10th Annual Hope Gala

Liberty Bank takes immense pride in its sponsorship of Coffee Oasis, an organization committed to a noble mission: restoring community through compassionate youth programs and coffee business. Coffee Oasis strives to provide transformative opportunities through youth programs. In the face of daunting challenges such as abuse, homelessness, depression, and addiction, Coffee Oasis stands as a beacon of hope in our community.

At Liberty Bank, we wholeheartedly endorse Coffee Oasis’s efforts to create pathways of opportunity for our youth, enabling them not only to overcome adversities but also to thrive in the face of adversity. We invite you to learn more about Coffee Oasis and their impactful initiatives by visiting their website at https://thecoffeeoasis.com/. Together, let’s support the invaluable work being done by Coffee Oasis and contribute to building a stronger, more compassionate community for our youth.

Silverdale Rotary Duck Race 2023

Liberty Bank was a proud sponsor of this year’s Silverdale Rotary Duck Race. Our own Galina Georgieva, VP & Relationship Manager was right there for all the action, selling tickets for the big event. The Rotary Club sold 13,128 tickets and raised more than $50,000 that will go back to the community through different projects and other nonprofits that the Silverdale Rotary Club supports. 

WBA Credit Analyst Development Program Graduate – Danielle Hampton

Liberty Bank would like to recognize and congratulate Danielle Hampton, Loan Coordinator Lead for her hard work and completion of the WBA Credit Analyst Development Program.  Danielle’s new certification means a broader knowledge base to help process loans quickly and efficiently.    

“I find joy helping connect customers with the best loan options to meet their unique needs,” says Danielle. “My passion is in details and processes. I enjoy creating efficiencies in the lending process and implementing them in collaboration with my Liberty Bank teammates.  Completing this program adds another layer of experience to my 15 years in commercial and consumer lending, and 20+ years in mortgage processing helping customers navigate just about every trend imaginable.”

“Congratulations to Dani on this incredible achievement and for demonstrating a true commitment to personal and professional growth. Her hard work and dedication inspire us all. Looking forward to seeing the impact she will continue to make in our organization and community,” says Andy Leikin, EVP & Chief Credit Officer.

#professionaldevelopment #creditanalysis #growthmindset #teamwork

Jewel Box Theatre – Kitsap Community

Kitsap County has a rich and vibrant theatre community.  Jewel Box Theater is celebrating their 23^rd year. Liberty Bank is excited to again show our support by sponsoring and providing volunteers to the Jewel Box Theater 2023 Gala Fundraiser on March 11th.  Thank you to our staff members, Jeremy Key, Galina Georgieva, Chelsie Calara and Rhonda Morris.

2022 Kathleen Sutton Fund Gala

We at Liberty Bank are extremely happy to continue to support the Kathleen Sutton Fund Gala every year as an event sponsor and with our staff, who volunteer at the annual gala. This amazing organization reimburses transportation costs for women in Clallam, Jefferson, Kitsap and Mason counties who are undergoing cancer treatments.

The fund began in 2003 as a small local grassroots organization to help pay transportation costs to women with breast cancer living in North Kitsap County. Due to the tremendous support of the community, grants, and the annual live/silent auction fundraiser, the Kathleen Sutton Fund has expanded its services to women with any type of cancer living in Clallam, Jefferson, Kitsap, and Mason counties. To date the fund has reimbursed nearly $770,000 in travel expenses for 1,263 women!

Thank you to our Poulsbo branch manager Kelly Garcia, and professional banker Chelsie Calara for volunteering to staff the registration desk at this year’s Oct. 1 gala, held at the Kitsap Conference Center.

For additional information on Kathleen Sutton Fund, please visit https://www.kathleensutton.org/

We’ve Moved!

Welcome Chelsie Calara to Liberty Bank!

Professional Banker

“Coming from a small island you appreciate all the small things and value the relationships you make within the community. I am excited to grow with Liberty Bank and the community. ”

Chelsie Calara brings well-rounded banking experience to her role as Professional Banker in the Poulsbo branch, having previously worked as a loan officer, new accounts officer and teller in banking in Guam.

In this role, Chelsie will work as a universal banker, completing important customer-facing work. Her knowledge of the Filipino languages Tagalog and Waray allow her to serve a diverse community locally.

Chelsie moved to Kitsap County in 2022 after attending the University of Guam and working in banking for five years. She looks forward to serving all of your banking needs.

Welcome Camie Tat to Liberty Bank

Camie Tat

VP & Credit Administrator

“I love the ability to help people and businesses achieve their goals by structuring and using credit the best ways possible. I hope to help Liberty Bank build long-term prosperous relationships within the community with open communication, collaboration, transparency, and sound financial advice.”

Camie Tat joins Liberty Bank as an experienced commercial credit analyst and underwriter for business enterprises and commercial banks. In her 20 years in the financial services industry, Camie has successfully managed client portfolios, conducted financial analysis and credit adjudication.

As VP and Credit Administrator at Liberty Bank’s Bellevue office, Camie will assist the Chief Credit Officer in maintaining the integrity of Liberty Bank’s credit risk and quality standards and help streamline and oversee the credit process.

“I especially enjoy seeing our customers achieve growth. I enjoy helping them understand the credit process, assess their risk, and making informed financial decisions based on where they are and where they want to be in the short, medium and long-term future.”.  

Camie takes on this position after working as a treasurer and risk analyst for Boeing Capital Corp., as a commercial lending underwriter/portfolio manager at HomeStreet Bank in Seattle, and commercial credit adjudicator/analyst at RBC Financial Group in Vancouver, BC, Canada.

A resident of Seattle, Camie earned her Advanced Bachelor of Arts degree in Labor and Workplace Studies and a minor in business from University of Manitoba, Winnipeg. She served on the board of the Risk Management Assoc. in Calgary, Canada, and can often be found running along Puget Sound or out in nature on the trails training for another half or full marathon race.

2022 Leadership Kitsap Graduate, Galina Georgieva

Galina Georgieva, Liberty Bank VP and Relationship Manager, completes Leadership Kitsap program with opening of Eleanor’s Inn for domestic violence victims.

Poulsbo, Wash. (June 10, 2022): Liberty Bank extends its congratulations to Vice President and Relationship Manager Galina Georgieva for graduating as part of Leadership Kitsap’s 2022 class. Georgieva and her team completed a project to support domestic violence survivors in Kitsap County.

“We want to congratulate Galina and the entire Leadership Kitsap Class of 2022 on their efforts this year to give back to and strengthen our community,” said Rhonda Morris, Senior Vice President and Chief Risk Officer. “We are very proud of Galina and the hard work she has put into this program and her team’s project.”

Georgieva and her team created “Eleanor’s Inn,” a new safe space for local domestic violence victims and their children to escape to for 24 to 48 hours while awaiting more long-term placement. It also serves sexual assault victims.

“I was excited about Leadership Kitsap because I’ve always worked in community banks and I really like the community involvement component, volunteering, and giving back to the community,” Georgieva said. “I was also new to Kitsap County, moving here in November 2020. To me, it was a really great way to get to know the community faster and get involved and connect with other leaders in the area. I’ve gone through my education, getting a BA, and I’ve taken professional development classes and programs. This by far is my most favorite one.”

Team members devoted their time and energy to creating Eleanor’s Inn after hearing from the Poulsbo Parks & Recreation and the Poulsbo Police Department that they were seeking an additional safe and calming place in the community for women who faced domestic violence and sexual assault. As the team worked on the project, they kept in mind Eleanor, a local woman who survived 18 years of domestic violence before devoting her life to help other survivors. She often met with domestic violence survivors in her bedroom or her kitchen and offered comfort and good advice. Eleanor’s Inn offers a space that will allow survivors to leave their situation, find comfort, connect with resources, and be able to go on and have a completely different life.

Eleanor’s Inn was designed with special attention on how to help the healing process. The team consulted with behavioral health specialists to choose calming and healing colors and purchased rocking chairs because the soothing rocking motion relieves stress. The team stocked the shelves with books specifically recommended for healing. Every aspect of Eleanor’s Inn was carefully designed to enhance calmness and improve recovery.

The team secured funds, redesigned the space, painted, decorated, and stocked the room, which will benefit the community and allow victims to leave their situation, find comfort, and connect with resources to move forward with their lives. Other team members along with Poulsbo Parks & Recreation and the Poulsbo Police Department were community partners. The project was sponsored by Poulsbo Rotary DV Committee, Liberty Bank, and Peninsula Paint.

Georgieva also appreciated learning more about her community through Leadership Kitsap’s Positive Leadership curriculum designed to help identify, expand, and enhance leadership capacities, in addition to participating in the program’s Challenge Days. One day each month, community leaders exposed the Leadership Kitsap participants to what is happening with local government, economics, education, healthy communities, state government, public safety, arts & recreation, and environment & planning.

Matthew Ogard Joins Liberty Bank

A growing community bank should include bankers who grew up in the community. Accountant Matthew Ogard has lived in Poulsbo since the third grade.

But Matthew has ideas that extend far beyond Poulsbo — like how to lower the price of gas to a $1.50 a gallon; And a plan for restoring rail lines and increasing rail transportation. He even saved the Edmonds/Kingston ferry from a major capacity cut by showing them how to rearrange the boats.

Liberty Bank is just the place for visionaries like Matthew who are quick to spot opportunities for improvement. 

“The benefits here are outstanding. I am able to grow in my career as we are in process of growing the bank.”