Read below to learn more about the grass roots campaign that's sweeping the nation then check out how Oregon Community Banks give back.


It all started just before Christmas when a few friends were having dinner and wondering what personal actions they could take to help limit the power of the big banks and create a more sane, stable financial system. How, they wondered, could they help end the era of Too Big To Fail? The banker at the table recommended that everyone could move their money out of the Wall Street banks and into local community banks. Community banks are typically more conservative about how they manage their profits and bonus plans, they’re more closely connected to the people and businesses who live near them, and they’re more inclined to make loans they know will get paid back. In other words, they have the values that more people would want banks to have.

Three days later, the filmmaker made a short video. The editor wrote a commentary about the idea. And others started pulling various resources together.

Since that first dinner the idea has spread like wildfire. Thousands of people have pledged to move their money away from the casino-style Too Big To Fail banks and give their money to community banks. The media has picked up on the campaign and bloggers have added their two cents — most of them praising the effort, some critical. Read about what people are saying at Time, the Nation, Newsweek, Salon and all around the web.

Think back to your kid’s first softball team. Your local community bank was likely a sponsor and executives even attended or coached the games. There was no Wall Street CEO in attendance that afternoon. When the Mt. Hood Jazz Festival was still held at the college you can bet our neighborhood bank was always on hand. Building low income housing in Rockwood, volunteering at the food bank, dedicating the Gresham War Heroes Memorial – community banks are there.

When your business needed a loan to expand or you got frustrated from the service of an out of state call center, your community bank worked along side you – believing in you. Now, with so much industry turmoil, if you are depositing your dollars into out-of-state based banking behemoths, maybe a quick lesson in how community banking works can help you decide to Move-It to a local community bank.

1. You make a deposit at our community bank. All community banks are FDIC-Insured and your money is safe. Most community bankers make sure every deposit is fully insured. No matter how big or small your bank deposits, they should be fully insured by the FDIC. Nobody has EVER lost a penny of FDIC-Insured money. EVER.

2. Your deposit dollars are then used to lend to local borrowers. So, the guy down the street doing a home remodel or your neighbor next door who opened up a hardware store – your dollars helped fund that. If you chose to deposit money into a megabank there is a chance your dollars are being loaned to a borrower in California or even worse, invested into some hedge fund.

3. Profits made from loans are reinvested back into local employees, non-profits and city, county and state agencies. When dealing with your local community bank, the revenue is used to pay local bankers (your neighbors and friends that spend their money locally too), to donate to local non-profit organizations and events, and to pay local and state taxes which in turn goes to our schools, roads, fire departments and police officers. Community banks are not tax-exempt institutions – so every dollar earned is taxed to support local and state services. It is Oregonians helping Oregonians and that is a great recycling program.
You can effect change, by choosing to move your banking accounts to a community bank. Community Banks need each of you and your banking business so they can generate greater support for our communities. When your money is moved to community banks not only will you change the system but you’ll help our local banks to succeed in creating more local jobs, making more local loans and more reinvesting back into our local communities. Again, it is Oregonians helping Oregonians and that is a great idea. 

               


                    Since the big banks can afford all those
                    bonsuses they don't need your money...

                       It's time to
            MOVE-IT, MOVE-IT.