Texas Border Business
Harlingen, TX— The Independent Bankers Association of Texas (IBAT)—the largest state community banking association in the nation—recently honored Texas Regional Bank (TRB) with the Best of Community Banking (BOCB) Award for community service. TRB received a Community Spirit award and Gold Eagle for its community service initiative, The TRB Signature Shrimp Boil.
IBAT confers service awards to member banks who identify and fulfill needs in their communities. Submissions for the category were accepted statewide for community banking service initiatives, civic programs, food banks, adopt-a-school programs, crisis management, senior citizen outreach, and more.
Gold Eagle Award: TRB’s Signature Shrimp Boil
The TRB Signature Shrimp Boil Program began as a community service initiative ten years ago but has since evolved into a cornerstone of TRB’s core mission to be ‘the people you know’ in the communities they serve. The program originated as a way of fostering community relationships through community service while also creating opportunities to invest in local businesses and nonprofits.
Through the program, the bank donates shrimp boils to nonprofit organizations—for upwards of 30 people each—as in-kind auction items, which enables the nonprofits to raise significant funds selling the events at auction to various community stakeholders, small businesses, and local organizations. Such was the case for the Make-A-Wish Foundation, which granted two children’s wishes by selling shrimp boils at auction in 2023. True to their mission of community success across Texas, TRB locally sources as much of their supplies as possible, even purchasing their fresh Gulf shrimp from local merchants in Port Isabel.
Michael Scaief, Chairman and CEO of TRB, shared that the significance of the program is rooted in TRBs mission and values, demonstrating how community banks like TRB nurture meaningful relationships across the communities they serve. “Our Signature Shrimp Boils are based on strategic partnerships with local nonprofits, and not only are our local TRB Teams boiling and serving the shrimp themselves, but as the nonprofits auction these events, local businesses are buying them, creating opportunities for small business to support their local nonprofits. The synergy of this approach to service is a cornerstone of the continued success of our shrimp boils, and it really showcases how collective engagement strengthens both our organization and the broader community,” shared Scaief.
“Watch TRB’s video highlighting their Signature Shrimp Boil initiative.” Password for external viewers: “trb”.
Program Impacts Boiling Over
In 2023, TRB hosted 30 shrimp boils, serving 600 pounds of shrimp to more than 1,000 attendees and raising over $85,000 for local nonprofits. The program highlights TRB’s commitment to engaging with communities, supporting local causes, and fostering employee involvement beyond traditional banking. Shrimp boils typically raise an average of $2,500 at auction, with some going as high as $7,000. Over the past decade, TRB has hosted over 100 shrimp boils, building significant goodwill across multiple market areas.
The initiative’s success is driven by word-of-mouth, with many repeat buyers contributing to its growing popularity. The program embodies TRB’s ethos of being ‘the people you know’ in the communities we serve. Jamie Brown-Rosas,TRB’s Chief Business Development Officer, said “the Signature Shrimp Boils across the state offer local business, nonprofits, our employees, and those we all serve an opportunity to come together as members of one collective supporting a cause they all share—our communities.” The boils underpin one of the bank’s primary beliefs, that ‘we succeed when our communities succeed’. “If a nonprofit wins, our community wins, and we feel like we are winning, too,” said Brown-Rosas. Through this initiative, TRB continues to strengthen its role as a vital community partner while making a tangible difference in the lives of local residents.
