Locals in the Limelight

This is a Cinderella story of sorts. Sprinkle in some fairy dust, a little luck, and a lot of hard work and you have the story of Rebecca Maddock. This young woman went from cleaning the bank to managing it. She is the manager of the new Washington Federal (formerly Bank of America) branch in Odessa. She has tenacity and perseverance and, by her own admission, "it wasn't going to be handed to me." This quiet, unassuming woman has always had a natural, high level of professionalism whenever you came into contact with her. She is driven, with an unwavering goal to be successful, balance time with her family and serve the community. She attributes her success to the mentorship of her former bosses, Mavis Smith and Carol Bell, the incredible support from the local community and the great team of associates she works with at the bank. These people, along with her husband and daughter, rallied behind her to jump through the necessary hoops so she could be promoted to her current position in 2012. She gives credit where credit is due, but to those of us who know her, she has earned it.

Rebecca German Maddock was born April 24, 1980, in Cottonwood, Ariz. She will tell you that on her dad's side, she is related to half the population of Camp Verde, which was eight miles away. Her parents, Robert and Shirley German, divorced when she was young, and her father was a spotty presence in her life. Her mother had been an Army brat and was comfortable with uprooting the family and moving around a lot, mostly for reasons of job opportunities. She did not remarry for 12 years, so was a single mother. Rebecca was the middle child, with one brother and one sister. She attended four schools in the seventh grade alone. She recalls living in Spokane, Medical Lake, Creston, Cheney and Airway Heights to name a few. As was the case with myself, her grandparents were her stability while growing up. They lived in Creston for over 20 years.

During high school, Rebecca wanted a change and spent a year and a half living with her father and a stepmother she had never met before. Her stepmother had five children, three of them still living at the house. Rebecca felt like she was right in the middle of her Cinderella story, being the caretaker of the kids, getting them up and off to school and doing most of the chores. She was barely getting by in school and being overworked at home. Although she made a concerted effort to get along with her stepmom, she was treated differently than the other kids. Shortly thereafter, an older daughter of her stepmom's also moved in with her three kids in tow. Miserable, Rebecca wrote her father a note, jumped out the window in the middle of the night and ran away. She called her mother requesting a plane ticket home. She and her father did not communicate for about three years after that.

Rebecca spent time living with her mother and then her grandmother in Creston. Fiercely determined to finish high school because her father said she wouldn't if she ever moved out of his home, she worked after school and continued her education. Her first job was working at McDonalds and then Zips in Ritzville, where she worked for several years. Rebecca had defined goals; she was going to break the cycle of dependency and instability in her family. She wanted security, to finish her education and be married only once during her lifetime. After graduation, she moved to Odessa in 1999. Through mutual friends, she met Daryl Costlow, the father of her daughter Destiny who was born in June of 2000. She explained that she knew deep down she knew they were not destined to marry and they split a year later. Although she became a single mom out on her own, she told me, "I wouldn't change a thing; it was all part of the plan...what put me here today."

Rebecca described herself as the new girl in town, somewhat of a loner. She played softball and met some new friends. Around the time of her 21st birthday, through a mutual friend, she met Don Maddock, her future husband who is 20 years her senior. Her daughter was a year old and she was working for the grocery store and the Odessa Inn Restaurant. "Don and I were friends. We would get together for coffee in the mornings, and he would come over for lunch when he worked at Odessa Trading Company. Don had been married before (with two older children) and was never going to remarry, especially anyone with a child," she laughed. Apparently, as they were hanging out, some jealousy surfaced regarding a 4th of July outing with another male friend. That is when Rebecca realized his feelings were deeper. Eventually, they moved in together. "It just made sense with all the time we were spending together."

We talked about the 20-year age difference, things like music from different decades. "The funny this is, I love his stuff!" she joked, telling me that he has always told her she was born two decades too late. Rebecca said the appeal of a stable, steady man who made her feel safe trumped any age difference between them. They went through some trying times, including Don being laid off from his job for four or five months. Rebecca took an additional job working for Odessa Office Equipment while still employed at the grocery store. That sparked her interest in computer science. When she was 23, she attended Big Bend Community College part time for two and half years, making the Dean's list every quarter. Don had landed a job with North Basin Seed and is still employed there. Due to gas expenses and child care, Rebecca decided to put school on the back burner to save some money. She cleaned the post office and subbed on the mail route. A job came open cleaning the bank and she took that on as well. She was pretty certain she was working four jobs at that time. In 2004, she was hired as a part time teller at the bank and continued cleaning the bank after hours.

When asked about how they ended up getting married, she said Don had her on the "five-year plan," which basically meant that if they could still put up with each other after five years, they would get married. Four years later, he pulled over in the pouring rain on the way home from Moses Lake to propose. They had worked hard to pay off some financial obligations, and apparently he felt comfortable with waiving one year. They married at the Hitching Post in Coeur d'Alene in 2005. A year later, Rebecca's mother passed away from leukemia and complications of a bone marrow transplant.

Last July, when Rebecca was informed via phone conference that 51 Bank of America banking centers (including Odessa's) had been sold to Washington Federal, she immediately went into investigative mode. She had never heard of them and was more than pleased to learn they are well established (close to 100 years old), and ranked as one of the top banks overall because of factors such as customer service, growth etc. "They take care of their employees and they care about small, local communities like ours," she said. Right now, you can go on their website and vote once a day to donate $5 towards the Odessa Ministerial Association. After our interview, I tried it; super simple. There is a green box at the bottom that says "Vote Now." I clicked on it and then selected OMA. The bank will donate up to $3,000 and the promotion ends January 31.

Life is good for the Maddocks. She describes her husband Don as a quiet, hardworking, supportive husband. After having a heart attack last April while dirt biking with his twin brother, Don immediately quit smoking and has a clean bill of health after a stent was put in. The family is eating heart healthy, and Rebecca has personally lost 25 pounds. Her best tip is to stay away from processed and canned foods. "Fresh or frozen is best," she said. They have done things like replacing chips with walnuts for snacks. She told me you can google your favorite food with the words heart healthy to come up with alternative recipes. She wants to quit smoking as well. She laughed and told me that she can tell exactly what kind of day she has by how many cigarettes she smoked. "Five is average, if I had a really stressful day I smoke about eight."

They have recently purchased a new home (the Gahringer house on the edge of town), and have been busy updating wiring, painting and remodeling. Her husband is handy, doing most of the plumbing and remodeling himself. Daughter Destiny is still unsure saying it is "farther away," which made us laugh because it is only about a mile, but kids get spoiled in small towns, walking only a block or two to the store. Describing having a teenage daughter as a "challenge," she is proud of her feisty, headstrong daughter who is not afraid to express her own opinion. They have a close relationship, and when she asserts her independence, it reminds Rebecca of a younger version of herself.

Not one to toot her own horn, Rebecca has strong computer skills and hopes to finish her college degree at some point. She could not say enough about the community support and patience during the recent bank transition. "We are truly a team and we have very loyal customers." One of the reasons she put her hat in the ring for manager was that she felt compelled to. "I had to try... because of the people I have worked for, the encouragement and trust they have put in me, to be someone they could look to, to get the service they need." People are always resistant to change, and even though the bank had been through a prior system conversion, there are always bugs to work out, and slower lines. "At least now I have a budget for things like pens (giveaways) and coffee for the customers while they wait," she noted, saying that is one of the advantages of working for a smaller bank. She is "thrilled," with the changeover and sees the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. She is so excited for the future with Washington Federal, their philanthropic philosophy and desire to be an active part of our community.

Following her husband's life-altering heart attack, she feels undeniably blessed. She is moving into a new home, has the job of her dreams, a daughter she adores and has found her prince charming. "I am here. I get to do this, really make a difference and help people." Rebecca's approach to life reminds me of a quote I heard once. "The harder I work, the luckier I get."