News Banner

Ledyard Bank Celebrates 35 Years with Founders Day Festivities and $35,000 Community Impact Awards

Thirty-five years ago, Ledyard Bank opened its doors with a simple promise: to be a true community partner. On May 22, 2026, the bank celebrates that milestone with a Founders Day celebration—and the launch of a new initiative that puts the power of giving directly into the community's hands.

Founder's Day: May 22 — Everyone's Invited, Join Us to Celebrate 35 Years!

All Ledyard Bank financial centers will open their doors for a day of celebration. Clients, neighbors, and community members are invited to stop by for cupcakes, coffee, party favors, and the kind of warmth that has defined the bank's relationships for 35 years. It's not just a party - it's a thank-you, three and a half decades in the making.

"As a community bank, our story has always been written alongside the people and organizations we serve," said Josephine Moran, President and Chief Executive Officer of Ledyard Bank. “Founders Day is a chance to say thank you—to our clients, our neighbors, and our employees—whose trust and partnership have allowed us to grow while staying true to our values.”

Introducing the 35th Anniversary Community Impact Awards

In honor of this milestone, Ledyard Bank is launching the 35th Anniversary Community Impact Awards—a $35,000 giving initiative symbolizing one thousand dollars for every year the bank has been part of these communities.

Here's how it works:

  • Ledyard employees handpicked six outstanding nonprofit organizations representing communities across the bank's footprint.
     
  • The six organizations are: Family Promise, Fueled By Kids, New England Healing Sports Association, NH Children’s Trust, NH-VT Palliative Services (The Hand to Heart Project), Upper Valley Habitat for Humanity.
     
  • All nonprofits will be featured at Ledyard financial centers, where visitors can learn their stories.
     
  • Community members vote—once per day from May 22 through July 1—at any financial center to help decide where the largest award goes. Learn where to vote here!
     
  • The nonprofit earning the most community votes receives $15,000, while every participating organization receives a meaningful donation, ensuring no mission goes unsupported.
     
  • The winner will be announced during the week of July 6, 2026.

"This initiative brings together everything that matters to us—our employees' passion, our communities' voices, and our shared belief in the power of local nonprofits to change lives," Moran added. "It's inspiring to see how our communities can come together to lift up these incredibly worthy organizations."

Looking Back — and Forward

Since 1991, Ledyard Bank has been rooted in a belief that a bank should know its neighbors by name, make decisions locally, and give back meaningfully. Those principles haven't changed — and neither has the commitment to the people and places that have made the journey possible.

As the bank marks 35 years, Founders Day and the Community Impact Awards are a celebration not of longevity, but of purpose — and an invitation for the community to help shape what comes next.

Visit any Ledyard Bank financial center on May 22 to join the celebration — and cast your first vote.