When Charitable Giving Is More Than Writing a Check: First Utah Bank’s Giving Back Recap for 2025
2025 marked a significant milestone for First Utah Bank: nearly $800,000 in charitable contributions to local organizations in a single year, making it the largest in our history. But that number tells only part of the story.
Here at First Utah Bank, we don’t approach charitable giving like it’s a fixed line item in an annual budget. When the bank has a strong year, charitable contributions increase. Local charities receive more support, families gain more stability, kids get better educational opportunities – all of which fosters a more stable local economy.
That strengthened economy supports local businesses, and those thriving businesses contribute to a healthier banking environment. The cycle feeds itself.
The Philosophy Behind the Numbers
The underlying principle of First Utah Bank’s giving strategy is simple – in a local economy like ours, everyone is connected. We’re lending in the same towns and neighborhoods where we live and work.
Amy Foulks, President and CEO, says that by focusing charitable giving efforts on addressing food insecurity and supporting women and children, First Utah Bank is helping to create more stability in the local economy.
“We understand that with less homelessness, less food insecurity, and more focus on getting children educated, those contributions that we make will help our economy flourish.”
For business owners, this philosophy translates into working with a bank that has a genuine stake in local economic health. “The shareholders of First Utah Bank feel really strongly about the need to give back to our community,” says Foulks. “As we have had success over the last several decades, our ability to donate more money to our community has increased each year.”
Where Culture and Community Meet
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You can walk into First Utah Bank’s offices and ask any employee about the bank’s charitable giving, and they’ll likely tell you exactly which organizations receive support, how much impact those donations make, and how they personally contribute. What’s exceptional here is that this level of engagement isn’t something we mandate, it’s organic.
“The thing that’s really spectacular is that our employees are interested in the efforts that we’re making,” Foulks says. “They take great pride in working for an organization that cares deeply about the community and puts so much effort into giving back.”
This past Christmas, First Utah Bank organized a drive for charities supporting young children by providing holiday gifts. “We supported 400 children this year, more than we ever have before,” she says. “Every single one of our employees were participating by purchasing books and baby dolls and trains and all sorts of things these kids wanted.”
They loaded everything into trucks and delivered them to partner organizations so parents could give their kids a magical Christmas morning. “To watch everyone get together and get excited about that was just phenomenal. It makes a huge difference to our culture internally, and for our employees to know what’s important to their employer.”
When your banker genuinely cares about community outcomes, it changes how they approach your business challenges. At First Utah Bank, we understand that your success contributes to the larger economic picture.
Beyond the Donation
The difference between our approach and typical corporate giving shows up in what happens after the check gets written. Our employees volunteer their time serving on nonprofit boards, coaching local sports teams, and contributing to community organizations. Our financial literacy programs reach community members of all ages, from partnering with local schools to hosting workshops on budgeting and managing personal finances.
“It’s not just about the money that we give, it’s about knowing what that money did for those charities and for our community” says Foulks.
What Comes Next
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In 2026, First Utah Bank will continue its focus on charitable giving. “We have charities that depend upon us for funding in the coming year, as they did this past year, and we have budgeted for ongoing support,” Foulks says. “We will work hard to ensure we can continue to team up with the organizations supporting food insecurity, women, and children.”
This is what sets community banks apart from national institutions. When we talk about investing in the local economy, it’s on a very personal level. “As a local bank, we recognize that it is our obligation to take care of local folks, because we also know that our success depends on the success of others in our community,” Foulks says. “If we don’t have a successful and thriving economy, we don’t have a successful and thriving bank.”
As a customer, when you bank with First Utah Bank, you’re working with people who understand this connection. Our charitable giving program isn’t just an add-on to our business model, it’s part of how we operate. Because at the end of the day we’re all connected, and we can help build each other up for greater prosperity in our community.