Jacobs celebrates 40 years of serving the banking industry

On Jan. 19, 2010, life-long Owego resident Barb (Hinchcliffe) Jacobs achieved something that is rare these days - she celebrated 40 years of serving the banking industry at one location.

This 40 year journey, which began for Barb in 1970, took her through years of automation within the industry and all the changes within the community, as well as the way that individuals do their banking.

Working at the M&T Branch in Owego, which in early years served as First City National until it eventually became M&T, Barb recalled the way things were when she first started as a Proof Operator - utilizing a machine to read magnetic coding.

Born and raised in Owego, Barb started out at the old Newberry's on the corner of Lake and Main Street in Owego and was working in the record department. At that time, according to Barb, popular records selling were the Beatles, Simon & Garfunkel the Monkees, Herman's Hermits, and other various artists that were popular during the 1960's.

But in 1970, Barb made a shift in her career to M&T Bank. At that time, the bank was known as First City National, and was located directly on the corner at their current location on Front and Lake Streets in Owego.

When the old building was torn down, the bank built a new building that set further back from the corner, and now serves as their current M&T Bank location. At that time, Barb noted some of the largest employers in the area being IBM, Endicott Johnson's, Stackmore, and the former Foundry.

Payday for IBM at that time, according to Barb, was on Mondays. Because there were no ATM's at that time or direct deposits, people would arrive in droves to cash their paychecks.

"We would have to control the lines of people that extended out into the street," said Barb.

But when direct deposits began, automation wasn't advanced and Barb would have to pick up the sheets and manually input the information. "It would take hours," Barb added.

And automation was the biggest change that Barb noted in the banking industry, as well as the services provided. Changes noted were the transition to on-line banking, the technology of ATM Machines that arrived in the 1980's, and the rates.

According to Barb, regular savings rates used to be anywhere between seven and nine percent. Rick Annunziata, M&T's Owego Branch president, noted that mortgage rates in the 1980's were averaging 18 percent. CD Rates, according to Rick, were approximately 20 percent.

The other change noted in banking with the onset of advanced technology is the processing of transactions. "Checks clear in a day now," said Rick. "People that used to "Kite" can't "Kite" anymore.

But for Barb, and her longevity of employment within the same business, relationship building has been a primary focus. "Their not only our customers," said Barb, "their our friends."

Donna Buchta, who has been with M&T Bank in Owego for 25 years, has worked side-by-side with Barb for the duration of her employment. "It's a rarity to see someone stay with the same company for this long," said Donna. "We've not only been co-workers," Donna added, "but we've become friends too."

And this friendship and camaraderie among those working at M&T was evident on Jan. 22 when Barb's 40th Anniversary was celebrated. Inviting customers and former bank affiliates to join in the celebration, a time-line was displayed that depicted a humorous yet serious journey through the sometimes volatile banking industry.

The timeline depicted some of Barb's personal experiences, like bungee jumping, as well as the fluctuation of bank rates throughout the years.

But for Barb, the changes and experiences along her journey came easily, and have been fulfilling. As Donna described best, the anniversary celebration held Jan. 22 was a tribute to Barb, and to her loyalty. "She's invaluable," said Donna. "She's always willing to change."

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