December 15, 2022 —
Availa Bank Team Member Named to Federal Trade Commission's Consumer Education and Outreach Committee
Lisa Irlbeck, Marketing Director, will help with fraud education outreach for older adults
Carroll, Iowa (December 15, 2022) – Availa Bank is proud to announce that Lisa Irlbeck, Marketing Director and Availa Bank team member for 16 years, will be part of the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) Consumer Education and Outreach Committee with the goal of identifying ways to prevent scams affecting older adults.
Lisa will be part of the Consumer Education Committee, whose focus is on messaging to help older adults spot, avoid, and report scams.
In the past year, Lisa led a bank-wide education outreach initiative focused on bringing financial education and awareness to the communities of all 16 Availa Bank branches. The idea came after seeing how damaging and costly senior fraud attempts were for older adults. Since its launch in June of this year, outreach has reached almost 2,000 people. If you would be interested in a financial education presentation for your organization, you can call Availa Bank at 800-329-8620.
Lisa is thrilled to extend her knowledge to the rest of the committee. “I look forward to the opportunity to serve on the FTC’s Consumer Education and Outreach Committee. I plan to use this opportunity to bring scam education and prevention to our employees and to the communities we serve. I also look forward to networking with other entities around the country on ways to combat elder fraud. One of Availa’s values statements is, ‘We focus on our communities. We are proud to invest and contribute to the communities we serve.’ This is just another way that Availa is living our Mission, Vision, and Values,” she says.
Jeff Scharfenkamp, President and CEO of Availa Bank, knows Lisa will be a strong addition to the committee. “I am very pleased to see that Lisa will be joining FTC’s Consumer Education and Outreach Committee. Availa Bank is committed to stopping scams against older adults. Lisa will bring a unique community bank perspective to this issue which unfortunately all too often victimizes the most vulnerable members in our communities,” he says.
General
Availa Bank’s roots date back to 1870 when it was originally chartered. Availa is the first three syllables of the word available, a word that defines the bank’s mission — to empower our team to inspire and enable our clients and the communities we serve to achieve financial success. Availa Bank locations are in the following communities: Ames, Ankeny, Carroll, Coon Rapids, Council Bluffs, Fort Dodge, Holstein, Jewell, Nevada, Omaha (LPO Only), Pocahontas, Sioux City and Webster City. For more information about Availa Bank, visit www.Availa.Bank. Member FDIC.