By SVERRE BAKKE
The Enterprise
A change in operations at White Salmon's Riverview Community Bank officially takes place Tuesday, July 5.
That's branch supervisor Carol Harris' last day on the job she has held for the last six years of a 34-year career in banking.
"I'm going to retire, get married and live happily ever after. Isn't that a fairy-tale ending?" Harris said.
Riverview will host an open house in Harris' honor during banking hours Tuesday "so people can stop by and wish her a happy retirement," said Jan Gimlin, who is succeeding Harris as branch supervisor.
Harris, a native of the Walla Walla area, began her career in the banking profession in 1971 as a teller for Rainier Bank in College Place.
"I wasn't working at the time and one day I walked into the bank in College Place for an interview. They asked me if I wanted the job and I said no," Harris recalled. "And a week later I started."
Eighteen years after that, Harris moved to White Salmon to take over management of Rainier's local branch. In 1999, she was hired by Riverview to oversee its White Salmon operations.
"I've had a long, fun career," Harris noted. "I've done many aspects of banking, from collecting bad loans to having a repossessed motorcycle collected in a cardboard box; never a dull day but now I'm ready for something different."
On July 23, Harris will marry White Salmon resident Don Schaack. After that she plans to travel, tend to her garden and enjoy the freedom of her new life.
"I've been waiting for this all my life and now I can't wait," Harris said. "I feel very blessed."
In one last look back on her banking career, Harris said her most memorable experience was graduating at the top of her class in 1989 from the Northwest Ag Lenders School at Washington State University.
"That was the highlight of my career," Harris said, adding. "It's a prestigious goal because only one person gets that (honor) every year."
Gimlin assumes Harris' title and responsibilities as Riverview's branch manager after a 14-plus-year career with Columbia River Bank, formerly Klickitat Valley Bank.
The Glenwood native entered the banking profession in 1990 in an entry-level position at the White Salmon branch of KVB (which became CRB in 1996).
"I started as a teller and worked my way up, climbing through the ranks," Gimlin said.
After 10@FN(1)@FD(2) years at the White Salmon branch, she transferred to CRB in Hood River, where she had worked as a credit analyst before joining the staff at Riverview.
"It's good to be back on this side of the river," Gimlin said. "I'm looking forward to the challenge because it's a different aspect of banking than I'm used to, going from the loans side to operations."
Bank vice president Dale Connell said the transition from Harris' management style to Gimlin's has been a smooth one.
"We're happy and excited for Carol, and appreciate all she's done for our bank and the communities it serves," Connell said. "At the same time, we're very pleased to have Jan on board because she brings many of the same qualities Carol has to the job. We feel very fortunate."
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