The Shadow
Highlands Community Bank has hired a new president and CEO: Robert E. Hemsath. Hemsath has been in the banking industry since February 1999, when he became Regional President and Director of the 1st National Bank of Nevada in Reno when he was 34 years-old.
Prior to his presidency at the 1st National Bank of Nevada, Hemsath spent much of his time preparing for a CEO position which included obtaining his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Business Administration with Honors in 1987. He also obtained his Master of Business Administration with Distinction in 1992 and his MBA with distinction at Colorado Banking School in 1997.
Since his first position, Hemsath has branched out. “I’ve been a CEO in multiple banks,” he said during our sit-down. His banking experience includes his year-long stint at the 1st National Bank of Nevada in Reno, nearly 7 years as CEO, founder, president, and vice-chairman at Northern Nevada Bank, 2 years as a banking consultant and principal at Triple Eight Consulting Inc. in Nevada, 8 years as President/CEO of Security First Bank in Fresno, CA, and, for the past 8 years, he has been the President/CEO of MCBank (formerly Mills County State Bank) in Goldthwaite, TX.
Hemsath and his wife just moved to Covington, VA, on January 9th this year specifically for his new position at Highlands Community Bank. Since his arrival, he and his wife have been actively exploring the area and enjoying the sights and businesses our small community has to offer. “I am brand new,” Robert Hemsath said. “… The people have been great. They’ve been very helpful. Any question that I have, either in town or in the bank, people have pointed me in the right direction.”
Hemsath has also been pointed in the direction of Cucci’s, San Juan, Wal-Mart, and Victory Baptist Church in Clifton Forge where he and his wife, Monica, have already found a church home. “It’s been a very warm reception here,” he says. “People have been fantastic!”
