Arvest Bank, led by native Oklahoman Kevin Sabin, works to be a great steward to 135 communities across Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma through its corporate citizenship and giving.
It is best exemplified by their mission statement: People helping people find financial solutions for life.
In 2018, Arvest Bank and the Arvest Foundation reinvested $1,001,995 in community and economic development, $296,981 to the Arts, $491,092 to the United Way and $258,377 to healthcare initiatives.
They also focused heavily on investment in education, with $597,761 spent along with $55,750 through the We Love Teachers campaign. Total corporate giving including associate pledges and fund- raising proceeds in 2018 was $3,283,943.
But Arvest doesn’t just write checks - over 1700 Arvest employees volunteered 30,599 hours helping feed those that are food-insecure, working in local schools, supporting non-profits, and much more. Through their Million Meals annual initiative, Arvest employees and volunteers donated over 2 million meals in 2018, and a total of 13.6 million meals since the campaign was launched in 2011.
Arvest also helps support communities through small business and community development loans. In Oklahoma alone Arvest provided $35.4 million in funding for small businesses through 41 SBA loans. Regionally, they provided 55 community development loans through the Community Reinvestment Act totaling $297.7 million.
Suzanne Passmore, CEO of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Bryant (Arkansas) sums up the impact Arvest has on the local community; “We are grateful to the Arvest Foundation for providing their support ... the experiences these young men and women receive often provide long-lasting character traits such as teamwork, integrity, problem-solving and others that can benefit them a lifetime.”