Personal Bankers of Little Rock: Mary Jane Lowman
April 27, 2017
Mary Jane Lowman (or simply M.J., which she prefers) started life in Cabot, Arkansas where she somehow survived growing up behind two “high- performer” older brothers! In 1979, M.J. graduated from Cabot High School and prepared for the next steps in her life.
She attended Ouachita Baptist University and found summer employment at the Bank of Cabot, an established community bank founded in 1903. (From both parents, she is a descendent of two of the founders.) When she wanted a car, her parents offered to match what she could save up from her summer job for a new car. They expected she’d appreciate and take care of it that way. MJ didn’t get her first car until age 21!
Upon graduating from Ouachita Baptist, M.J. moved to Little Rock and continued her banking career, taking a job with 1st American Bank in North Little Rock. After four years there, the bank was sold and M.J. left for Beach Abstract and Guaranty Company. In 1990 she was offered a chance to get back into banking on the ground floor of the newly formed Arkansas Bankers Bank. (If you’ve never heard of a bankers bank, it’s because neither individuals nor businesses can bank there – it’s strictly a bank designed to serve other banks.)
M.J. spent the next 23 years working for Arkansas Bankers Bank and learned much about human resources, operations, lending, and accounting. When Arkansas Bankers Bank was purchased by the Louisiana Bankers Bank, many changes followed. When M.J. was invited to leave, she did so in good spirits and with great curiosity in what the future had in store.
Responding to a need from the City of Little Rock Parks & Recreation Department, M.J. was thrilled for the opportunity to work with local teenagers in the Department’s “Parks Pioneers” program. About this, M.J. says, “It was a cool job, and I loved every second of it. We created summer jobs for local teenagers, which helped them learn the value of a dollar and hopefully keep them out of trouble. My pay was minimal and there were no benefits, so I knew it couldn’t be a long-term situation, but it was great while it lasted.”
In November of 2014, Lee Swearingen asked if M.J. would consider joining Bank of Little Rock. Although M.J. was a bit reluctant, given her previous experience with other banks, she took the job. “At the time, I was very apprehensive, but the fact is, I’ve loved being at Bank of Little Rock every day since day one,” she says.
At Bank of Little Rock, M.J. primarily handles Human Resources responsibilities, using the experience she gained at Arkansas Bankers Bank. For M.J., the hardest part of her job is the possibility of taking her job for granted. She says, “I respect the people I work with and work for – my situation is so consistently good that it would be easy to become complacent. I never want to do that!”
Outside of her banking career, M.J. is a self-diagnosed “total weather nerd.” She’s an official storm spotter, trained by the National Weather Service. She also loves gardening and making custom jewelry. Another of her loves is entertaining friends, and she’s happiest when she has folks over.
M.J. is devoted to her Maine Coon cats (she’s got four), the oldest and largest American breed. Her Maine Coons weigh in at 17, 18, 20 and 23 pounds! This large breed is distinguished by gigantic tails that are typically ringed like those on raccoons. This, along with the fact that they evolved in Maine, is how they got their name.
The thing that M.J. loves most about her work at Bank of Little Rock is the opportunity she has to help others, either in her H.R. capacity or otherwise. She’s a great Personal Banker and a very interesting lady. She drinks strong coffee and would enjoy sharing a cup with you at our downtown branch!