Yesterday's Traditions. Tomorrow's Vision. 19 Convenient Locations www.fkc.bank Phone: 1.888.759.2266

Volume 3 - Issue 1 March 2021

Greetings! Making Connections and Corporate Culture At First Keystone Community Bank, we remain committed to connecting with each other and building a culture that will benefit our employees, customers, communities, and shareholders. As we continue our focus on meeting the challenges of increasing revenue from core operating functions and reducing expenses, all while improving our day-to-day interactions and increasing productivity, COVID-19 presented its own unique challenges in 2020. Thanks to our dedicated team of employees, we successfully executed our Business Continuity and Pandemic Plans. We continue to provide quality customer service and promote the benefits of banking with FKCB while being mindful that employee and customer safety is our number one concern. I am happy to share some highlights of the financial progress we made in 2020: Our total assets reached a high of just over $1.1 Billion dollars Our net loans grew by more than 11% to over $713 Million We provided 492 SBA Paycheck Protection Program loans for more than $32 Million Our net income grew over 15% to $11.8 Million Our Return on average Assets ratio grew to 1.09% and Return on average Equity grew to 8.61% In February 2021, the Board announced a special 1st Quarter dividend for our First Keystone Corporation shareholders FKCB is your community bank. We are passionate about giving generously to the communities we serve, via both corporate and individual employee donations. Our employee CONNECT donations in 2020 enabled us to provide $6,700 to local food banks throughout our markets. In a time when COVID and all of its ramifications were in the forefront, our employees thought not only of themselves and their families, but others in our communities. I am so very proud of them! For more than 156 years, we have been committed to listening to our customers’ needs. That mission remains true today. We recently launched our Financial Review program to help customers “Build the Good Life.” You can learn more about this in the articles found later in this newsletter. Be sure to schedule your free review soon! As always, we thank and recognize our employees, officers and Board of Directors for their continued outstanding efforts. We also thank you for your unwavering support and confidence. We look forward in 2021 and beyond to being a trusted partner in the lives of our customers and the communities we serve. Onward and Upward to Building the Good Life! Warmest Regards, Elaine A. Woodland

First Keystone Banker Receives Honor Student Recognition from PA Bankers Advanced School of Banking

We are very happy to announce that Lauren Duane, Vice President, Business Deposit Specialist, recently completed coursework at the 2020 Pennsylvania Bankers Association (PA Bankers) Advanced School of Banking, and graduated with honors from the program.

Lauren has served the banking industry for nine years. She started her career as a teller/customer service representative and quickly moved on to become the bank’s Business Deposit Specialist. In this position, she oversees the deposit needs of First Keystone Community Bank business customers. She installs and maintains credit card terminals and Remote Deposit Capture machines and is the primary contact for providing the Bank’s ACH services. PA Bankers Advanced School of Banking is a three-year program that teaches financial services knowledge and skills and paves the road for participants to become leaders at any level within their organization. The curriculum provides a greater understanding of the multiple banking disciplines and how those disciplines work together within the bank. It is comparable to 200-, 300- and 400 level college course study. “We are extremely proud of Lauren for her accomplishment of graduating from the PA Bankers Advanced School of Banking with honors. It is the culmination of three years of hard work. Lauren is a dedicated and valued member of the First Keystone team. The skills learned through the PA Bankers Advanced School of Banking will provide the foundation to enhance Lauren’s professional growth and become an asset to the banking industry,” says Jonathan Littlewood, Vice President, Chief Lending Officer. CONGRATULATIONS LAUREN!

MAKE TIME FOR A BANKING SERVICES REVIEW

At the start of the New Year, you probably made some resolutions. Was reviewing your finances one of them? A banking services review is a very important task that should be done at least once a year. We recommend you go over all aspects of your finances and make a financial plan to ensure you are on the right track to "Build the good life!" Life is ever changing and so should your financial plan.  A good place to start is to evaluate your personal situation. Has anything changed that would impact your finances?

Each of these life events can alter your overall financial picture and create the need for you to rethink your financial path. There's no doubt reviewing your finances can be a complicated process it's OK to ask for help. We have experts who specialize in financial, retirement, estate and trust planning. We can review your banking services and guide you through the process to ensure you have all the right banking products to give you a more prosperous financial future.

IRS FREE FILE CAN SAVE YOU MONEY

Looking for ways to save money? One way is by using IRS Free File to do your taxes. Free File offers online tax preparation, direct deposit of refunds and electronic filing, at no cost. Not only can IRS Free File save money, the software can help find tax benefits that may reduce the amount of tax owed or increase the amount of a refund. Here are some things to know about Free File and the tax benefits that can put money in taxpayers' pockets.  IRS Free File is available to taxpayers whose 2020 adjusted gross income was $72,000 or less.  Using Free File can help taxpayers figuring things like their earned income tax credit, child and dependent care credit, and recovery rebate credit. If someone is eligible for a recovery rebate credit – and either didn’t receive Economic Impact Payments or received less than the full amounts – they must file a 2020 tax return to claim the credit even if they don’t usually file.  If a taxpayer’s income was higher than $72,000, they can use Free File Fillable Forms. Electronic filing, including Free File, is the best way to avoid pandemic-related paper delays. E-filing combined with direct deposit is the fastest way to get a refund. Free File is available on IRS.gov. Taxpayers can browse each of the nine offers to help find the product that best meets their needs.  Some products are available in Spanish.  MilTax online software is also available for the members of military and certain veterans, regardless of income, and is offered through the Department of Defense.  Taxpayers don’t have to be eligible for EITC to qualify for Free File. Any individual or married couple that meets the income limitation can qualify.  To avoid fees for state tax returns, taxpayers should look for a software provider that offers free state tax return preparation. People can also check out their state’s tax agency website to see if the state is a member of the State Free File program.  Visit the IRS website to learn more.

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LIVING THE GOOD LIFE!

The idea of living the good life is a core idea of philosophy, often described with a single Greek word, eudaimonia, which simply means aiming for the highest human good. Living the good life can mean something different for everyone. There is, however, a general understanding that in its basic form, living the good life is about the exploration of that which gives you joy and satisfaction. That could mean a balanced lifestyle, accomplishing goals and dreams which are beneficial to you and your loved ones, an education and having stability through relationships, work, health, and money. We wanted to share the following list which offers a variety of different perspectives on how to live the good life.

Slow down. Urgency and haste instantly diminish accuracy, awareness and happiness. Be braver than you feel. Achievement doesn’t come with ease or comfort. Be kind to others and practice gratitude. Be kind to everyone you meet. No matter how they treat you, you can always be polite, smile and offer help. Stop worrying about the future. By constantly thinking about what might happen, you miss out on the present moment. Get Active. Exercise releases endorphins, which are natural pain-relieving and stress-busting chemicals. Meet new people. Expanding your support system will introduce you to new ideas and perspectives and insure that you have resources to get through tough times. Explore new places. New places and cultures offer a different perspective on the world and add a healthy dose of inspiration and possibility to our lives. Keep a wish list. It keeps your dreams alive and stops them from fizzling out as a forgotten thought. Focus on yourself. Other people will always be on hand to offer up their opinions and advice. Ultimately, it’s you who has to live with the consequences of your decisions. Make time to relax. Making time to relax and reconnect with ourselves leaves us better equipped to deal with more challenging periods in life. Make time for gratitude. Creating a routine of writing down three things you feel grateful for each day helps you focus more on what’s good in your life. Celebrate small wins. Make time to celebrate your wins no matter how small, and focus on enjoying the journey rather than the destination. Keep learning. Every day is a chance to learn something new about the life you wish to attain or the person your wish to become. Give back. Spending time on activities that make a difference to others, through pursuits like volunteering, helps instill a sense of meaning and purpose in our lives. Make a financial plan. Once a year, go over all aspects of your finances and make a financial plan using the SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time bound) method. This will help keep you on the right track to accomplish your financial goals. Exercise your five senses. Sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch each provide a gateway to rewarding personal experiences. Use them to make you understand what it means to be a living, breathing human being. Be spontaneous. Opportunity sometimes knocks at unexpected times. Make sure you have enough flexibility in your schedule to respond accordingly. Use what you have. Don’t focus on what you don’t have, focus on what you do have and how it can help you get the rest. Keep your promises. Stay true to your word as that is what your character is based off of and how you will always be remembered. Always find the positive lesson. Every negative outcome holds a positive lesson. Remembering them is the key to greatness. Forget perfection, find satisfaction. Instead of always searching for perfection, strive for the things that satisfy your individual wants and needs. Laugh. As the old saying goes, those who laugh more are the ones who live a longer, happier life. Foster and nurture relationships. A happy and fulfilling life is a life that is shared with people that you enjoy being around the most. Cherish those relationships and treat your friends as you would like to be treated. Your Family. Invest in them. Inspire them. Take care of them. As a prophet once said, “There are many virtues and values, but here’s the greatest one: one person caring for another.” There is no greater value than love. Enjoy a part of every day and life’s simple pleasures. Make sure in your busy day to remember the true purpose and the reasons you do what you do. May you truly live the kind of life that will bring the fruit and rewards you desire.

GOT YOUR COVID-19 VACCINE?  GREAT JOB! BUT DON'T SHARE A PHOTO OF YOUR VACCINE CARD ON SOCIAL MEDIA

The self-identifying information on the card makes you vulnerable to identity theft and can help scammers create phony versions. WHAT TO WATCH OUT FOR: You got your COVID-19 inoculation, and you are excited to share the good news and encourage others to do the same. You take a selfie holding your vaccination card and post it to Facebook, Instagram, or another social media platform. Unfortunately, your card has your full name and birthday on it, as well as information about where you got your vaccine. If your social media privacy settings aren’t set high, you may be giving valuable information away for anyone to use. Sharing your personal information isn’t the only issue. Scammers in Great Britain were caught selling fake vaccination cards on eBay and TikTok. It’s only a matter of time before similar cons come to the United States and Canada. Posting photos of your card can help provide scammers with information they can use to create and sell phony ones. SHARE SAFELY ON SOCIAL MEDIA:    Share your vaccine sticker instead. If you want to post about your vaccine, there are safer ways to do it. You can share a photo of your vaccine sticker. Review your security settings. Check your security settings on all social media platforms to see what you are sharing and with whom. If you only want friends and family to see your posts, be sure that’s how your privacy settings are configured.  Be wary of answering popular social media prompts. Sharing your vaccine photo is just the latest social trend. Think twice before participating in other viral personal posts, such as listing all the cars you’ve owned (including makes/model years), favorite songs, and top 10 TV shows. Some of these “favorite things” are commonly used passwords or security questions. Better Business Bureau has identified many ways in which scammers are cashing in on the COVID-19 pandemic. Learn more about vaccine scams, clinical trial scams, contract tracing cons, counterfeit face masks, and government agency imposters.

Visit the BBB website for more information about scams and how to avoid them.

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Take the 52 Week Savings Challenge!

When it comes to saving, lots of people struggle with both getting started and sticking to a plan. Others aren't sure how to set aside savings while still managing the rest of their financial obligations. If you need to jumpstart your savings, start building an emergency fund or just make saving one of your financial habits. The 52-Week Savings Challenge can provide a clear path to get you started. The basic principles of the 52 Week Savings Challenge are simple. You start by saving just $1 the first week of the challenge. The next week, put away $2, and the next, $3. Continue increasing your savings by $1 every week. By the end of the challenge, you are saving more than $50 a week, bringing your total amount saved to just under $1,400 by the end of the year. Benefits of the 52 Week Savings Challenge. There are several small strategies built into the 52-Week Challenge that work together to make saving money easier. Starting small: It feels a lot more manageable to find $1 to save for a week than to say you'll save $100 for the month. If you feel daunted by the prospect of saving, the challenge helps you build toward larger amounts by starting small. Build momentum: As you work toward a financial goal, you gain momentum and see more results each week. This can encourage you to keep saving and help you build a long-term habit. Save as you go: To reach the same savings goal, you’d have to save roughly $114 a month. Setting aside a few bucks a week is often more doable than finding $100 at the end of the month after you've paid all your bills. Stay flexible: If you are struggling to save, it may be because you have other pressing financial obligations, like paying off debt. Because you're only setting aside a small amount per week, the 52-Week Savings Challenge keeps your money flexible, rather than tying up hundreds or thousands of dollars all at once. Make it a game: Participating in a challenge, especially if you are doing it with a friend or group, can help make saving more fun. Rather than a difficult thing you have to do, it becomes a game that you want to win. Anyone can use these strategies to save money, even without the 52-Week Challenge. But the benefit of the challenge is that it builds them in, making saving more accessible and manageable from the beginning. Source: Rachel Catero Need a place to keep your savings? We offer several saving account options. Visit our website to find the one that is perfect for you.

Savings Accounts That Make Sense LEARN MORE

COME SEE US! We will be participating in the Pocono Home and Outdoor Living Show March 27th - 28th, 2021 Kalahari Resorts and Conventions Pocono Manor, PA

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19 CONVENIENT BANKING LOCATIONS FOR YOU!

Follow this link to find one near you. 111 W. Front Street | Berwick, PA 18603 | Toll Free: (888) 759-2266 ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌