September/October 2014
Wisconsin Community Banker
17
Fitchburg. He is the longest serving
bank president in both Madison (Park
Bank) and now in Fitchburg (Oak
Bank).
In addition to his work with CBW
where he received the Outstanding
Community Banker of the Year award
in 1990 and served as the organiza-
tion’s chair, Gorsuch has been honored
with a Lifetime Achievement Award
in Philanthropy from the Association
of Fundraising Professionals. He was
also named 2004 Executive of the Year
by the Madison Sales and Marketing
Association.
In honor of his oldest grandson
who was diagnosed with Type 1 dia-
betes when he was eight years old,
Gorsuch has biked in the JDRF Ride
to Cure Diabetes over the past several
years.
Gorsuch has also been a 42-year
member of the Shriners International
and served as past chairman of the
board of the Zor Shriners.
●
Farmers & Merchants Bank of
Orfordville
Craig O’Leary
, executive vice
president, marks three decades with
the bank
this year.
He started
his career in
1984 with
the Farm-
ers Home
Administra-
tion after
graduating
with a degree in agriculture from the
University of Wisconsin-Madison.
O’Leary was next hired as a loan offi-
cer of the Farmers & Merchants Bank
where he specialized in ag loans. He
took on roles in various areas includ-
ing operations, investments, audit,
asset/liability management, bank
secrecy, and compliance. In 1994,
O’Leary was elected to the bank’s
board of directors and was appointed
executive vice president.
O’Leary is active in the Rock
County ag community serving as
secretary of the Footville-Orfordville
Chamber of Commerce, past presi-
dent of the Green County Bankers
group, as a board member of the
Community Bankers of Wisconsin,
and on the board of directors for the
Wisconsin Bankers Association sub-
sidiary, FIPCO.
Eric Christensen
, president and
chairman of the board, is also marking
30 years with
Farmers &
Merchants
Bank of
Orfordville.
Christensen
started with
the bank in
1984 after
completing
his bachelor’s degree in international
studies at the University of Wisconsin-
Platteville. He began in the customer
service area, moving into loans and
bank management. In 1994 he was
elected to the board of directors of
the family-owned bank. He currently
serves as board chairman. After the
unexpected death of his father, Clif-
ford Christensen, he was appointed
president in 2001. In addition to serv-
ing in these executive roles, Chris-
tensen is active with all areas of the
bank including lending, security, IT,
and personnel.
Customers have come to trust
Christensen’s travel advice due to his
extensive travel experiences in North
America and Europe. He has fur-
thered his education at various bank
trade organization schools, as well as
the Graduate School of Banking at the
University of Wisconsin-Madison.
●
Bank of Brodhead
This year, the bank is recognizing
two retired employees who dedicated
30 and 40 years to the bank.
Debbie Malcook
, former human
resource manager, served customers
for 30 years
before retir-
ing in Feb-
ruary 2014.
She began as
a part-time
teller/secre-
tary in 1984
becoming
full-time in
1985. During her career, she served
in several areas of the bank and
became a loan officer in 1994. She was
promoted in 1999 to assistant vice
president-consumer lending. In 2003,
Malcook earned another promotion
and became an executive officer and
human resources manager while con-
tinuing to see customers and make
loans.
Malcook remains an active member
of the Bethlehem Lutheran Church
in Brodhead. She participates in the
bank’s Relay for Life team; even join-
ing the team this year after retiring.
She has also participated in many
community events including the
Chamber of Commerce’s AutumnFest
and Covered Bridge Days.
Janice Schneider
, former head
teller/supervisor, retired in 2013 after
over 40 years
of service.
She served
as a teller
before tak-
ing the posi-
tion of head
teller/teller
supervisor.
Schnei-
der knew her customers by name
and always had a smile on her face.
Enthusiastic about her work, she
was an excellent supervisor in her
department.
Schneider’s work with the bank did
not end at 4:00 p.m. Many times she
could be found attending to an out-
of-service ATM on the weekend. Dur-
ing her years at the bank, Schneider
participated in countless parades and
served as the bingo caller for senior
citizen bingo games. She was also on
the Relay for Life team and was active
in all fund-raising events. She sews,
quilts, and even embroiders baptismal
cloths for her church in addition to
bicycling and gardening.
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