Enjoying the good life in Montana, Ryan leads community bank in Jordan

Northwestern Financial Review, Nov 18, 2000 by Olmsted, Monte

When not helping ranchers get loans to expand operations, Jordan, Mont., banker Shelley Ryan can be found riding a four-- wheeler on the 7,500-acre family ranch, rounding up calves to ship them off to market, or fishing for walleye on Fort Peck Lake near this remote community that didn't see its first ATM until a year ago.

Chief executive officer of the $25 million Garfield County Bank, Ryan knows her customers because she knows her community, which relies on the business of cattle, sheep and small grains. She has to be knowledgeable because roughly 75 percent of the bank's loan portfolio is in agriculture in a county where cattle and sheep outnumber people by 55 times.

About 180 miles northeast of Billings, Jordan relies on Garfield County Bank for financial services since the nearest banking competition is 68 miles away in Circle. Leading the way is Ryan, who grew up on a ranch near Jordan and has been running the bank's day-to-day operations, holding company and insurance agency.

The 47-year-old Ryan learned about banking from the ground up when she started at the Jordan bank in bookkeeping in 1978. An accountant's assistant, Ryan got a call from the Jordan bank's president.

"That's how I got started. Little did I know I'd be here 23 years later," said Ryan. "Jobs in Jordan aren't plentiful, and they're all related to agriculture in some way. After I got here, I liked it."

She later became a teller, learning different facets of banking. "I can still do whatever needs to be done. Anybody I hire, I make them start out in the bookkeeping back room, so they can get the basics. I think everybody will agree it's a good education."

Five years ago, Ryan became the CEO after the sudden death of Charles Wendt. Her background and strong leadership foundation made her a natural pick. "It kind of happened. I'd done everything and knew what needed to be done. My responsibilities really didn't change a lot," Ryan said.

Bank president Harold Isaacs, a full-time rancher, said Ryan works well with employees and has done a "super job." "She's really honest and a straightforward person. She's also super-conscientious about her job."

Ryan remains well aware of the challenges facing small banks such as Garfield County Bank in a county with 1,600 residents. Increased competition, more regulations and customers clamoring for better service are among the issues that surface. "The banking world is changing pretty rapidly. Keeping up with regulations is something. Last year it was Y2K. This year it's privacy," Ryan said.

Keeping up with technology is another thing, but while Garfield County Bank will not likely pursue Internet banking, it does have an ATM. The venture is not a moneymaker, but is more of a convenience for customers and tourists who come to the area to fish on Fort Peck Dam along the Missouri River.

Not everything is peaceful and quiet in the Jordan area, as Ryan recalled her experiences in the notorious Montana Freemen case. Ryan played a role in the conviction of members from the Montana Freemen, an anti-government extremist group that believed its 18 members were not subject to federal and state laws. Nine defendants were convicted in two trials in 1998 for offenses against the nation's banking system.

Under the scheme, the Montana Freemen issued thousands of worthless checks for billions of dollars under such titles as comptroller warrants and certified money orders. The group issued about 3,000 of the bogus checks and, from their compound near Jordan, taught hundreds of people nationwide how to administer the hot check scheme.

"They tried to set up their own monetary system, basically," remembered Jordan, who testified three times in federal court in Billings.

She noted that Garfield County Bank did not suffer any losses as a result of the scheme.

Nobody said banking and the world connected to it would be easy, but Ryan has a firm grip on the goings-on at her bank. So when she needs to escape, Ryan, a grandmother of three, can be found organizing fishing tournaments for the area Walleyes Unlimited chapter, downhill skiing or working the family ranch.

By Monte Olmsted