Columbia Bank celebrates rebranding

MOSES LAKE — With a snip of the scissors and a burst of confetti, Columbia Bank presented its new face to the community Wednesday at a ribbon-cutting and open house. 

“I've been trying to reintroduce our bank to the community, building it back up, giving it a new vibe, making sure that it's one that's positive and helpful and all of those things,” Branch Manager Kristine Bailey said. 

Columbia Bank has actually been in Moses Lake for many years, said Community Manager Brooke Knight. The building at 104 E. Fourth Ave. was previously Sterling Bank, but Sterling was acquired by Umpqua Bank in 2014, according to Federal Reserve records. Umpqua has been a subsidiary of Columbia Bank since a 2023 merger, but the local branch kept the Umpqua name until this month, Knight said. 

“(Having two names) has gotten confusing, so now we’re realigning and making everything Columbia,” Knight said. “We’ve already merged and changed everything except now, a couple of years later, we’re changing the name.” 

The merger has given Columbia Bank a wider range of services to offer, said Branch Manager Kristine Bailey. 

“A lot of people don't understand that we can literally help them from an infant savings account to their personal, their business, their commercial (banking), all the way up through helping them get through their trust, their wealth. It's a lifetime umbrella of things that we can offer.” 

Columbia Bank has an especially versatile business banking focus, Bailey said, that the local branch is benefiting from. 

“Businesses, I have found, have a positive reaction to us,” she said. “We take the time to do reviews with them, to find out what's changed with your business, what kind of things are happening with you, what are some things coming up? Because it may open up an opportunity to say, ‘Hey, you may need this. And they say, ‘Oh my gosh, we are going to need that. Thank you for mentioning that.’ ... That's something that I take a lot of pride in, is getting to know not just the person, but the business that they're building.” 

Among the additions to Columbia’s lineup is specialized banking for health care professionals. 

“I’ve actually learned more about just within the last probably six to eight months, because I've been working with a local optometrist and we can help with practice purchases, bringing in new partners, lending,” Knight said. “Our specialists are healthcare industry (focused). That's where their knowledge is, and they're not out there handling other types of business.” 

“Our experts in this department … understand a dentist’s cash flow is going to be different than a flower shop,” Bailey said. “They can customize deals and packages that is going to work and fit their needs. The equipment that a doctor's office has is different from the equipment that a hay company has.” 

Bailey is a fairly recent transplant to Moses Lake, she said, having come to town last year from Spokane Valley. 

“I moved here for a boy,” she said. “He’s now my husband.” 

She and her husband, a teacher, enjoy hunting and fishing, she said, so the Moses Lake area is a good fit. They also enjoy the slower pace of Basin life.  

“It's a bigger area, but you still have those good connections here,” she said. 

Bailey’s emphasis on the personal has extended into the community, Knight said. The bank participated in a company-wide clothing drive last winter that netted a lot of clothing for New Hope and a Golden Scarf Award for Bailey, she said. Recently the bank held a pet adoption day in conjunction with Grant County Animal Outreach, which brought in $600 plus gift cards and pet food and allowed the team to spend time with some local shelter dogs. And Bailey volunteered this year at the Youth Dynamics Tater Dog booth at the Grant County Fair. 

“This girl has been busy,” Knight said. 

The bottom line is people, Bailey said. 

“We really keep our focus on relationships,” she said. “We don't want to just transact for you. We want to know who you are.” 

    Columbia Bank Community Manager Brooke Knight, left, and Branch Manager Kristine Bailey stand in the lobby of the newly-rechristened Columbia Bank in downtown Moses Lake. Knight is based in Ellensburg and oversees the branches there, in Cle Elum and in Moses Lake.
  

    The team at Columbia Bank in Moses Lake. From left: Customer Service Specialist Alex Nevarez, Community manager Brooke Knight, Customer Service Specialist II Daisy Sauza, Branch Manager Kristine Bailey, Assistant Branch Manager Chris Clagett, Personal Banker Emily Hurst, Regional Manager Kristina Whapeles and Customer Service Specialist Julie Reyes.