First National Bank Announces Winners for 2017 Community First Awards

First National Bank (www.firstnational.com) has announced the winners for the 2017 Community First Awards, which recognize and celebrate nonprofit organizations who contribute to the success of communities across the bank’s service area.

Junior Achievement of Lincoln was selected as the runner-up for the Nebraska/South Dakota region and will receive a $2,500 cash donation. Junior Achievement of Lincoln empowers young people to own their economic success. They plan to use the funds to provide programs, taught by community role models that inspire the current generation of Nebraska’s Kindergarten through 12th grade students, to be financially capable and equipped to run businesses, lead nations, make discoveries and change the world.

The Yankton Sack Pack Program was selected as the winner for the Nebraska/South Dakota region and will receive a $10,000 cash donation.

Nominations for the 2017 Community First Awards were open to the public in July. The nominations were evaluated based on the nonprofit’s impact on community needs and positive presence in the community. The finalists were then presented for a public vote. One winner and one runner-up have been selected from each of the following areas: Nebraska/South Dakota, Kansas, Illinois and Colorado. The winning nonprofits in each area will receive a $10,000 cash donation and the runners-up a $2,500 cash donation. Overall, a total of 469 nominations were received and more than 33,500 public votes were cast. First National Bank will donate a total of $50,000 to the Community First Awards recipients.