Community bankers around the country gathered in Washington, D.C., recently to discuss the latest challenges currently facing community banks across the country.

Lori Maley, president, chief executive officer (CEO) and vice chairman of the board of Bank of Bird-in-Hand, a wholly owned subsidiary of GELT Bancorp Inc., was among those who attended the ABA Community Bankers Council meeting held Nov. 11 to 13. During the event, the bankers talked at length about public policy, operations and business issues that might impact the nation's hometown banks and their communities.

Council members also had a chance to exchange ideas on ways to prevent and mitigate check fraud, manage net interest income and interest rate risk, attract and develop the next generation of bank leaders and many other business and operations best practices.

The ABA Community Bankers Council, which meets twice a year, is made up of approximately 100 bankers across the country from institutions with generally less than $5 billion in assets. Members are appointed by the ABA chair.

Maley, CPA, has served as vice chairman, president and CEO of Bank of Bird-in-Hand since March 1, 2017. Prior to that, she was the chief financial officer and executive officer, as well as assistant treasurer and assistant secretary, of the bank from its inception in 2013 until Feb. 28, 2017. She has also participated in several advisory boards throughout her banking career, including the FDIC Advisory Committee on Community Banking, the Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS) Advisory Board and the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia's Community Depository Institutions Advisory Council.

Bank of Bird-in-Hand has seven brick-and-mortar branches and three mobile branches serving Lancaster, Lebanon, Berks, Chester and northern Dauphin counties. For more information about Bank of Bird-in-Hand, visit http://www.bihbank.com.