Alaska native, banker establishes roots in Kansas

Growing up in Alaska, Priest experienced plenty of cold, snow and long winter nights. All of which sounded pretty good as Wichita temperatures reached triple digits this week.

But Priest said he has adjusted to life in Hillsboro, where he lives with his wife, Krista, a school librarian, and their three children.

“Once those roots go down deep, it’s hard to get them out of there.”

Priest, 45, followed Krista to Kansas after meeting her while she was working a summer job in Alaska. He earned a journalism degree from Tabor College in Hillsboro, then a master’s degree in business administration from Friends University while working for Xerox.

Priest worked for Bank of America several years, then spent a dozen years as a financial examiner for the Office of the State Bank Commissioner. “I really enjoyed it, worked with a lot of good people and learned a lot.”

Last month, he took a job with Bankers’ Bank of Kansas, which offers services to more than 80 percent of the banks in Kansas. He assesses loan portfolios to help banks manage their risk.

“It’s real similar to what I did in examining (banks), just helping banks know what they’ve got their hands on.”

Priest enjoys taking walks with his wife and reading “everything I can get my hands on.” But he says much of his time is spent ferrying his children — daughter Macy, 13, plus sons Jayden, 17, and Gavin, 11 — to and from sporting events.

Joe Stumpe

This story was originally published July 12, 2017 at 1:59 PM with the headline "Alaska native, banker establishes roots in Kansas."