Richard E. Belcher, chairman and CEO of First Federal Savings Bank, Rochester, has been honored by the Indiana Bankers Association with the IBA Leaders in Banking Excellence award. The award, which celebrates exceptional leaders who have positively impacted Indiana banks and communities, was presented at a special ceremony at the bank in June. This month, six other Indiana bankers are to be inducted into the class of 2021 leaders at the IBA Annual Convention.
At the June ceremony, representatives from the IBA and Indiana banking community made presentations, and Belcher offered comments, reflecting on his career and community involvement. Additionally, he was presented with an ebony plaque etched with his portrait and biography. An identical crystal plaque is on permanent display at the IBA offices in Indianapolis. Click to view Dick Belcher’s comments from the award presentation.
The Leaders in Banking Excellence awards are the Association’s highest honor. For more information about the awards, visit indiana.bank/leaders-banking-excellence.
Biography: Richard E. Belcher founded First Federal Savings Bank, Rochester, out of the back of a grocery store in 1966 and today serves as chairman and CEO. His leadership includes service as 1985-86 chairman of the Indiana League of Savings Institutions, which later merged with the Indiana Bankers Association. In 2021 Belcher donated more than $3 million to multiple Fulton County nonprofits, culminating an estate plan created with his late wife, Suzanne. Belcher has been named Rochester Chamber of Commerce Outstanding Citizen, Northern Indiana Financial Entrepreneur of the Year, and he and Mrs. Belcher together earned the Rochester Community Service award and the Purdue University President’s Council Pinnacle award. In 2008, he spearheaded construction of the first LEEDcertified bank branch in Indiana. A member of the IBA 40 Year Club, Belcher is a graduate of Purdue University and a veteran of the U.S. Army.
Congratulations to the 2021 class of IBA Leaders in Banking Excellence: David B. Becker, First Internet Bank of Indiana, Fishers Richard E. Belcher, First Federal Savings Bank, Rochester Mark S. Fogt, Garrett State Bank David M. Geis, Jackson County Bank, Seymour James D. Neff, Horizon Bank, Michigan City Michael C. Rechin, First Merchants Bank, Muncie C. Michael Stegall, Community First Bank of Indiana, Kokomo
