What a Week it Has Been

The last 7 days have been a whirlwind for the Nelson Family. On Friday at 4:00pm my whole bank was called into the Board Room and informed that the FDIC was shutting our bank down. We were then informed that another institution out of California purchased us. We were then asked to work all weekend long helping the FDIC get everything they needed so the transition could go quickly and smoothly. We had been expecting something like this to happen so it was no Big surprise but the events that happened after 4:00pm on Friday were all unknown and terribly stressful. I called Chris after the meeting and let him know what was going on and that I would not be home till pretty late that night. Being the supportive husband he is, Chris took it like a champ. From 4:30pm till 9:00pm on Friday I worked my butt off getting the FDIC random reports and providing anyone that walked into my office with as much useful information I could. There were probably about 90-100 FDIC workers here and that alone was stressful. Whenever I would go somewhere there was always about 10-15 people in the hallways and many more doing other things. I left the bank around 9:00pm and headed home to a very tired husband and two sleeping children. I was told that when the kids found out I wouldn’t be home Ethan went into the other room and pouted, saying he just wanted his mommy to come home! I nearly cried when I heard that, it made me feel so special and loved especially at this crazy moment for this mother! Amazing how quickly we can be brought back to reality and what is really important in this life! Saturday it was back to work as well. I worked from around 8:20am till 5:40pm doing the same thing as the night before. My wonderful husband was such a good sport. He was home with the kids alone all day long and I never got one complaint! I felt horrible having him spend his whole weekend without me there to help out, but he was great! At 11:00am there was a mandatory meeting for all bank employees to attend. In this meeting FDIC, their HR consultant and the new bank, Plaza, explained their benefits and all kinds of crazy and stressful things. My good friend and co-worker (the kids call her Grandma Cindy) asked me how I was doing after the meeting and I said, “I just want to find a corner and cry!” to which she replied, “me too!” Cindy and I are tough, we are not criers; however after the information overload we had just received we were ready to cry, so instead we went to the break room and ate lunch! Amazing how food can help you forget your worries! Part of the meeting went over how we all needed to provide our license and Social Security Card to prove we were legal to work in the USA. I wasn’t too worried about this until I was unable to locate my Social Security card. I checked my Safe Box, had Chris check a few places at home and then the stress really started to set in. We were finally able to find my birth certificate which would also work so that stress went away, but then the stress of not knowing what our Health insurance was going to be set in. Luckily the FDIC kept me really busy and I was not able to think about that much. After I left work on Saturday I meet the Blackburn family and my family for dinner. It was nice to be out of the bank but I was exhausted and so ready to climb into bed. Sunday I went in to give the HR lady a copy of my birth certificate and ended up working pretty hard for about three hours. Around 11:30am I told them I had to go home to go to church and I left. What a nice surprise I found when I got home, the kids were both asleep and I had about 45 minutes to nap, so I did! Monday thru today has been pretty crazy. The new bank is here and trying to get to know us as best as possible. They ended up letting a total of 7 people go, which for a takeover like this is pretty small. Each day I have waited to hear my work status. At one point someone told me I would be getting a 90 day contract and then that never happened. Each night I went home more stressed and worried about what the future held for me and my little family.

Today at 12:30pm I was asked to go into my supervisor’s office. I was then informed that Plaza Bank was offering me a permanent position at the same pay, only changing my job title from Compliance Officer to Operations Officer. I signed my little heart away and with that signature about a million pounds worth of stress was taken off my shoulders. The past 7 days have been some of the toughest I have faced as a person, a provider and an employee. It really is no fun wondering if you are still going to have a job the next day, week or month. But for now those worries are over with and a new chapter starts in my employment book. (as a side note, I was paid time and a half all weekend long, so that should be a pretty nice little bonus paycheck!) I will be glad to see Saturday come and stay HOME with my husband and kids!