October 2, 2010; Source: Daily Comet | We all know the virtues of “giving back” to the community by donating time or money to charitable causes, but one bank in the Terrebonne Parish in Louisiana has taken the meaning of the phrase to heart. After winning the $10,000 grand prize in a charity raffle for the local nonprofit, Court Appointed Special Advocates of Terrebonne, Business First Bank turned around and wrote a check to CASA for . . . $10,000—the largest single donation the organization has ever received.

“It means a lot to us, with the scare of recession cuts to our budget,” said CASA’s Executive Director Stacey Martin. CASA of Terrebonne is a nonprofit organization that trains community volunteers to advocate for abused and neglected children in Terrebonne Parish who have been taken away from their caregivers and are working their way through the legal system.

“We were tickled to death that we won,” said Buddy Roemer, former Louisiana governor and president and CEO of Business First Bank. “I never win anything,” Roemer said. “But this is a win for us and a win for the community.”

Though I can’t imagine what else the bank would have done with the money it won, it was a well-played move for all involved, not least the children of Terrebonne.—Aaron Lester