Written By: Dillon Kjerstad, ICBSD Chairman of the Board

What is the purpose of community banking? This is a question that could be open to some debate.However, those of us engaged in the business of independent community banking could agree that a central theme of our purpose is to “Make A Difference.” Not one bank is the same in our great tate. Each has its own history and evolvement, but I can guarantee you that each bank still standing today has had a profound impact on the communities and people it serves. This isn’t something that just happens due to a bank merely existing. It happens when you have an exceptional team of people collaborating towards a common goal of making a difference every single day.What I love most about community banking, is the fulfillment received from serving the very communities in which we work, live, volunteer and raise our families. There is not a better model than the community banking model. Our funds are raised from our local depositors and re-invested directly back into our communities. We have a vested interest in the success of our customers and communities as we cannot be successful without their success coming first.My family and I live in Philip, SD just down the road from my folks’ ranching and farming operation between Wall and Philip. My wife is from Gettysburg, and we met at college in Brookings. We have 4 children ages 9 to 2. I am actively involved within our ag operation and my brother, Ryan, and I work together on a farming and custom spraying enterprise.

My wife, Courtney, and I own a group of independent community pharmacies. She received her Pharm D. in 2011 from SDSU. I am honored and humbled to serve as the 2022-2023 chairman of the board. I get to work with a great group of board members and executive staff as well as represent the greatest industry. I have met so many wonderful people during my involvement in the Independent Community Bankers of South Dakota, and it has made me a better person by being around so many people better than myself. I would like to thank Brian Gilbert, immediate past chairman, for his leadership and support. I will commit to continuing this association’s good work of empowering community banking and protecting the industry responsible for making profound differences in the lives of all those it serves.