Sunflower Bank, N.A. recognizes the outstanding contributions of its employees and Community Affairs Office throughout 2023, marking another year of dedicated efforts towards fostering meaningful community impact. In its second year, the Community Affairs Office, led by regional community development officers, continued to play a pivotal role in advancing community volunteerism, investment, and community development lending across Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Texas, and Washington.

Danny Spears, senior vice president and CRA director at Sunflower Bank, expressed, “In 2023, the collaborative community engagement initiatives of Sunflower Bank, First National 1870, and Guardian Mortgage resulted in exciting accomplishments, spanning employee volunteerism, Community Reinvestment Act (CRA)-related programs, community lending and investments, charitable giving, community partnerships, and empowering bank products.”

Key points of community achievements in 2023 include:

Volunteerism: Sunflower Bank, N.A. employees devoted more than 7,200 hours to community service in 2023. This included notable volunteerism contributions to financial literacy programs, board service, local task forces, and other Community Reinvestment Act (CRA)-qualified service hours.

Community Lending and Investments: In 2023, Sunflower Bank, N.A. contributed over $86 million in community development lending and investments. These efforts led to new and expanded partnerships with organizations such as the Austin Housing Conservancy, Native Community Capital, Midwest Housing Equity Group, and Artists Helping the Homeless. $19.5 million of those contributions were invested into Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) throughout the Bank’s footprint.

Charitable Giving: Demonstrating a continued commitment to philanthropy, Sunflower Bank, N.A. exceeded $250,000 in charitable giving to organizations that serve low and moderate-income communities or small businesses in 2023, which included $80,000 to the winners of its new Community Partner Awards. Sunflower Bank, N.A. employees and community members decided winners of different awards ranging from $3,000 to $15,000 each.

Visit the Community Impact Stories pages of the Sunflower Bank and First National 1870 websites for articles highlighting notable examples of Sunflower Bank, N.A.’s volunteer and investment activities.

In 2024, Sunflower Bank, N.A. remains committed to building on the positive momentum of 2023, with a vision to continue to increase investments, lending initiatives, and community service across the diverse communities it serves.

About Sunflower Bank, N.A.

Operating as Sunflower Bank, First National 1870 and Guardian Mortgage, Sunflower Bank, N.A. provides financial solutions to the individual communities it serves. With $7.7 billion in assets as of September 30, 2023, headquarters in Dallas, TX, bank locations in five states, and mortgage capabilities in more than 40 states, Sunflower Bank, N.A. provides a full range of relationship-focused services to meet personal, business and wealth management financial objectives. Member FDIC. Equal Housing Lender. First National 1870 and Guardian Mortgage are divisions of Sunflower Bank, N.A. To learn more visit SunflowerBank.com, FirstNational1870.com or GuardianMortgageOnline.com.

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