Quarterly News
APRIL | 2011
& I N F O R M AT I O N
Galena State Bank proudly adds GenGold®
to personal banking services
You and your family will save like never before with GenGold,® a benefits-packed program that offers
real savings on products and services you use every day. Dream vacations become reality, grocery bills
go down, prescriptions become affordable, even telephone calls are discounted.
Available to all GSB personal checking account customers for a low monthly fee of $5.50, GenGold®
provides discounts of up to 70 percent from over 400 participating local and national merchants.
“Our mission is to help each and every customer live better for less by delivering extraordinary value,”
said President and CEO Drew Townsend. “We are always looking for ways to add value to the financial
tools our customers already have.”
90 DAYS FREE!
Call us today at 815.777.0663 or go to www.gengold.com to learn more and start saving today!
GenGold® offers more than 60
benefits and services including:
SAVE ON FAMILY FUN
• Movie ticket discounts
• Blockbuster discounts
• Dinner and a movie
ENJOY NATIONAL RETAIL
AND INTERNET DISCOUNTS
• Discounts and savings at
major retailers, including the Gap, Old Navy, Macy’s,
Jos. A. Bank and more!
EXPLORE FULL-SERVICE
TRAVEL BENEFITS
• Savings on air travel
• Cruise discounts
• Group and tour events
• Vacation specials
• Discounts on theme parks,
major attractions and ski- lift tickets
BUY FOOD FOR LESS
• Sam’s Club® discount
• Save up to $1,000 annually on grocery bills
• Easy on-line enrollment and
access to coupon inventory
• National restaurant discounts
• No clipping coupons or
searching through the paper Galena State Bank has selected GenGold®, Inc., a fully independent third-party service provider, to provide travel and other discounted services on an exclusive basis directly to GenGold® members. Galena State Bank assumes no liability for any of the providers in fulfilling
their services. All liabilities, claims, damages and demands are the direct responsibility of GenGold®, Inc., the benefit provider. Discounts received through GenGold® may not be used in conjunction with any other financial institution discounts. Not all services are available
in all areas. Benefits and services are subject to change without notice. Call 1-800-428-6686 for complete program restrictions and details.
Historic par
Minnie Whitham didn’t know she was
making history; she thought she was
preserving it. Actually, she was doing both.
Whitham was a founder of the Galena Historical Society in 1938, along
with other preservation-minded folks with notable Galena names like Heer,
Hobbs, Sheehan, Westwick and Weber.
Although Galena State Bank was not in business in 1938, it has been a solid
contributor to the communities it has served since it was founded in 1967.
Recognizing the importance of history to Galena, GSB has been a strong
supporter of the historical society in many ways.
In addition to being a lifetime member, the bank has contributed to
capital projects like a new roof and a lead-mine exhibit. Since 1985
it has been the exclusive sponsor of the Winter Program Series, four
educational presentations of historical interest held during the
months of January through April.
PAGE 2 / 3 815.777.0663
tnership
In 2009, GSB contributed to the hiring of a professional firm to
create a master business plan for the historical society museum,
an investment which strengthened the society’s organization
and solidified its vision.
Last year, GSB provided financial support to the society’s Pass
It On Sustainability Campaign. The donation supports the
Historical Research Center, a public-access software which
details the society’s artifacts by description and photo.
GSB also shows its backing of the historical society by providing
a meeting space for the society’s monthly board meeting, as
the current museum location is lacking in meeting space and
parking. At times, GSB employees have served on the society
board, until recently holding the vital position of treasurer for
about a decade.
Recently, GSB entered into a lease agreement with the historical
society to create a “Gateway to History” in the bank’s former
drive-thru facility on Main Street.
“History is a major motivator for visitation and quality of
life in Galena and Jo Daviess County; however, we agree with
the society that it is underrepresented and undermarketed,”
commented Drew Townsend, GSB’s president and CEO. “The
vision the society presented for use of the space dovetails with
our desire to be a contributor to the prosperity of the market
we serve.”
The Gateway to History will function as a center for ticket
sales, a transportation hub, the museum gift shop and point
of distribution of information about the Galena Historical
Society museum and all area businesses that have a substantial
connection to history. It will open in May.
“Galena State Bank’s community involvement differentiates
it,” stated Society Executive Director Nancy Breed. “They play a
leading role in the success of our organization. We are grateful
for their ongoing support and investment in our future. It’s
partnerships like this that would make our founders proud.”
Fear of inflation
shouldn’t deflate your
interest in investing
Roughly $1.6 trillion has been injected into America’s financial
system since August 27, 2008, in response to the financial crisis
and recession in hopes of jump-starting the economy. Most of this
increase came via the Federal Reserve’s purchase of bonds in the
open market, popularly called QE1 and QE2.
“The natural reaction to seeing that much liquidity pumped into
the economy is to expect a rapid escalation in prices,” said Andrew
Douglas, CFA, senior vice president and chief investment officer for
Wealth Management Group. “But while there are some countries
experiencing a jump in inflation rates, such as China and Brazil,
inflation in the United States is quite low at 1.5 percent
and will stay that way for the next 12 to 18 months.”
The biggest reason: nine percent. This is the
unemployment rate and represents almost 14
million people looking for jobs. Wage pressures
are minimal, and it will take two to three years
for the economy to absorb these unemployed
individuals. Only when the economy has grown
enough to sop up the excesses will that $1.6 trillion
become a serious issue. Even then, there is no
guarantee that inflation will rise significantly.
It ultimately depends upon how the Federal Reserve
extracts the excess money from the economy.
Why is inflation important? Generally, higher inflation
or the expectation of higher inflation often leads to
higher interest rates (lower bond values) and weaker
stock prices. When consumers expect things to cost
more in the future, they often put less “value” on their
financial assets and the prices of those assets fall.
“We can expect slight increases in inflation rates in the
near future, towards two percent, but for now at least…
inflation should not be a serious issue for the American
economy,” Douglas said.
The Wealth Management Group manages more than
$2 billion in assets through several subsidiaries of Heartland
Financial USA, Inc., parent company of Galena State Bank.
For more information, visit www.wmgplanonit.com or call
815.777.0663 or toll-free 800.442.5362.
• NOT FDIC INSURED • MAY LOSE VALUE • NO BANK GUARANTEE • NOT A DEPOSIT • NOT INSURED BY ANY FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AGENCY.
No matter where you are in life…
Investing is a lifelong process, and the sooner you start, the
better off you may be in the long run. The first part of that
process is developing consistent saving habits. Regardless
of whether you are saving for retirement, a new house, a
child’s college education or that once-in-a-lifetime vacation,
you will need a dedicated focus on saving.
Syd Sincock
815.777.5123
Bret Johnson
815.777.5115
Factors that affect your investment decisions
Once you begin saving on a regular basis, you’ll need
to start making important decisions about how to invest
your money. No matter where you are in life you will
need to consider what your investment objectives are,
how long you have to pursue each objective and how
comfortable you are with risk.
A disciplined strategy and your financial
consultant can help
One of the most difficult things about investing is
to discipline yourself to save an appropriate portion
of your income regularly so that you can meet your
investment goals. Contact one of the Financial
Consultants with HTLF Investment Services
today to help you achieve your financial goals
no matter where you are in life.
SECURITIES OFFERED THROUGH LPL FINANCIAL, MEMBER FINRA/SIPC. INSURANCE PRODUCTS OFFERED THROUGH LPL FINANCIAL OR ITS LICENSED AFFILIATES.
• NOT FDIC INSURED • NO BANK GUARANTEE • MAY LOSE VALUE • NOT A DEPOSIT • NOT INSURED BY ANY FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AGENCY.
Member FDIC
(11/04) MC41674
Check out our website at: www.GalenaState.com.
With an interest to conserve natural resources, we have
attempted to mail only one newsletter to each household.
Please share your copy with other family members!
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