Jess Levin's father, Harold, used to say: "A bank is nothing but a retail store with a vault." That's the philosophy on which Harold Levin founded the Bank of Elmwood in 1960. It was a philosophy born of nearly 60 years of Levin family experience in Racine retail sales. And when Harold Levin died in 1974, son Jess, then 28, inherited a "retail store" whose vault contained $30 million in assets. The younger Levin minded the store well. The bank's assets have increased significantly over the years.

The Bank of Elmwood opened in December 1960 in temporary quarters on the corners of Lathrop Avenue and Pierce Boulevard (the present site of our main office). Over the years, our Main Office has expanded several times to accommodate the growth the Bank has experienced.

In 1975, a major addition was made to the Main Office and the Motor Bank was put into operation. It is located on the corners of Durand Avenue (Hwy 11) and Kentucky Street.

In 1986, we opened our Green Acre Office at the intersection of Green Bay Road (Hwy 31) and Northwestern Avenue (Hwy 38).

In 1988, the Main Office was completely remodeled and expanded to meet the continuing needs of our customers.

In 1991, our SuperBank opened in the Piggly Wiggly supermarket on Erie Street just south of the Erie Street and 3-Mile Road intersection.

On March 1, 1999, we opened a full-service facility in the downtown area of Kenosha.

In March, 2002, we opened our newest state-of-the-art facility at 5901 Washington Rd. in Kenosha, moving all of our downtown Kenosha operations.

As an independent bank, our mission is to provide:

• unsurpassed service to meet the needs of our customers,
• exemplary corporate leadership to the communities that we serve, and
• provide a positive motivational work environment for our employees,
• resulting in a sufficient return to our shareholders.

The philosophy of our founder, Harold Levin, that a bank should be convenient and friendly is reflected in our slogan - "Red Carpet Service." As we are in the "service" business, we expect our employees to provide cordial and efficient customer service at all times.

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