Vermont Business MagazineStephen F Christy, President and CEO of Mascoma Savings Bank, has announced his plans to retire on January 1, 2017 after almost 27 years at the helm of the local institution he first joined as a teller in 1973. Headquartered in Lebanon, New Hampshire, Mascoma Savings Bank is a $1.4 billion mutually owned bank established in 1899 with 27 branch locations in western New Hampshire and eastern Vermont,and two loan production offices in Vermont.Christy has held the top post at Mascoma Savings Bank since February of 1990. He also serves on the executive committee and the board of directors, which will embark on a search for his successor with the assistance of Kaplan Partners of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
“In making my plans for retirement, I’m comfortable in knowing that the commitment Mascoma Savings Bank has made to its customers and to the communities it serves will not change,” Christy said. “These values are ingrained not only in our culture, but also in our basic foundation as a mutual bank. We’re here for our customers. It’s as simple as that, and I have every confidence that it will always remain that way.”
“Mascoma Savings Bank has experienced unprecedented growth and prosperity under Steve Christy’s leadership,” said Gretchen E. Cherington, Chair of the Board of Directors. “His dedication to our customers, his involvement in our communities, his genuine compassion for our employees, and his work on behalf of our industry are truly exemplary.
“The board and I are extremely proud of Steve’s accomplishments and his years of service to the Bank,” she added. “His name has become synonymous with Mascoma Savings Bank; it will be a challenge to replace him, but we are confident that his legacy will continue.”
Christy’s unwavering commitment to the community banking industry was recognized in 2014 with his selection as the Community Banker of the Year by the New Hampshire Bankers Association. The prestigious award honors individuals who go beyond the course of ordinary business to help improve the state through their civic and community engagement.
Born and raised in the South, Christy is a graduate of Northwestern State University in Louisiana, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in history. During his high school and college summers, he worked in New Hampshire on the Mt. Washington Cog Railway. Following his graduation from Northwestern State University, he moved permanently to the Granite State, joining Mascoma Savings Bank more than four decades ago.
Christy has held membership and leadership positions with numerous organizations in the community over the years. He is a past trustee of Mary Hitchcock Memorial Hospital, the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Clinic, and Alice Peck Day Memorial Hospital. He also chaired the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Alliance. He is a past president and secretary of the Rotary Club of Lebanon. He is a past president of the Lebanon Public Library Foundation. He has also served as a director and chairman of Vital Communities in White River Junction, VT. In addition, he was a trustee and treasurer of the Montshire Museum of Science in Norwich, VT; a director of the New Hampshire Aviation Historical Society; and is a former member of the Airport Advisory Committee for the City of Lebanon, NH.
Professionally he is a past director of the Vermont Bankers Association and a past director and chairman of the New Hampshire Bankers Association. He is also a former director of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Boston, where he chaired the audit committee. He is a former director of the American Bankers Association in Washington, D.C.;
Currently Christy is a director of the Daniel Webster Council of Boy Scouts of America in Manchester, NH; the New Hampshire Humanities Council, and the American Precision Museum in Windsor, VT. A private pilot, he makes his home in Lebanon, NH and plans to remain in the area, and active in the community, following his retirement.
LEBANON, NEW HAMPSHIRE, (January 7, 2016)