New Crews Banking Directors and Administrators Named

Central and Southwest, Fla. – Jake Crews, Chief Executive Officer of Charlotte State Bank & Trust, Crews Bank & Trust, Englewood Bank & Trust, and Wauchula State Bank, has announced new positions aimed at optimizing operations and enhancing customer service. The strategic restructuring of employees will allow for continued growth and improved efficiency in serving customers throughout the banks’ unification under the Crews Bank & Trust brand in the fall of 2023. Experienced bankers Elizabeth Hernandez, Christine Davis, Kelly Louke and Michelle Potter have transitioned to the new roles.

“We are thrilled to announce these new roles, as they reflect our commitment to nurturing talent from within our organization” shared Crews. “Elizabeth, Christine, Kelly, and Michelle have each consistently demonstrated their dedication to providing premier banking services with a hometown touch, and I have full confidence in their ability to thrive in their new positions.”

Hernandez has been promoted to Director of Retail & Business Banking. In this role, she will develop the retail operational strategy to support growth and continue to provide premier customer service. Hernandez joined Charlotte State Bank & Trust in 2003 as a teller and was promoted to lead teller in four months. She became a personal banker in 2004 and moved to bookkeeping the following year. She spent eight years as a bookkeeping specialist and supervisor before joining the retail operations team, becoming a vice president and branch administration manager prior to being named to her current position.

Davis has been appointed as the Director of Commercial Banking Services. She began her banking career in 1998 and has experience in retail banking, treasury management and residential lending.  Davis joined Crews Bank & Trust in 2019 as a vice president and relationship manager heading up the bank’s Sarasota office. She then served as senior vice president of retail banking before being promoted to her current position. In her new role, she will spearhead development of the Treasury Cash Management program along with managing other commercial business services. Active in the community, Davis currently serves on the Foundation Board of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Sarasota County, an organization she has been apart of since 2002. Additionally, she has been a board member of the Sarasota Athletic Association since 2011.

Louke and Potter have been named Regional Retail Administrators. Louke, who will serve the southern region, joined Charlotte State Bank & Trust in 1998, starting as a personal banker and working her way up to assistant branch manager, then branch manager at the bank’s Murdock branch before being promoted to vice president and transitioning to residential lender and retail banking officer at the bank’s North Port branch. Committed to the community, Louke has volunteered with Drug Free Charlotte County, the North Port Chamber of Commerce, the Charlotte County Chamber of Commerce, the United Way Impact Panel, the Gene Matthews Boys & Girls Club and the Charlotte County Chapter of the American Red Cross.

Potter, who joined Crews Bank & Trust in 1990, will serve the northern region of the Crews Banking geographic footprint. She started as a teller, then began opening new customer accounts in 1995. Two years later, she moved to bookkeeping, concluding her three-year stint there as head bookkeeper. She was promoted to assistant vice president of retail operations in 2005, and within four years was promoted to vice president. An integral part of the DeSoto County area for over 30 years, Potter has volunteered with Arcadia Main Street, Arcadia Kiwanis Club, Arcadia Centennial Lions Club, and the DeSoto County Historical Society. In their new positions, Louke and Potter will utilize their banking experience to streamline operations and maximize efficiency while fostering collaboration between team members.

For more information about the unification of Charlotte State Bank & Trust, Crews Bank & Trust, Englewood Bank & Trust and Wauchula State Bank under the Crews Bank & Trust brand, please visit www.crews.bank/unify.