Fmb Names Odegard To Executive Roster

Ric Odegard has been appointed executive vice president and chief operating officer of Farmers & Merchants Bank.

He replaces Duane Brandenburg, who left Farmers & Merchants last month to join United Security Bank.

Odegard, who retired as divisional manager for Seafirst Bank in August 1995, said he has been filling the position on a temporary basis.

After talking over the bank’s options with President Jerry Lehman, he said, “I just decided to work a little more.”

Odegard said he committed to his new post for at least two years.

Since leaving Seafirst, Odegard also served an five-month stint as acting chief executive officer of Tidyman’s supermarkets. He remains on the grocery chain’s board.

He also acted as a consultant to Farmers & Merchants on several projects, he said, including expansion of the bank’s branch network.

That background will make the transition to his new post easier, Odegard said.

“I’ve gotten good insight into the bank,” he said.

Odegard said he retired from Seafirst on good terms. When he took on the consulting work for Farmers & Merchants, he said, he asked his former bosses to determine whether those duties constituted a conflict of interest. They indicated there was none, he said.

Odegard has served with a variety of community organizations, including the Spokane Area Chamber of Commerce, Momentum, YMCA and Spokane Community Colleges Foundation.

, DataTimes