12 Hoosier Banker January 2015 Continued from page 11. of young men. With two sons, one 22, who is an Eagle Scout, and our 17-year-old, who is close to achieving Eagle rank, I recognize the importance of reaching out to our youth. “The scouting organization teaches life skills, leadership, community responsibility and ethics. Earning the rank of Eagle Scout is one of the few things you can do as a teenager, and still have it on your resume when you are 50 years old. It is a notable achievement. “2015 marks my 12th year in a leadership positions with the Scouts. I started as a den leader with the Cub Scouts, moved to troop leader for five years, and am serving as our council’s chairman this year.” What advice would you give to novice bankers? “Most importantly, continue your education every day by reading anything and everything in regards to banking and finance and the economy. “I’m a huge reader, so much that sometimes I’ll be in the middle of two books at once. I read The New York Times online every day and grab the local paper every morning. I also subscribe to a stack of financial magazines and, when I am traveling on business, I’ll read for hours on the airplane or in the hotel room. “Secondly, take advantage of any opportunity to enhance your credentials. National City recommended its officers obtain Series 66 and Series 7 licenses. Instead of moaning and complaining about going to class and taking tests, I knew that even if I never sold a single stock, or never became a broker, I was broadening my financial knowledge.” Please share a bit about your home life. “My wife Debbie and I will be married 30 years soon … We jokingly say she’s a recovering banker. Debbie and I met in the training program at First National. We went to the president of the bank, Leonard Hardin, to ask permission to get married. He still claims to this day that I owe him a finder’s fee. “Debbie worked in the national division, covering Georgia, Florida and Tennessee, as well as the West Coast. She traveled a lot – this was before kids – and retired from the bank as a senior vice president, metro lender in the Louisville market. Retired for less than a day, Debbie joined the Travel Authority and managed its retail group. Fifty offices as well as 100 independent contractors reported to her. “We have three children. Our 22-year-old son is studying at the University of Kentucky. He is considering different options for the future, possibly in banking. “Our 20-year old daughter is premed at Vanderbilt University. She was recently a finalist in the Miss Tennessee pageant. Last summer she worked in Cambridge, England, for a summer high school program. “And our youngest is our 17-yearold son. He plays baseball for his high school. He’s working on completing requirements to become an Eagle Scout by the deadline age of 18.” Dave Heeter (left), MutualBank, Muncie, and 2014 IBA chairman, passes along the chairman’s gavel to Larry Myers at last fall’s IBA Annual Convention. What are some of your travel experiences? “Through the years we’ve had the good fortune to travel to China, Hong Kong, Egypt, throughout Europe, and Central America and on a photo safari in South Africa. “One of our favorite travels was a family trip to the beaches of Normandy, France. I had been there several times before, but our children hadn’t, so we hired a local driver and guide. “Our oldest son was then 18 years old, and I explained to our kids that the men who had fought and died on the beach were young guys, his age. It put the situation into perspective. “My daughter was a little upset to see people running and playing on the beach, where so many had given up their lives in battle. I told her, ‘That’s what they were fighting for, so that you and I and other people could come here in peace and enjoy it.’ “Visiting Normandy really made an impression on our family. It was a sobering moment to be at the American Cemetery above Omaha Beach at the end of the day, for the playing of taps. There wasn’t a dry eye in the place.” t Larry W. Myers, president and chief executive officer of First Savings Bank, Clarksville, and 2015 chairman of the Indiana Bankers Association, explains why he has set a goal of having 80 participants at this year’s IBA Annual Washington Trip, set for Sept. 27-29. To view, go to Hoosier Banker Digital indianabankers.org, and click on the red arrow. IBA Annual Washington Trip Video Bonus:
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