DIXON, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
First Northern Community Bancorp (FNRN.OB) today announced that Owen J.
Onsum, 66, is retiring as President & Chief Executive Officer, effective
at the end of 2010. Mr. Onsum, a 39-year veteran of First Northern Bank,
was appointed to the Board of Directors in 1996 and elevated to the
position of President & CEO in 1997. He will remain a member of the
Board of Directors post retirement.
Owen J. Onsum and Louise A. Walker (Photo: Business Wire)
When Onsum joined First Northern Bank in 1972, the Bank had $17 million
in total assets and two bank branches. During his tenure as President &
CEO, he led the Company from $265 million in total assets to $727
million today. Other accomplishments attained under Onsum’s leadership
have included: Internet Banking, the Company’s SBA Loan Department,
Asset Management & Trust Department, the expansion of both the Bank’s
Real Estate Mortgage operation and Investment & Brokerage Services, as
well as new branches in Woodland, Downtown Vacaville, Roseville,
Downtown Sacramento, Auburn, and a satellite banking office in Davis’
University Retirement Community.
Louise A. Walker, the Company’s Senior Executive Vice President & Chief
Financial Officer will replace Onsum as President & CEO; she will also
become a member of the Board of Directors. Ms. Walker joined First
Northern Bank in 1979 and has been a member of Senior Management since
1989. During her career, she has held a variety of positions which
included head of Operations and Data Processing and the oversight of
Human Resources, Risk Management, Compliance, Accounting and Finance.
“Her experience, energy, intellectual capacity, and steadiness make her
the perfect choice as my successor,” says John Onsum. “I have every
confidence in Louise’s capability to lead First Northern Community
Bancorp through the remainder of the current economic cycle and well
into the Company’s next couple of decades.”
Walker graduated from Dixon High School and has a Bachelor of Arts
degree in Management from Saint Mary’s College of California. She is
vice chairman of the California Bankers Association’s State Government
Relations Committee; she is a past member of Western Independent Bankers
Service Corporation Board; she’s a founding board member and treasurer
of the Dixon Community Education Foundation and is a member and past
president of Soroptimist International of Dixon, where she’s served on
the Education Committee, chaired the Ways & Means Committee, and has
also held the position of treasurer. Walker is a member of the Dixon
Community Church and has served on several local sports education
boards. She is married to Stan Walker and has two children, a son who
attends CA Jacobs Intermediate School and another son who attends UC
Davis.
“We’re fortunate to have the management continuity, financial expertise,
market knowledge and strategic judgment we have in Louise,” stated
Gregory DuPratt, Chairman of the Board. “We expect this transition to be
a very smooth one for everyone concerned. John will continue his
leadership at the Board level and Louise will move into a higher profile
position and continue to move the Bank forward.”
“I’m excited about the future of First Northern Bank,” says Walker. “Our
first priority is to emerge from the recessionary impacts as an even
stronger financial competitor. We have been working diligently to gear
up for the better days ahead and have been streamlining processes,
reducing expenses, realigning staff for growth, and staying current with
our product offerings and technology. The Senior Management Team has
real bench strength with over 213 combined years in banking and 137
years at First Northern Bank, which gives the Bank a real competitive
advantage from a knowledge and financial-savvy perspective. And, it goes
without saying, I am very fortunate to have had John Onsum as a mentor
all these years; his guidance and leadership style have been invaluable
to my professional growth.”
First Northern Bank marked its 100th year in business on
February 1, 2010. Festivities have been ongoing throughout the year to
commemorate and celebrate First Northern’s history as one of the
Sacramento region’s oldest, most trusted community banks.
About First Northern Bank
First Northern Bank, an independent community bank headquartered in
Solano County since 1910, serves Solano, Yolo, Sacramento, Placer and
the west slope of El Dorado County. First Northern has 11 branches
located in Dixon, Davis, West Sacramento, Fairfield, Vacaville (2),
Winters, Woodland, Downtown Sacramento, Roseville, and Auburn, and has a
full service Trust Department in Sacramento. First Northern Bank also
offers 24/7 real estate mortgage loans, SBA loans, and non-FDIC insured
Investment and Brokerage Services at each branch location. Real Estate
Mortgage Loan offices are located in Davis, Roseville and Folsom, and
real estate loan representatives are available to meet customers at any
of the Bank’s branches by appointment. The Bank specializes in
relationship banking and employs experts in the area of small business,
commercial, agribusiness, and real estate lending, as well as wealth
management. February 1, 2010, marked First Northern Bank’s centennial
milestone, its first 100 years of serving the community. The Bank can be
found on the Web at www.thatsmybank.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release may include certain "forward-looking statements"
about First Northern Community Bancorp (the "Company"). These
forward-looking statements are based on management's current
expectations and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and changes
in circumstances. Actual results may differ materially from these
expectations due to changes in global political, economic, business,
competitive, market and regulatory factors. More detailed information
about these risk factors is contained in the Company's most recent
reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Forms 10-K,
10-Q and 8-K, each as it may be amended from time to time, which
identify important risk factors that could cause actual results to
differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking
statements. The financial information contained in this release should
be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and
notes thereto included in the Company's most recent reports on Form 10-K
and Form 10-Q. The Company undertakes no obligation to update these
forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances arising
after the date on which they are made. For further information regarding
the Company, please read the Company's reports filed with the SEC and
available at www.sec.gov.
Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available: http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/mmg.cgi?eid=6507835&lang=en
Source: First Northern Community Bancorp
Contact:
First Northern Community Bancorp
Gregory DuPratt, 707-678-3041
Chairman
of the Board