First Bank Donates Record Amounts Of Time And Money To Communities

First Bank employees volunteer at a Habitat for Humanity build.
Photo: First Bank.

First Bank branches – including the branch at DeMott Lane and New Brunswick Road in Somerset – donated a record amount of time and money in 2014 to the communities that they serve, according to findings released today from the company’s corporate citizenship program.

First Bank tracks “corporate giving” to ensure that its philanthropy grows along with its assets, according to a release. Last year’s program generated more than $78,800 to various area nonprofits:

• Employees and Board of Directors provided nearly 1,400 recorded hours of community service that translates into more than a $35,400 in-kind donation, according to the latest figures from the Independent Sector, an organization that places a market-rate value on volunteerism.
• First Bank and its employees raised and donated more than $43,000 to their charities of choice.

The Somerset branch’s assistant manager, Veena Jain, said in the release that she wants to “make sure I do my part as a member of this community.”

“Throughout the year, I spend a number of hours volunteering at my temple and organizing different events such as food drives and clothing drives,” Jain said. She volunteers at Shirdi Sai Dham in Plainsboro and the East Brunswick Sai Center in addition to activities in Somerset.

“Since I joined First Bank, I was proud to see they encourage community involvement and being interconnected with the neighborhoods we serve,” Jain said. “A large senior community surrounds the Somerset Branch and I donate my time for different events, such as bingo tournaments and craft/ jewelry making classes. The branch has also donated gift bags of toiletries for the veterans and gift baskets for prizes at their bingo tournaments.”

First Bank CEO Patrick L. Ryan leads the way in his company’s volunteerism, according to the release.

Ryan serves on the strategic planning committee of the Young Professionals at Robert Wood Johnson Hospital and is also a member of the Hamilton Partnership, Mercer 200 Club and Friendly Sons and Daughters of Saint Patrick. In addition, Ryan volunteers at the Trenton Area Soup Kitchen and coaches Hopewell Valley Baseball and Nassau Hockey.

“I have always believed in giving back to the communities where we live and work,” Ryan said in the release. “We really feel at home in our locations and we put our neighbors first and support them however we can, from volunteering at an animal shelter to youth sports to building a home. We want to be wherever we are needed.”

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