Valley Bank: The next generation King and Hensley family members assume leadership roles

They're big shoes to fill, but the next generation of bankers in the Jack King and Jack Hensley families has stepped into the top spots at Kalispell's Valley Bank.

King and Hensley have shared the titles of president and vice president/chairman of the board, alternating positions every year since they bought the bank in 1962. They've now assumed vice president positions.

King's son-in-law, Ron Rosenberg, joined the Valley Bank staff last May as a vice president, and was elected president at the board's annual meeting Jan. 19.

Hensley's son, Mark Hensley, took on the role of chairman of the board a year ago.

"It's not difficult to step aside," King said. "I feel confident these two will do a good job."

Dan Hensley, another of Jack Hensley's sons, is a vice president in charge of consumer lending and marketing.

The two Hensley brothers and Rosenberg will rotate their positions periodically, just as "the two Jacks" did. Both Hensley brothers have worked at Valley Bank for the past two decades.

Banking runs deep in both families. King's sons, A.J. and John R., are top executives of Three Rivers Bank in Kalispell. A third generation of bankers is up and coming in the King family; his grandson, Joel, works at a bank in Vancouver, Wash.

Rosenberg, of Whitefish, was a vice president of First Interstate Bank in Whitefish for eight years, and worked at Glacier Bank for 11 years prior to that, as branch manager of the Whitefish office and later as a vice president.

"Our primary objective is to maintain what we've got, to keep the bank solid in its own right and continue to operate under the philosophy the bank was founded on," Rosenberg said. "We'd like to grow with the community's needs."

Valley Bank is independently owned, and that translates into a tight connection with the community.

"The dollars generated are put back into the community, and all the decision-making is done in this building," Rosenberg said. "Our staff is deeply entwined in the community."

With its Old West decor, the bank is a downtown showpiece. A Winchester gun collection on display at the bank, on loan from a customer, is a constant converation piece.

"You wouldn't find many banks in this country with guns on their walls," Mark Hensley said with a smile.

Expansion is on the horizon for Valley Bank.

"It's real preliminary, but we've been in conversations with the city about what's available and we've talked to a local architect firm," Rosenberg said. "We'd like to stay here and reinvest in downtown."

The cost of building a new bank or expanding the existing facility at Third Street and First Avenue West are similar, he said. Through the years the building has been expanded several times to make room for a staff that now totals 46 employees.

King and the elder Hensley borrowed money in 1960 to acquire the State Bank of Somers and its assets of $1.8 million. After they bought it, it took them two years and a couple of hearings in Washington, D.C., to move the bank to Kalispell and change its name.

Today, Valley Bank has assets of $106 million.

Both of "the Jacks" are at the bank almost every day and stepping into vice president positions will allow them time to work as ambassadors, particularily for the bank's senior customer base.

"They get to be advisers. It's a different role for them," Mark Hensley said.

Having worked at Valley Bank for 20 years, Mark Hensley continues to be enthralled with banking.

"I enjoy my job. It's fun to be a part of people fulfilling their dreams," he said. "Seeing a father buy his first boat to take his boys fishing, doing an ag loan or financing a business expansion. We wear a lot of different hats and need to know a little about a lot of things."

The proverbial "banker's hours," if there were ever such a thing, he said, don't hold true in this era of increasing bank regulations. The increased paperwork means longer hours, and cell phones have become a godsend for busy bankers.

"People are still looking for that personal service," Mark Hensley said.

Dan Hensley has been the driving force behind the bank's marketing campaigns through the years, and his brother is quick to point out that many of the catch-phrases associated with Valley Bank are the brainchild of Dan.

"We don't do a lot of blowing our horn," Mark Hensley said. "We prefer to stay under the radar."

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by e-mail at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com