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Date: 4/26/2022
HOLYOKE – In a celebration of Earth Day, Peoples Bank continued their annual Garden Giveaways event where tomato plants, seeds and children’s gardening kits were available to the public free of charge.
At the Holyoke-Pedlar location for PeoplesBank, Senior Vice President of Marketing and Corporate Responsibility Matt Bannister spoke about PeoplesBank’s commitment to being environmentally friendly and giving back to the community in such a way as this event.
“We have corporate values, and one of our corporate values is green environment sustainability,” Bannister said.
He added that the bank makes efforts year-round to be environmentally friendly, including the incorporation of electric vehicle charging stations at their different banking centers. He also noted they have an environmental committee that works on finding the best options for the company to pursue in green energy.
This year also provided a learning opportunity for children, as gardening kits were offered for the first time. This offering was important for PeoplesBank to provide this year as it serves as an educational lesson and opportunity for children, according to Bannister.
“It’s a good way to get the kids started on understanding that food doesn’t come from the supermarket, food comes from a farm,” Bannister said. “In Western Mass., we’re a little bit more fortunate cause there’s a lot of farmland around here, but a lot of kids don’t realize tomatoes don’t come wrapped in saran wrap, tomatoes come from the ground, so here’s a chance for kids to participate and grow their own.”
Bannister added that PeoplesBank has prided themselves on being a leader in innovation, corporate responsibility, environmental sustainability and employee engagement and is actively working to be involved and a part of their communities. The company has also financed more than $118 million in wind, hydroelectric and solar energy projects.
Bannister also shared how PeoplesBank is a mutual bank and therefore responsible for their depositors, employees and community, making the decision to host an Earth Day related giveaway a no brainer.
“We are the largest mutual bank in the area, we take our profits and earnings and plow them back into the back and so we give a lot away to the community,” Bannister said. “We try and be charitable with cash grants to nonprofits but it’s also nice to do an event and have something tangible as well.”
The event also took place in banking centers in Amherst, Suffield and West Hartford, CT.