President and CEO Michael J. Jones welcomed attendees and summarized the financials, noting that 2025 was one of the bank’s most successful years as it posted the third highest earnings in its 205-year history. The bank reported strong net income of $49 million, an increase of $10.2 million over prior year, and return on assets of 0.91 percent. Total assets increased by less than 1 percent with total loans increasing $97 million. The increase was primarily in the bank’s commercial loan portfolio, which marked the third consecutive year this division reported over $100 million of loan growth.

The most significant advance in 2025 was in total capital, which increased $61 million or 10 percent, reaching an all-time high of $668 million. Total capital is now over 12 percent of total assets, providing ample opportunity for future growth. Net operating earnings increased significantly, driven by a $10.5 million, or 22 percent, increase in net interest income resulting from new loan growth. The increase in net interest income combined with low operating expenses led to $14.4 million in net operating earnings representing an increase of $7.7 million or 118% over 2024, according to bank officials.

“It was a very successful year for the Institution for Savings,” Jones said. “Our patience and steadfast discipline helped us navigate the challenging interest rate cycle of the past three years and positioned us for strong financial results.”

Jones paid particular mention to the bank’s hallmark charitable giving, noting that the Bank’s financial strength allowed the charitable foundation to contribute over $2.3 million to local non-profit organizations.

“Over the past three years our charitable giving has exceeded $6.5 million, continuing our longstanding tradition to help those in need,” Jones said.

The bank’s leader also praised his board and staff.

“I am incredibly proud of our talented team for their hard work, commitment and dedication to the bank,” Jones said. “Our employees, together with our committed board of trustees, are the bank’s best asset and they are the engine that drives our success. I look forward to many prosperous years ahead.”

Mr. Jones also cited several additional milestones achieved in 2025:

• The Boston Globe’s Top Places to Work for the 18th consecutive year.
• Boston Business Journal’s Best Places to Work for the 10th consecutive year.
• Boston Business Journal’s Top Charitable Contributor for 13 consecutive years.
• Completion of the main office addition.

During the business meeting, the corporation elected Sarah Player as a new trustee. A resident of Ipswich, Player is a vocational disability examiner and physical therapist, and a member of the Ipswich Select Board. She has been a corporator of the bank since 2023.

Seven new corporators were also elected during the meeting: Olivia Achtmeyer Boger, executive director of Runway for Recovery and Newburyport resident; Nancy Batista Caswell, president of the Greater Newburyport Chamber of Commerce, managing director and owner of Caswell Restaurant Group and Newburyport resident; Neil Costa, founder and CEO of Hireclix and Gloucester resident; Allison Fisher, owner of Alewives Tap Room of Boston and Newburyport resident; Graham McKay, executive director of Lowell’s Boat Shop & Museum and Amesbury resident; Andrew McKenzie-DeFranza, executive director of Harborlight Homes and Beverly resident; and Mariana Ruiz Lynch, vice president of sales for CardConnect Port City Payments and Newburyport resident.

During the meeting, Jones recognized retiring trustee Richard Silverman who has served as a trustee for 23 years. Silverman joined the board of Ipswich Cooperative Bank in 2003. When the two banks merged in 2007, he became a trustee. According to Mr. Jones, he played a pivotal role in the bank’s Long-Range Strategic Planning Committee, helping to guide some of the most significant decisions in the bank’s history. Jones expressed his gratitude for Silverman’s lasting contributions and steadfast leadership.

Before concluding the meeting, Jones announced the recipient of this year’s President’s Award, given annually to an employee who consistently goes above and beyond his or her duties to serve the bank and its customers. This year’s award was given to customer service representative Jill Norton. Jones highlighted Norton’s strong customer service skills and commitment to volunteering, noting that she attended more than 30 community events on behalf of the bank in 2025.

November 21, 2025 by Paul Halloran

LYNN — More than 600 high school juniors got a crash course in managing money when they participated in the second Credit for Life Fair at Lynn Vocational Technical Institute on Friday. The purpose of the event is to help students develop personal budgeting skills that they will use throughout their lives.

For the second consecutive year, Lynn Public Schools partnered with Institution for Savings, a community bank headquartered in Newburyport, to host Credit for Life. Utilizing the bank’s Credit for Life website students created profiles on their mobile devices and chose professions. Then, using the website and their devices, they visited 14 booths and purchased everything they would need to live as 25-year-olds with resources including their monthly paycheck, savings account, and/or a credit card. The booths offered products and services related to housing, transportation, furniture, utilities, food, nutrition, and more.

Mayor Jared C. Nicholson welcomed students to the credit fair, telling them, “Lynn Public Schools and the City care deeply about your future … In addition to academic skills, life skills are also incredibly important. We’re eager to provide financial literacy to all of you.”

More than 80 community volunteers assisted at the event, including City and LPS employees, Chamber of Commerce representatives, accountants, attorneys, nonprofit leaders, business professionals, and bank employees. Lynn Police officers also volunteered at the Safety and Security booth.

“Today is about you and your futures,” said Superintendent of Schools Molly Cohen. “We are here for one reason — to help you. Financial literacy extends far beyond high school. The ability to understand how to earn, save, invest and manage money has a direct correlation to success.”

Cohen said LPS “appreciates the partnership with Institution for Savings and the valuable experience they are giving our students through this event. Providing this type of information and real-life experience fits perfectly with our efforts to educate students beyond the classroom.”

Kristen Tabacco, LPS assistant director of curriculum for history, worked with the bank to coordinate the event. 

“We appreciate the incredible team at the Institution for Savings, and the school leaders and guidance counselors for collaborating on this amazing event again,” Tabacco said. “Students get to see what it is like to make all the important financial decisions in life, and they get to talk with real professionals from the community about how to make the best decision for them.”

Creditforlife.org was the result of a 2020 collaboration between seven Massachusetts banks including Institution for Savings. The banks, along with nonprofit FitMoney, pooled financial and informational resources to develop the online site which has been used by tens of thousands of students throughout Massachusetts and beyond. The site has been improved each year and includes translation to Spanish and Portuguese. 

“The goal of the fair is to help empower students to be proactive about their financial futures by beginning to develop sound personal finance habits,” said Michael J. Jones, Institution for Savings president and CEO.  “Each year we hear from parents, guardians, volunteers and teachers after the event that they wish this had been around when they were in school. We are glad to assist Lynn Public Schools with these important events that are invaluable to students and something they will use throughout their lives.

More than 1,100 North Shore high school juniors got a glimpse of their financial futures Thursday by assuming the role of 25-year-old adults budgeting their expenses.

The daylong exercise was a part of the Institution for Savings’ 15th annual Credit for Life Fair at the O’Keefe Sports Complex at Salem State University.

Participants came from 12 area high schools including Amesbury, Newburyport, Triton Regional, Pentucket Regional, Ipswich, Masconomet Regional, Salem, Swampscott, Beverly, Rockport and Gloucester high schools as well as the Landmark School in Beverly, organizers said.

At the start of the event, students set out to visit a variety of booths staffed by financial planners, state employees, business executives, bank and credit union employees and 125 community volunteers, to make decisions about how much or how little to spend on needs.

“I still have a phone, but I chose to get limited data, and at first I didn’t have internet or TV, but then I got a part-time job as a social media manager and was able to afford both,” said Triton Regional High School junior Lucia Stanely who chose the occupation of cosmetologist.

“[Working two jobs] is definitely something I would now consider in the future, especially because in this case I could work remotely from my apartment.”

In addition to booths covering different aspects of an independent 25-year-old’s expenses and needs, two bonus booths, money smarts, and safety and security, were also included.

Sylvie Tardif, a junior from Swampscott High who chose the occupation of marine biologist, said she learned how difficult budgeting essentials like transportation and housing could be.“I’m definitely going to have to be more financially organized in the future,” she said.

The safety and security booth, staffed by local public safety professionals, focused on important issues to keep young adults safe, such as texting and avoiding substance use while driving, having smoke detectors in living spaces and more.

It also included an opportunity for students to try on “fatal vision goggles” and try to walk in a straight line to simulate the inherent danger of driving under the influence.

 

The Credit for Life Fair is a collaboration among multiple Massachusetts banks that in addition to Institution for Saving includes Cape Cod 5, Rockland Trust, HarborOne Bank, BayCoast Bank, Country Bank, Westfield Bank, The Savings Bank, North Easton Savings Bank and Liberty Bank.

“There’s 28 states that have personal finance courses mandated in order for graduation,” Institution for Savings President and CEO Michael Jones said. “And Massachusetts is not one of them, even though we have some of the best education in the country.”

High school juniors were selected for the fair because many are just starting to do things like getting part-time jobs and paying bills, bank Senior Vice President of Marketing and Communications Mary Anne Clancy said.
“They’re at that age where they’re thinking about going into college or the world of work, and we want to make sure they’re ready when they go out into that world.”

One of the school district’s most beloved former teachers will have her name permanently attached to her old school next month when Francis T. Bresnahan Elementary School officials dedicate a second-grade classroom in honor of Jean Kirkpatrick.

On Saturday, May 10, the Jean Kirkpatrick classroom will be dedicated during a public ceremony at the school beginning at 10 a.m. All are welcome to attend.

The classroom’s dedication was made possible thanks to a $5,000 donation to the Newburyport Education Foundation from the Institution for Savings. The bank also donated an additional $5,000 in Kirkpatrick’s name to NEF’s book vending machine program.

“I think you would be hard-pressed to find anyone who had her as a teacher who doesn’t consider her their favorite,” Institution for Savings Senior Vice President Mary Anne Clancy said. “She had just such an impact.”
Kirkpatrick, 92, spent 40 years teaching second grade at Belleville Elementary School (now Bresnahan Elementary) before retiring in 1994. At the time, she had dedicated more years of service to city schools than any other teacher in the district.

Over the years, many people have called Kirkpatrick their all-time favorite teacher, a designation Clancy endorsed. “She was just one of those teachers who you remember all throughout your life,” she said.
Whether it was Thanksgiving pageants when students would dress up as Pilgrims or the many books they were encouraged to read, Kirkpatrick made learning engaging as well as fun, Clancy said.

“Even with 25 or 30 students in her classes back then, she knew and engaged with every single one of us, making us each feel exceptional,” Clancy said. “That is truly a gift, and she still has it to this day.”
Mayor Sean Reardon, who had Kirkpatrick as a second-grade teacher, said she brought warmth and positivity to the classroom. “(She was) always bringing out the best in every one of her students,” he said. “I truly wouldn’t be where I am today without the support and inspiration of incredible teachers like her.”
Kirkpatrick, Reardon added, remained a constant presence in the community, long after retiring from teaching.
“I always loved seeing her at Anna Jaques Hospital volunteering at the information desk with her trademark kindness,” he said. “And to this day, she still checks in on me from time to time since I became mayor. She’s a Newburyport treasure.”

A lifelong resident of Newburyport, Kirkpatrick also has a longtime association with the Institution for Savings.
Her father, William Carter, served as the bank’s secretary from 1950 until his retirement in 1974. Her daughter Susan was employed as a teller in the 1980s. Her son Scott has worked for more than a decade as one of the bank’s facilities managers.

Bank President and CEO Michael J. Jones called Kirkpatrick “legendary.”

“We have had many employees who benefited by having her as their teacher and their stories of her annual Thanksgiving plays, her poetry club, and her enthusiastic and contagious reading lessons in Room 4, the same classroom she taught in throughout her career, are memories that have and never will be forgotten,” he said. “It is only fitting that a room will be named in her honor and we are happy to help make that happen.” 

SALISBURY — Weeks after Our Neighbors’ Table officials announced they had come up $200,000 short in its efforts to raise $6 million to operate its new Bridge Road food hub debt free, the Institution for Savings made up the difference last week.

“I read the article in the paper and I saw that they were $200,000 away from their $6 million 2024 goal, and I figured we would step up and make sure they made their goal,” Institution for Savings President Mike Jones said.

Jones and other Institution for Savings officials joined Haight for a tour of the hub Tuesday after donating $200,000 last week, with Jones calling the facility “so impressive.”

“I just really appreciate Lyndsey’s vision and I think that it took some time, but here we are today, and I think we’re doing exactly what we wanted to do,” Jones said, referring to Our Neighbors’ Table Executive Director Lynsdey Haight.

Our Neighbors’ Table opened the 24,000-square-foot food market and storage facility roughly four months ago. It includes 7,000-square-feet of dry storage, as well as 3,000-square-feet of cold storage. The nonprofit is in the midst of a $7.8 million capital campaign for the Salisbury food hub so it can operate the hub debt free.

The hub will serve the 25 food access organizations partnered in the Lower Merrimack Valley Food Coalition.

While the hub is still a work in progress, over a million pounds of food have passed through the building so far, with most of it coming from the Greater Boston Food Bank.

Haight said that hitting the $6 million milestone is huge for her organization after they had initially failed to hit the mark by Jan. 1.

“Six million dollars was a key benchmark for us. It was the minimum we needed just to be able to carry the costs of this expansion and serving the needs of the coalition,” Haight said.

She stressed not fundraising efforts are still far from done.

“We still have $1.8 million to get to the $7.8 million. We get to the $7.8 million and we are in great shape so that all of our future contributions go directly to serving the coalition and the 32,000 people that the coalition is serving,” Haight said.

Board of Directors member and chairman of the capital campaign Jim Krause thanked the bank and shared his belief that this donation could inspire others as the campaign nears its conclusion.

“There’s a bandwagon effect,” Krause said.

Haight said she was grateful for the over 300 donors who have contributed to the campaign so far.

“It’s one of the largest campaigns executed in this area for quite some time, and so it really speaks to everyone with varying capacities in their commitment to universal food access,” Haight said.

Folks looking to contribute to the campaign can do so at: fillemup.org

Matt Petry covers Amesbury and Salisbury for The Daily News of Newburyport. Email him at: mpetry@northofboston.com.

The Bank is one of only two companies to have made the top list every year that the list has been published.

Top Places to Work recognizes the most admired workplaces in the state voted on by the people who know them best—their employees. The survey measures employee opinions about their company’s direction, execution, connection, management, work, pay, benefits, and engagement. The employers are placed into one of four groups: small, with 50 to 99 employees; medium, with 100 to 249 workers; large, with 250 to 999 staff members; and largest, with a workforce of 1,000 or more employees.

The Institution for Savings was ranked number 17 in the Medium category, up from number 23 in 2023.

“What makes this honor so gratifying is that it is based on the confidential feedback from our very own employees,” said Institution for Savings president and CEO Michael J. Jones. “To be one of only two Massachusetts companies to have consistently made the list for 17 straight years -- at a time when workplaces are adjusting to meet the needs of a changing workforce -- makes this even more special.  Our employees are our greatest asset, and I am truly grateful to lead such a dedicated team.”

The Globe Magazine also includes a segment highlighting special recognitions some of the top companies bestow on their employees and features the Bank’s longstanding President’s Award, give annually to an employee that goes above and beyond.

“The best employers pay attention to the many ways work changes – and the many ways it stays the same – and figure out how to keep people engaged and motivated through it all,” said Katie Johnston, the Globe’s Top Places to Work editor.

The rankings in Top Places to Work are based on confidential survey information collected by Energage, an independent company specializing in employee engagement and retention, from nearly 68,000 employees at 323 Massachusetts organizations.

SALEM — “What type of car can I afford on an actuary’s salary?” “What’s an HMO?” “I had no idea my parents paid that much for cable TV!”

Those were just a few of the comments from high school students navigating their future at the 14th annual Credit for Life Fair held May 23 at Salem State University.

More than 1,100 North Shore high school juniors from 14 schools attended the event, underwritten and organized by the Institution for Savings. They were joined by 150 community volunteers, including 50 IFS employees, Newburyport Mayor Sean Reardon, Amesbury Mayor Kassandra Gove, the division of bank examiners, financial planners, real estate agents and nonprofit leaders.

The Institution for Savings event is the largest of its kind in New England. High schools attending the event included Amesbury, Newburyport, Triton Regional, Pentucket Regional, Ipswich, Georgetown, Masconomet Regional, Hamilton-Wenham Regional, Salem, Swampscott, Beverly, Rockport and Gloucester, as well as Landmark School in Beverly.

Using the bank’s Credit for Life website (creditforlife.org), students created profiles on their mobile devices, then chose professions. Then using their assigned monthly “salaries,” along with a credit card and savings account, they visited 12 booths set up in Rockett Arena and purchased everything they would need to live as 25-year-olds. The booths featured housing, transportation, food and nutrition, education and training, health and wellness, and planning for the future.

The event’s goal, according to Institution for Savings President and CEO Michael Jones, was to help local high school students develop personal budgeting skills that they will use throughout their lives.

“The greatest part of the morning was listening in to the students talk about their choices and decision-making,” said Jones, whose twin sons attended the event from Ipswich High School. “Seeing them trying to decide if they can afford to live on their own or need a roommate, or choosing a used Jeep over a lease is so gratifying to me because that is exactly what this event is geared to do: Get them to start learning how to manage their money before they leave high school.”

Local community volunteers included Gove and Reardon, North Shore Chamber CEO Karen Andreas, Salem Pantry Executive Director Robyn Burns and Greater Newburyport Chamber of Commerce President Nate Allard.

“The Credit for Life Fair is an amazing event to witness in person,” Reardon said. “Financial literacy is such an important skill that currently is not required for graduation in Massachusetts schools. Institution for Savings deserves a lot of credit for bringing hundreds of juniors from 14 different high schools to come and participate in this immersive real-world financial simulation.”

A group of financial planners from EP Wealth Advisor and The Sentinel Group were also on hand to advise the students, as were staffers from Salem State University. Kristin MacDonald from the office of state Sen. Bruce Tarr also volunteered as did Phil DeCologero and Madison Gonzalez from the office of State Auditor Diana DiZoglio.

DeCologero, who has volunteered at the fair several times, said he is “always amazed” at the planning by organizers, the enthusiasm of volunteers, and the seriousness of students.

“I wish I had access to this type of programming when I was in high school, and it’s clear the students who do get to participate understand the benefit of the resources they’re being exposed to. Thank you to Institution for Savings for devoting so much to helping so many,” DeCologero said.

Gove said the fair offers “incredible hands-on learning experience” for Amesbury students.

“In the absence of required standardized financial literacy in our school, they’re filling the gap. Our students beg us for real life education and opportunities for ‘adulting’ and this program checks all the boxes. Every student should experience Credit for Life,” Gove said after the event.

A highlight of the morning was the Safety & Security Booth, staffed by police officers from eight North Shore communities.

Swampscott police Officer Brian Wilson brought Sora, the department’s comfort dog, along as well. Officers talked with the students about important issues that keep young adults safe, such as texting and avoiding substance use while driving, and having smoke detectors in living space. Students also took turns trying out impairment goggles that simulate levels of alcohol impairment to make them aware of how alcohol can adversely affect their vision and functions.

“The students learn so much, and have fun doing it,” Andreas said. “They talk about credit card debt, saving for emergencies, whether they should adopt a dog and afford the vet bills. It’s an outstanding learning experience.”