Longtime Northfield Savings Bank (NSB) employee Ava Whitcomb recently stopped by Downstreet Housing & Community Development in Barre to surprise the non-profit with a $400 check. 

The check was Ava's donation to the organization as part of Northfield Savings Bank's Employee Volunteerism Program, which compensates employees for volunteer hours they complete outside of work. The money earned from volunteering then goes to a non-profit of the employee's choosing. 

Ava, a Mortgage Loan Officer for Central Vermont, said she opted to give her volunteerism funds to Downstreet because it's a great cause - the organization provides access to housing and services in Central Vermont with the goal of reducing generational poverty and boosting self-sufficiency. 

"I enjoy working with them on a common goal of educating and providing affordable mortgage products to the communities we serve," Ava said. 

In 2017, Northfield Savings Bank employees volunteered a collective 5,100 hours for local organizations. The Employee Volunteerism Program is part of NSB's "community dividend," a commitment to donate 10 percent of the Bank's annual earnings to non-profits doing work in the communities NSB serves. 

For more information about NSB's Community Giving, go to www.nsbvt.com/about-us/community-giving.