When INB opened its Peoria Branch at 7535 N. Knoxville in 2007, it opened as a full-service branch, meaning the bank able to take deposits from commercial customers who made up the bulk of the business at the time. According to Al Covington, retired commercial loan officer, when he and another colleague approached INB executives about opening a branch, INB was very receptive. “We recruited them,” Al says of INB.  “They were highly thought of, and we knew we could make this work for them.”

Not long after, Al was leaving one employer and helping customers transition to INB.  “One of INB’s smartest decisions was to open a full-service branch here immediately upon coming into the market.” He and a colleague were able to bring in $5 million in deposits the first month.

Al says the move into the building on Knoxville was seamless as the location had previously been a bank, and it came fully furnished. 

Shortly thereafter, Pam Cain was hired to work the retail side of banking and Kim Turk joined to help with commercial accounts.

Pam, now our Peoria branch manager, says she made the decision to come to INB because she wanted to work for a bank that made decisions locally.  “I wanted to be somewhere where we cared about customers and their families.” It was a bit of a homecoming as well; she had worked out of the Knoxville location when it was another bank.

Mortgage Lending Becomes Part of Peoria Services in 2013

While our Peoria Branch started with a strong commercial emphasis, mortgage lending came into the mix during the early years. Today, Peoria native Stacy Borho Wolak serves INB’s mortgage customers with the help of Wendy German.

Al worked for INB for the last 10 years of his 50-year banking career. In 2019, he turned day-to-day management over to a new team.