20 Under 40: Chloe Tirabasso

Summit Bank

As a finance professional in our community, I have the immense privilege of working alongside remarkable local businesses, arts and nonprofit organizations. I am continually inspired and humbled by their innovation, fortitude and compassion. The Eugene/Springfield community has been my mentor and my advocate. I see my professional growth as an opportunity to give back. This “giving back” philosophy and attitude is a fundamental part of leadership and also a big part of community banking. The more knowledge and opportunities I gain in my profession, the more fluent I become in the language of business, finance, arts and nonprofits, the better equipped I am to share knowledge with others.

Leadership is about using our strengths to empower others to accomplish together what would have been impossible individually. I couldn’t have learned this lesson at a better place than Summit Bank, a local community business bank headquartered in Eugene. Commercial lending and community finance have shown me that we are all intertwined, both socially and economically. Our successes and struggles are shared. It is only when we inclusively work together that our community grows and prospers. I am so grateful to the countless mentors, role models, clients, colleagues, board members, professors, elders, peers and children who have shared this wisdom with me, lifted me up to become the emerging leader that I am today and enabled me to better serve our community.

The word “leadership” comes from the old English word “lithan,” which literally means “to go.” Let’s go!