Wells Fargo campaign nets gift of $2,730 for Kyrene School District

By Tony Ku

At a time when tight budgets are a common theme and charitable contributions are practically unheard of, Wells Fargo is spreading the wealth.

In an effort to increase business while finding a way to support the community, several Tempe Wells Fargo branches donated $2,730 to the Kyrene School District.

“This supports our business philosophy,” said Susan Simper, Well Fargo’s Tempe market president.

“We ‘take’ in the form of business and then give back to the community.”

The campaign was initially started last year with the goal of registering as many new Wells Fargo customers as possible.

Instead of giving new checking-account or other first-time customers a personalized gift, $10 was donated for each to the local school district. More than 270 new customers signed up.

“It’s a wonderful gift for our district,” said board member Slade Mead.

The donation given to Kyrene was listed as “discretionary funding,” meaning that the district can choose how the money is allocated.

“This has been a really creative and effective campaign,” Simper said. “It’s really a win-win for both Wells Fargo and Kyrene.”

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