Banking legends start new chapters in life

Old bankers never die; they just lose interest. Or so goes the old joke.

In the case of several Northern Colorado banking legends, it’s not necessarily about losing interest in banking as much as it is about gaining interest in other life pursuits. Since the start of the year, four longtime bankers in the region have retired from or begun taking a less active role in their respective institutions.

Don Churchwell is looking forward to, what else, more time on the golf course now that he has decided to step aside as president and CEO at Home State Bank after more than five years in the position. But Churchwell isn’t quite ready to trade in his wingtips for golf shoes yet.

While he is relinquishing his role as president to current executive vice president Harry Devereaux, Churchwell plans to continue with the bank in a business development role. The position will allow him to cut back on his hours while at the same time doing one of the jobs he likes the most – meeting with current and prospective customers.

Churchwell said he started thinking in earnest about stepping down from his leadership role after the death of a good friend who was around 62 – younger than he is now.

“I realized you’ve got to stop and smell the roses,” he explained.

But Churchwell has never been good at not working. He retired in 1995 after Affiliated National Bank, where was president and CEO, was purchased by Bank One. He actually stayed on with Bank One for several years before deciding to retire.

Retirement didn’t last long. He was asked to assist temporarily at the Loveland Economic Development Council, which he had helped found in 1988, and completed four years of “temporary work” in 1999. Then he retired, again.

Not long after his second retirement, he was approached by officials at Home State Bank in search of consulting help. By 2002, the bank named him CEO.

He admits that he isn’t any good at retiring, but this isn’t a retirement – just a new, less time-consuming career.

Starting new chapter

Ron Schneider is also beginning a new chapter of his life. Like Churchwell, Schneider has been a part of the Northern Colorado banking community for decades. He came to the area in 1970.

He’s only worked at three different locations – two in Loveland and one in Fort Collins – but under seven different bank names. Unlike Churchwell, Schneider has decided to fully embrace retirement. It’s only been about 60 days since Schneider officially stopped serving as regional president for Chase Bank in Loveland, but he’s already taking advantage of his free time.

He recently returned from a cross-country motorcycle trip to Daytona Beach, Fla. on his Harley-Davidson. He went with a couple of other motorcycling buddies, and they only made reservations for the three days they would be in Daytona Beach. Other than that, he said with a smile, there was no schedule to live by.

He’s also been enjoying morning yoga sessions and plans to take a fishing trip in the near future – all pursuits that Schneider engaged in before retirement. The main difference, he explained, is that now he is enjoying his hobbies rather than compressing them.

Schneider’s contributions to the region are still being felt today. He was the chairman of the Loveland Economic Development Council when it merged with its Fort Collins counterpart to form the Northern Colorado Economic Development Corp.

“I guess I’m a regional-type thinker,” Schneider said. He also helped to regionalize the Fort Collins and Loveland affordable housing efforts into a single unit – Funding Partners. He still serves that organization as trustee and sits on the loan committee.

Schneider said he plans to stay involved with a number of community organizations. For now, his professional career is a closed chapter in his life; however, he doesn’t discount that he might pull a Churchwell and reenter the business world.

“You never say never,” he said.

Stepping off

Some bankers were able to step away from banking a while ago, but remained active through the boards of directors. But even that involvement must end sometime. Both Larry Menefee and Tom Gleason stepped off their banks’ boards since the start of the year.

Menefee founded Union Colony Bank in Greeley in 1979. He remained on the board after the parent company for Nebraska-based First National Bank of Omaha purchased Union Colony in the early 1990s.

Gleason, who is a 2006 inductee in the Colorado Business Hall of Fame, joined Fort Collins-based First National Bank in 1956 in the consumer loan department. At the time, the bank held about $7 million in assets.

Gleason worked his way through management levels until he was named president in 1965. Two years later, the bank board gave Gleason the additional role of CEO and chairman.

Gleason saw the bank through many transitions and turned down numerous offers and requests to lead banks in other markets. He finally retired as president and CEO of First National when it, too, was purchased by First National of Omaha in 1994. He remained as chairman of the board through 1998 when he opted for a less involved role as senior chairman.

Neither Gleason nor Menefee could be reached for comment in time for publication of this story. Larry Wood, president of Union Colony Bank, worked with both men for a relatively long time – Gleason for 17 years and for Menefee for five – and feels lucky to have both as mentors.

“I think the sad part is that we’re losing an awful lot of history,” he said. “And with them, we lose some tradition.”

Mark Driscoll, president of First National Bank, echoed Wood’s sentiment.

“Tom was clearly the most influential banker in Northern Colorado for more than 40 years,” he said.

But there is comfort in the fact that both men had an effect on so many bankers in the region.

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