Hoosier Banker 15 Hoosier Banker recently had the opportunity to interview Joe DeHaven about his career and industry insights. How did your banking career develop? “It began when I was a junior at Ball State University. I was a member of Delta Sigma Pi professional business fraternity, and we took a field trip to the data processing center of Merchants National Bank of Muncie. We arrived, and I noticed that the person in the computer room was the guy who sat next to me in my law class. “He saw me, unlocked the door and said, ‘Come on in, and we’ll talk.’ So instead of paying attention to the tour, I went into the computer room. He asked if I was looking for a job, because two people had turned in their notice that day. I said I had never seen a computer, let alone operated one. He said, ‘I can teach you everything you need to know in two weeks.’ “The next Monday I started working there. That was Feb. 20, 1970, and I was there for a year-and-a-half or so until I graduated. Then I was offered the opportunity to go on to the bank’s management training program. I was exposed to a number of different areas of the bank, and wound up in lending. “My real first opportunity was in the consumer lending area, which I joined when I was 24. By the time I was 28, I was assistant manager, and then later I wound up in the trust department. I ended up going to a lot of different areas, learning about various aspects of the bank. S. Joe DeHaven (center), then with the Community Bankers Association of Indiana, meets with William H. King (left), Indiana Bankers Association, and James H. Cousins, Indiana League of Savings Institutions, in 1999. By 2006, all three organizations had merged into the YRMƤIH -&%
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