPEAKER_01 18:58

Yep.

SPEAKER_02 18:59

I say, you know what, go on my LinkedIn, go sh go through my friends list. Do you want an introduction?

SPEAKER_01 19:03

Yep.

SPEAKER_02 19:04

Because I'd love to take you both to coffee.

SPEAKER_01 19:06

Right.

SPEAKER_02 19:06

Right. Like I believe in what they're doing and their passion, and I just want them to be the bigger bean. Like eventually one day they'll move down the line. Sure, sure, sure. And that's always a funny conversation.

SPEAKER_00 19:18

So do they come to you when they're looking for a line of credit?

SPEAKER_02 19:23

Usually they don't really know what they want. Okay. They're coming to me saying, I need help.

SPEAKER_01 19:27

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 19:27

Right. And that help could look like I'm running out of cash.

SPEAKER_01 19:30

Right.

SPEAKER_02 19:31

Or my van's broke down, or my dump truck is about on its last legs.

SPEAKER_00 19:36

Right.

SPEAKER_02 19:37

It's like, here's my problem. Yep. And then it's up to me to figure out, well, how are we going to solve it? What makes the most sense? What's going to be a good place for you to be? And and you know, is there anything else we need need to do to make sure that you're successful down the line? And sometimes, yes. And if it doesn't make sense, we're going to talk about why it doesn't, what we can do better, and how we can get there next year. So we have a lot of those conversations.

SPEAKER_00 20:02

This is great.

SPEAKER_02 20:03

Please do not take all the money out of your company.

SPEAKER_00 20:08

Right. So do you do have some interesting stories about business expenses, what you've seen come across? Oh, let me tell you.

SPEAKER_02 20:18

Um, and and and and again, this is my opinion, not that of Washington Trust. But if you're a business owner, listen up. If you are taking your business debit card and taking cash out of the ATM at ANA red flag, we're gonna have a conversation. That's not a good use of business expense unless it's a Christmas party and you're showering gifts on your employees, then maybe. But if it's a regular basis, we we've got a different conversation to have.

SPEAKER_00 20:48

Yeah. Thanks for sharing that. That's great. How about uh um building uh a shop at my own residence that I'm gonna use just a little bit?

SPEAKER_02 20:58

Okay, okay. Young men out there, I love you, but let's let's take a step back. You yes, you can build your shop out of your business, but if you want a loan, it's probably not gonna work out. So if you're in the process of building it right now, I suggest you talk to your bookkeeper about changing those expenses into distributions. Because if you don't, you just basically don't make any money, right? And you can't business debt service, and then you personally don't debt service, and then it's a big fat mess. If you change it to a distribution, I get to take that distribution amount and plug it back into your personal income, and then globally it makes your numbers so much better. And and then everybody's happy. So if you have questions about if you're doing it right, I will do a free consultation, advisement, and a little bit of momming.

SPEAKER_00 21:53

Okay, and and we're we're gonna put your contact information in in the show notes so people can get a hold of you. This is great. So I want to ask you. This just because I don't I'm not um real intelligent when it comes to banking, but so what is the difference between a bank like you work for and a credit union? Oh, I love that question.

SPEAKER_02 22:10

Nothing okay, no. So we I I actually just did a presentation with On Point Community Credit Union. Shout out to Fung, she's amazing. Um, we did a comparison on credit unions versus community banks, and we're gonna make that distinction for a reason I'll tell you in a minute. The only difference is who governs our policies. So they are uh insured by the NCUA, we are insured by the FDIC, and that comes with a whole slew of grody audit things that we don't really want to talk about in this show because people go sleep. Uh other than that, we do all the same community uh give back, we do a lot of CRA, um all the same products and services and customer service. And and really what it boils down to is who do you want to talk to every day? Who do you want to fix your problems if your debit card's missing, if your ACH needs an increase, if you if your remote scanner broke down and you don't know how to fix it, who do you want standing by your side helping you troubleshoot that? Do you want somebody on the 800 number, somebody from India possibly? I've heard some rumors about Chase, sorry. I don't know if it's true, but somebody told me. Um, or do you want Amy Price coming out to your house? I mean, just this morning I went and picked up a title that accidentally got mailed to the client instead of the bank, and we just haven't been able to connect and circling around and everybody's busy. I'm like, you know what? I'll just swing on the way in. And she's like, Oh, I love you, thank you. I'm just gonna go.

SPEAKER_00 23:34

That's amazing. That's that's great. That's the difference. Okay, and Washington Trust is privately owned out of Washington? Yes. Okay, tell us about Washington Trust Bay.

SPEAKER_02 23:44

So we're headquartered in Spokane. Okay. Uh four generations of the Stanton family have owned us. Okay. Uh, which makes a difference. It just means that we get to govern ourselves and not be ran by a bunch of people invested in us dictating what we should or shouldn't do, uh, which is great. So we are um 44 locations over Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. And uh lots of wonderful people. There's I think about 1,400 employees and all, and and but still that small feeling, you know. I can talk to the bank president, I can talk to our directors, I can text them and ask them questions, like they're they're reachable.

SPEAKER_00 24:25

So and um I can tell just by coming here at your office. The culture of the Washington Trust Bank is very awesome. It's very laid back. It's very laid back. It they have a beautiful office, they've got the Zen room that we're sitting in. They've got this beautiful bear picture on the wall. This is no, this is absolutely incredible. How about um what do you know about crypto currency?

SPEAKER_02 24:50

Crypto. I know that it's to me, it's scary. One time I put$50 on something that somebody said I should do, and I think it like disintegrated into nothing. Um, I know there's a market for it. I don't know a lot about it. Uh, I would re- I would say anybody that wants to know about investments should talk to Garrett Williams, who's our advisor. He does all the things, and that and then I do not do those things.

SPEAKER_00 25:13

Okay, and now another role that you have, and this might be um part of your kindness, but you do some fundraising for different organizations or different uh causes.

SPEAKER_02 25:26

I would say I'm on the board of directors for multiple nonprofits. Okay. That's that's kind of fundraising's part of the job, but being on a board of directors has a lot of different functions and responsibilities more than just fundraising.

SPEAKER_00 25:40

So tell tell us about fundraising. How does that work? Fundraising is okay.

SPEAKER_02 25:46

Everybody listening, you need to give me a basket, sponsor a table, or some kind of cash donation because I'm desperate here. Um, nonprofit work is tough, and especially in this economy right now, there's a huge downturn in you know, businesses' ability to actually help fund nonprofits. Did you know Clark County has the most nonprofits per capita than any county in the Washington state?

SPEAKER_00 26:09

I did not know that.

SPEAKER_02 26:10

Why is that? Everybody wants to help people, which is great. Okay. I that's amazing. There's a lot of overlap, everybody thinks they have a brand new idea. I would really love for every single nonprofit to sit down and say, how can we combine efforts? Um, but you know, until then, Amy's gonna sit there and and promote the ones that I'm on. So for me to be a part of a nonprofit means I have a passion for the mission. I absolutely believe in the work they're doing. And um, it's more than just being on the board, it's actually being a functioning role in making the success of that nonprofit happen.

SPEAKER_00 26:45

Okay, and which nonprofits are you on the boards of?

SPEAKER_02 26:48

So I'm on the board for the Battleground Rotary Foundation. Okay. Uh I'm on which is what? Tell us about it. So Battleground Rotation.

SPEAKER_00 26:54

What is the Rotary Foundation?

SPEAKER_02 26:56

Okay, so Rotary International is an international service club started in, I think, oh gosh, I'm not gonna don't quote me. A long time ago. Brain anyway, in Chicago, Illinois, by a bunch of businessmen that said, we needed to fix this town. And so the the premise of Rotary was these businesses that were rotating offices and having little meetings, and their first project was putting um public toilets in downtown Chicago. Okay, and it grew. And it's an it's a national service-oriented club. Okay, and there's eight in Clark County.

SPEAKER_00 27:29

Okay. Um which one are you part of?

SPEAKER_02 27:31

The Battleground Rotary Club. And what what is their what have they done or what do they look to do, or what's on their uh if you ever walk down Old Town Main Street and go shopping on a first Friday, and you'll look at all the benches in town. Yep. Uh one of our Rotarians, Terry Reddish, he restores those benches and works with the city on making sure that they stay kept up. We do main street cleanups, so especially before harvest days, yeah. We'll clean up and do all the weeding in front of all the businesses and all the time. That's amazing. Oh, that's amazing. And we have between Onsdorf and Eton is our highway cleanup, and so we'll do that two times a year for the city. And then we support international projects like clean water and stoves and things like that.

SPEAKER_00 28:12

Well, that's a good one. I like that cost. What are the other ones you're using? Oh, okay.

SPEAKER_02 28:17

So I also um sit on the board for Camp Hope of Southwest Washington, which was originally started by school teachers and business uh folks and some folks from the church that said we need to help our young people. In 2011, there was a lot of suicide happening in Battleground. And you know, you're scrambling for ways to help these kids. And so they thought if we provide a place for these kids to hang out in nature, explore uh hiking trails and caves and rivers and trees and connect uh with other kids in real life. Apparently, that's called IRL, I guess, and teenager to speak. Um that they would make real connections and relationships and friends, other than online. Sure. So the premise is out of the four walls, off the screens, in nature, and making relationships. And so we offer different camps throughout the summer, uh ages six to seventeen, and then they do things like STEM camps, they have horse camp, they've got uh journey theater, they do organ trails. Amazing, all kinds of functions. Oh, awesome! And then on the offside that we're not running a camp, you can also rent the camp for family reunions, weddings, funerals, like or just taking your family out to go camping.

SPEAKER_00 29:40

Okay. Yeah, it's an old Girl Scouts camp. I I like it. Well, that's amazing.

SPEAKER_02 29:44

If you want to come see it, I will give you a tour. It's beautiful. 105 acres that we manage.

SPEAKER_00 29:49

And where is that located at?

SPEAKER_02 29:50

It is right across the river from Louisville Park. So right down is it Roper Road, down that sketch road. I think I've seen it river. Okay, okay, okay. Yeah, I like beautiful property. Awesome. Okay. All right, and so the last one. I know. You're thinking, Amy, you're nuts. Uh it's okay. This is actually better than it was. In 2014, it was even worse. So I I did spend eight years with Northwest Battle Buddies as well. Um, but currently uh I am the new treasurer for Listen Line Community Services. Okay. And I've been on the board for a couple of years now. Um and the funny story of that is I went into a certain corporate entity and said fundraising for Camp Hope, which by the way we are, because they have an auction too. Um and they said, Well, Amy, that's great, and you know we love you, but we we only support listen line. And I was like, What's listen line?

SPEAKER_01 30:44

Right.

SPEAKER_02 30:45

You know, this is a couple years ago. I don't even know, maybe 23. Uh yeah, it was probably 23. And um they said, Well, you know, you should go across the hall and talk to my buddy over here. And I was like, Okay, buddy over here. And I'm just gonna say no names because I don't want to call people out. Um so buddy says, Well, maybe you should come to a meeting with me. And I was like, All right, it's odd. Like I'm intrigued because if this is who you're supporting, there must be a really good reason why. And and I trust both both people immensely. Yep. Although first buddy usually gets me into a lot of messes, anyways. But well, that's another story for another day. So we go to a meeting and I'm sitting there and I'm listening to Charlotte who um is the executive director, and I'm thinking, oh my gosh, where have you guys been? Because my son, uh he's 22 now, but back when he was 14, 15, 16 had been through some serious stuff and uh horrifying things that I mean, I'm sure there's a lot of mothers out there that can relate your kids or your world, and and if anything happened to them, what would you do? And I thought I could have used less online. I could have used them. I and you know, our school system has failed us. I learned what to say to the Battleground School District, so they'd leave me alone. I never really got help.

SPEAKER_01 32:06

Right.

SPEAKER_02 32:06

You know, you just learn how to have the conversation, you know what they're gonna ask, you know what they're gonna expect, you throw it out, yep, we're doing this, this, this, this, this. And finding somebody to connect with your kid to actually help them is ridiculous because they've got their own agendas. I I mean, I've lived it, you know. We we tried Western Psychological, we tried Kaiser, we tried, you know, you've only got so much insurance.

SPEAKER_00 32:29

Yeah, yeah, exactly.

SPEAKER_02 32:31

If your kid's not clicking, yeah, you could actually do damage. Yeah, um, but listen line, I thought, oh my heart, you know, you see there, you kind of just have tears like I need you. Like, I need you, my friends need you, my customers need you. And I knew that that I couldn't, I couldn't not be a part of it. And they said, Well, do you want to be on our board? Yes, yes, say less, right? Say less. And so we've been walking this journey, um, doing a lot of strategic planning, um, getting a lot of different folks involved. I have some other friends that I knew that I was like, hey, would you come help us put a strategic plan together? They walked us through like a mini EOS plan, which was great. You know, I already knew EOS and how that worked, and I'm like, yeah, eating it all up. And so um, you know, we had a pretty pretty robust plans for us, and we still do, and we're getting some things accomplished.

SPEAKER_00 33:24

And and that's amazing. And yeah, I had done a uh episode with Charla and Nicole, and that's how I ended up meeting Amy. Yeah, and uh, this is so great. No, and and I I love the list line, and Charla is wonderful and professional, and it's happy to hear that she has a solid team behind her, like yourself that are helping her move forward. And um, I'll I don't have the number on me right now, but I will put it in the show notes. But um, it is it's an amazing service. Yes, the listen line.

SPEAKER_02 33:53

It and and now since you they were on your podcast, um, we're going, do we need to hire more listeners? Like things are really cranking. And that is beautiful.

SPEAKER_00 34:04

That is amazing.

SPEAKER_02 34:06

Thank you so much.

SPEAKER_00 34:06

Um, thank you for coming on and thank them. And I do I want to uh share this. I I appreciate any and all guests that come on. This podcast is fun, it's all over the map, but we get to meet awesome, amazing people and hear stories like yours.

SPEAKER_02 34:24

Funny little bank robbery stories.

SPEAKER_00 34:26

This is great.

SPEAKER_02 34:27

You know, that your show is wonderful, and I think what you do is great. And I and I'm sitting here writing down who should be on the show next.

SPEAKER_00 34:35

Hey, I love that. And you can always uh contact us through social media or send me an email at trevorbuttco at gmail.com. If you have somebody that would be interesting and would be willing to come on, I would love it.

SPEAKER_02 34:47

I love that. I think there's there's a lot of interesting people in this world.

SPEAKER_00 34:52

Uh I'll tell you some other stories later. Okay. They're probably not appropriate. And I Amy, I truly I want to thank you for doing this. This has been a lot of fun. It has been. You can find this podcast on Apple and Spotify and uh give us a five-star review. We're trying to get to 100. Our goal's a hundred.

SPEAKER_02 35:10

I will meet you there. Uh, the bank said that they'd be thrilled to put your podcast for today on their socials.

SPEAKER_00 35:18

This is gonna be great.

SPEAKER_02 35:19

I'm gonna I'm gonna go call all my customers, tell them they have to listen and give you a five star review.

SPEAKER_00 35:23

Okay, this has been awesome. Thank you so much. And this episode was edited and produced by Daisy Media. Thanks for listening. Have a great day.