Scott Wehrli pioneers a new generation of banking
Scott Wehrli’s family was among the pioneers of Naperville. So that initiative was in his blood when he decided to be among the first investors to establish the First Community Bank — Naperville in 2008.
Since the bank has outgrown its current space on Naperville’s south side, Wehrli and other bank officials have secured a new site that doubles the size of First Community. It will be in a renovated storefront in the Naperville Plaza, which was actually home to the Washington Bank & Trust in the 1970s founded by another generation of investors that included Scott’s father, Dick Wehrli. Both Wehrlis invested their own money so those funds could be loaned to local businesses to spark growth in the community.
“Just when you think you know a lot about the business of banking, the industry changes that and opens your eyes on how to help people,” Scott Wehrli said.
The Naperville bank opened just as the recession hit. But they held on tight, watched transactions closely and scrutinized the balance sheets of businesses seeking loans.
“Those were interesting times, since we didn’t expect the recession when we started it,” Wehrli said. “But we were growing by gaining business from banks that were going out of business or treating their customers in such a way that drove them to us.”
While the FDIC-insured bank, a branch of the First Community Bank of Joliet, will expand, it also will upgrade its retail space and add a drive-through lane around the building.
In the meantime, Wehrli will continue on the advisory committee that is guiding the bank to the future. This work is in addition to his full-time job as secretary-treasurer for Naperville-based DuKane PreCast Inc., a company owned by his father.
“The interesting thing about what I do is I’ve always been involved with the family business and with the community,” Wehrli said. “It’s been a balancing act.”
<h3 class="briefHead">Powerful woman in tech</h3>
Elmhurst resident Carole McCluskey, corporate technology leader at Oakbrook Terrace-based Redbox, won the CityLights’ Prominent Woman in Tech award from the Illinois Technology Association. McCluskey oversees all technical strategy and execution for Redbox and its parent company, Coinstar Inc.
<h3 class="briefHead">Global leader in Lisle</h3>
Arlington Heights resident Dave Haataja is the new executive director at Lisle-based Water Quality Association. His 30 years of experience includes four years in Washington D.C. working the Department of Commerce and the U.S. Trade Representative office. He’s also lived in Argentina and Brazil.
<h3 class="briefHead">Helping the poor worldwide </h3>
Jay A. Wittmeyer, executive director for Global Mission and Service for the Church of the Brethren in Elgin, has been appointed as the church’s representative to the board of directors of Heifer International. Heifer helps poor families feed themselves with gifts of livestock and training. The Elgin resident has traveled to work with the poor in Nigeria, South Sudan, North Korea, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and Haiti. Wittmeyer also has worked with the people of Nepal and Bangladesh through the Mennonite Central Committee.
<h3 class="briefHead">FastTrack</h3>
Buffalo Grove resident Christopher Kearney was promoted to managing partner of the Central Region at the professional services firm Tatum, in Chicago. Kearney will continue his volunteer roles with the Capital One Bowl’s Team Selection Committee and as the National Football Foundation & College Football Hall of Fame’s board president of the Chicago Metro Chapter.
Cary Wood, CEO of Sparton Corp. in Schaumburg, will be heading to Santa Monica, Calif., on Wednesday, May 23, to present at the B. Riley & Co. 13th Annual Investor Conference at the Loews Santa Monica Beach Hotel.
Wauconda’s Director of Village Operations, David Lawry, will be honored in Anaheim, Calif., in August during an awards ceremony for being named to the National Top Ten Public Works Leaders of the Year by the American Public Works Association. Lawry also will be given the award in a local presentation at an informal reception at the Concord Banquet Hall in Lake Zurich at noon on Tuesday, May 29, by APWA President Diane Linderman.
Lake Zurich resident Asma Farhin has joined Trustmark Companies in Lake Forest as vice president and chief information officer for the employer medical and support areas. In this newly created position, Farhin will be responsible for relationship management, service delivery, and strategic and operational planning.
Patrick Sacor, CEO and chairman of ICT Holdings Inc., said his company has renovated the former Chicago Select Trucking building in Glendale Heights into a state-of-the-art hub for all of ICT’s freight transportation-related companies, including ICT Logistics, ICT Leasing and Truck Sales, ICT Services and Repair Center, ICT Transport and ICT Real Estate.
Downers Grove resident Brian Lapinski has joined The Premier Wealth Group in Downers Grove as a financial services representative. ... Westmont resident Margaret M. Donnell has joined Oak Brook law firm DeBlasio Law Group as an equity member. She previously practiced law at the Chicago law firm of Vanek, Vickers & Masini P.C. ... Eric C. Dean, Jerome S. Hanner and Cara Richardson have been appointed corporate vice presidents at Itasca-based Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. The company is an international insurance brokerage and risk management services firm. ... Store manager Cathleen Hayes said longtime family-owned Zengeler Cleaners marks the first-anniversary of its store in Long Grove.
Burr Ridge resident Scott Magnesen, a managing director and financial adviser at Morgan Stanley Smith Barney in Oak Brook has been named to Barron’s annual list of America’s Top 100 Financial Advisors. ... Tom Castagnoli, general manager of The Promenade Bolingbrook, said he’s welcoming Things Remembered on May 25 and Pandora on June 15 into the shopping mall.
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