Pictured in the front row are residents of Burns Nursing Home. Pictured in the back row (L to R): John Aldridge, CB&S Bank Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer; Cecil Batchelor, Chairman of the Board of CB&S Bank; Matt Cooper, CB&S Bank Executive Vice President and Chief Sales Officer; and Mark DeArman, Burns Nursing Home Administrator.

Thanks to CB&S Bank, residents of Burns Nursing Home in Russellville will live in a safer and even more secure environment through a nationally recognized program.

CB&S Bank recently joined the Senior Housing Crime Prevention Foundation, Inc. (SHCPF) to help protect the residents of Burns Nursing Home by funding the Senior Crimestoppers program.

Senior Crimestoppers is a coordinated set of components that work together to create a zero tolerance for crime platform in senior housing facilities.

Components include personal lockboxes for the residents, cash rewards up to $1,000 paid anonymously for information about wrongdoing of any kind, and effective, on-going education and training for staff members and residents.

Studies have shown that crime against the elderly is a longstanding, constant battle that can be reduced and prevented through the operation of the Senior Crimestoppers program, which has been show to reduce all aspects of crime in participating facilities by 92 percent.

“Senior Crimestoppers is a way for an administrator to further enhance the lives of the residents they serve,” said Terry Rooker, president of Senior Crimestoppers.

“They all work very hard to provide safe, secure, comfortable living environments and their desire to implement the program is just one more example of this.

“Implementing this program does not mean that the facility currently has a crime problem, but that the administrator is proactively finding a way to keep problems from occurring in the future.”

Dennis Upchurch, president and chief executive officer of CB&S Bank, said CB&S was more than happy to provide the funding for this special program.

“CB&S Bank is proud to partner with The Senior Housing Crime Prevention Foundation, Inc. to provide the Senior Crimestoppers program for residents at Burns Nursing Home,” Upchurch said.

“It is a shame senior-citizen related crimes occur in our society today, but we are dedicated to doing our part in helping protect this great generation.

“Our goal is to help enhance the lives of residents by providing them a safe and secure environment.”

The SHCPF is a national organization that serves as a medium banks may use to fulfill their federally mandated Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) requirements through providing aid to low and moderate income individuals in their local community.

The Foundation’s mission is to provide safe and secure living environments for the nation’s senior nursing home residents, many of whom are low and moderate-income individuals, through the operation of the nationally-acclaimed Senior Crimestoppers program.

For more information about Senior Crimestoppers, contact Terry Rooker at 800-529-9096 or on the web at www.seniorcrimestoppers.org.