Joe Kessie

WARSAW — Lake City Bank is pleased to announce that Joe Kessie, Senior Vice President and Regional Manager of Commercial Banking, was recently elected chairman of the American Bankers Association’s Agricultural and Rural Bankers Committee, which works to advance American agriculture and the economic growth of rural America.

“The banking community plays a vital role in the U.S. agricultural economy, and Joe has long been an excellent advocate for rural and agricultural bankers,” said David M. Findlay, President and Chief Executive Officer. “Joe’s deep experience working with the agriculture industry makes him a perfect choice to lead this national committee.”

Kessie has 33 years of banking experience, including the last 19 years at Lake City Bank. He has a bachelor’s degree from Purdue University and a master’s degree in business administration from Indiana Wesleyan University. He is also a graduate of the Graduate School of Banking at Colorado.

Kessie is a past recipient of the Outstanding Agri-Banker Award for the state of Indiana and Lake City Bank’s Presidential Citation Award.  He is past chairman and currently serves as treasurer for the Whitley County Economic Development Corporation.  Kessie is president of the Huntington University Agriculture Advisory Council. He is a director of Parkview Whitley Hospital and the Indiana Grain Indemnity Corporation and is a member of the executive committee of the Farm Financial Standards Council.

Established in 1913, the committee is made up of 14 agricultural and rural bankers from across the country. Committee members volunteer their time to provide guidance and recommendations to ABA. The committee meets in person three times per year. Kessie will chair the committee during its 2016-17 year. Kessie succeeds outgoing chairman Michael R. Hein, who is a vice president at Liberty Trust & Savings Bank in Durant, Iowa.

Lake City Bank, a $4 billion bank headquartered in Warsaw, Indiana, is the fifth largest bank in the state, and the largest bank 100% invested in Indiana. Lake City Bank operates 48 branch offices in northern and central Indiana, delivering technology-driven solutions in a client-centric way to individuals and businesses. The bank is the single bank subsidiary of Lakeland Financial Corporation (Nasdaq Global Select/LKFN). For more information visit lakecitybank.com.