Citizens Financial Services : Youth Realize Dreams Through Educational Funding from First Citizens Community Bank

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Kathleen Campbell, CFMP, SVP, Director of Marketing

First Citizens Community Bank, 15 South Main Street, Mansfield, PA 16933 [phone]

Youth Realize Dreams Through Educational Funding from First Citizens Community Bank

MANSFIELD, PA (December 2019) - When our children are given access to a quality education, their minds expand and potentials develop. With more information at their fingertips, children develop decision making and critical thinking skills, interpersonal skills, character and confidence. Yes, education can change the future. That sentiment is nothing new to First Citizens Community Bank, who recently kicked off this season of giving with their annual donations to education-based programs in our communities. This year, the Bank reinvested $325,000 in more than forty programs across the state.

A large portion of funding was given to BLaST Intermediate Unit 17, an educational service agency that assists school districts in Bradford, Lycoming, Sullivan, and Tioga Counties. The $125,000 donation will be distributed amongst twelve local school districts, with a portion going to support the Everfi Online Financial Program, which First Citizens has sponsored for nearly ten years.

As the second largest Ag lender headquartered in the state of Pennsylvania, First Citizens allocates funds each year to support the growth of Agriculture. They donated $15,000 to the PA Friends of Agriculture Foundation and $10,000 to the Center for Dairy Excellence. The donation to the PA Friends of Agriculture Foundation will aid in the operation of a mobile agriculture education science lab, complete with supplies and a certified teacher. The lab travels to a different elementary or middle school in Pennsylvania each week, and is designed to target grades K through 8. Similarly, the Center for Diary Excellence programming gives students an inside look at the dairy industry, with engaging classroom-based activities for elementary schoolers, and specialized dairy business classes for high schoolers. These foundations help students of all ages discover the world of farming.

"Paying it forward has always been important to First Citizens," said Randall E. Black, CEO and President. "Our communities and the people who live in them are key to our success, so giving back is simply the right thing to do. These education-based programs stimulate the minds of children, which fosters a love of learning. What could be better?"

Other organizations on the receiving end of the donations included: Tioga County Foundation, Bloomsburg University Foundation, Donegal School District Education Foundation, River Valley Regional YMCA, Kennett Education Foundation, Stroud Water Research Center, Archie's Place, Dutchman Foundation, Eastern Lebanon County Education Foundation, First Community Foundation Partnership of Pennsylvania, Gretna Productions, Inc., Hempfield Foundation, Northern Lebanon Education Foundation, Pennsylvania College of Technology, Rainbow's End Youth Services, Spanish American Civic Association, Cedar Foundation, Endless Mountain Music Festival, Inc., State College Area School District Education Foundation, Manheim Central Foundation, Penns Valley Education Foundation, Inc., Sexual Assault Resource Center of Lebanon and Schuylkill Counties, Bethany's Children's Home, Big Impact Group, Cocalico Education Foundation, Columbia Education Foundation, Compass Mark, Inc., Elizabeth Town Public Library and Education Foundation, Ephrata Public Library and Education Foundation, Falcon Foundation, Keystone Central Foundation, Lancaster Education

Foundation, Lancaster Science Factory, Northeast PA Manufactures and Employers Council, Inc., Palmyra Public Library, Power Packs Project, Schuylkill Chamber Foundation, Inc., Spartan Foundation for Education, PA Breast Cancer Coalition, and Thaddeus Stevens Foundation.

First Citizens Community Bank is headquartered in Mansfield, Pennsylvania. They currently operate 28 offices throughout Tioga, Bradford, Potter, Clinton, Centre, Union, Lebanon, Lancaster, Schuylkill and Berks counties in Pennsylvania and Allegany County New York. They recently announced the acquisition of MidCoast Bank with offices located in Kent and New Castle counties in Delaware. For more information about First Citizens, visit www.firstcitizensbank.com, or find them on Facebook.

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