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Following are excerpts of the introduction by Judy Baker of the Association of Affirmative Action Professionals upon presentation of the 1996 Ray Frost Award to Wainwright Bank:
"The Association of Affirmative Action Professionals has the pleasure of giving Wainwright Bank & Trust Company the Ray Frost Award. Before I ask Steven Young to come up and accept it, I'd like to tell you about some of the things that impressed us about Wainwright and the way they do business.
1. I have Visited 3 Wainwright Bank branches and the diversity of their staff is apparent the moment you walk in. Furthermore, it is made clear to prospective employees during the interviewing process that they will undoubtedly encounter people different than themselves if they work for Wainwright - customers who are different, staff members who are different, people of different races and ethnicity, as well as sexual orientation. Applicants are told that if they aren't comfortable with that diversity Wainwright probably isn't the place for them to work.
2. Wainwright's business philosophy is "doing
well by doing good". They don't measure their bottom
line by money alone. They hopefully will provide inspiration
to future leaders as a result of being written as a
case study by the Harvard Business School. The case
study focuses on the challenges and personal risks taken
by Chairman Bob Glassman and President John Plukas as
they pursued a socially progressive agenda.
3. Their progressive agenda includes a commitment to affordable housing, community development, women's rights and diversity. The Bank supports the gay and lesbian community and appointed and openly lesbian woman to its board of directors. They created the Wainwright Community Card MasterCard which gives 1% of the dollar amounts charged to non-profits serving the gay community and now also women's needs (such as Rosie's Place and the Boston Women's Fund). While Wainwright has less than 1% of the loan activity in Greater Boston, it provides over 60% of the financing for housing persons with HIV/AIDS.
4. Wainwright began publishing its newsletter "Creative Economy: Letter of Socially Responsible Banking" in 1990- on 100% post-consumer recycled paper, I might add. I encourage you to take a look at an issue to see how their philosophy permeates what they do.
5. Let me close with passing on the assessment of
"The Clean Yield Report", which analyzes and
applies social screens to companies for potential investors.
The Report reviewed the Bank for its labor and community
relations, environment and executive compensation records.
It concluded that "the long-term investor will
find Wainwright to be a prime example of social responsibility,
conferring a financial reward". The Report further
states, "A few banks, letting their conscience
be their guide, are beginning to explore alternatives
to the prosperous, Caucasian, heterosexual male as their
primary customer. These banks will be discovering rich
opportunity, but they inevitably will find that spunky
Wainwright Bank & Trust Company of Boston got there
first." And now I'd like to ask Steven Young, Sr.
Vice President, to accept the award for Wainwright Bank."
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