First Service Bank

When First Service Bank opened its Saline County location in January 2025, it placed a bet on one of the state’s growing areas.

A little more than eighteen months later, bank leaders say that bet is paying off.

“We’ve grown tremendously over the past year and a half,” said Megan Crist, senior real estate development officer for First Service Bank. “We’re exceeding what they thought we would do.”

Now First Service is taking another step. The bank is preparing for a permanent Saline County location, with plans to move into the new building in the first quarter of 2027.

For Saline County Market President Adam Eoff, the reason for investing in the area is simple. “There are a lot of good things happening in our community,” Eoff said. “It was just the right time and right place for us to open up a branch.”

Saline County continues attracting new residents and businesses. Benton and Bryant are growing, while their downtown areas have also seen new investment. But Eoff and Crist believe the County offers something beyond growth.

Crist points to strong local schools and the cost of living as reasons families are choosing Saline County. Eoff believes the area has kept something that can be difficult to hold onto as a community grows.

“It’s growing very fast, but at the same time, it still has that small town feel,” Eoff said. “Everybody knows everybody, and that’s what makes it so special.”

That local connection also shows up in the way residents support businesses. Eoff points to restaurants, boutiques, and other businesses across Benton and Bryant as examples. “People can come here and start their own businesses and get support from the community,” Eoff said.

First Service wants to be part of that same relationship.

Crist said the bank lends to local business owners and community leaders. Its employees also show up for local athletic events, serve on boards, and support community groups.

For Eoff, that involvement helps explain what First Service wants to offer in a County that already has plenty of banking choices.

“There are two things we really hone in on here for our Saline County branch,” Eoff said. “One is already in our name, so service is a big thing for us.”

The second is being a community partner.

“We want to support our customers. We want to support their businesses,” Eoff said. “We want to go buy things from them.”

First Service may be new to Saline County, but its Arkansas roots go back more than 60 years. The bank began in Dermott in 1962. Its headquarters moved to Greenbrier in 1999, and since then, First Service has continued to grow across Arkansas.

As the bank expands, Eoff and Crist say the goal is to keep the personal service of a community bank.

One leg of that strategy is Operation Red, White and Brave, a program created to support veterans, active-duty military members, and their families.

The effort has helped veterans with needs ranging from wheelchair ramps and home repairs to life-saving medical procedures. The program has raised over $750,000 for veterans, and First Service matches donations to Operation Red, White and Brave dollar-for-dollar.

For Eoff, the program helped show him what kind of bank he was joining. “Man, that’s a place I want to go work for,” Eoff recalled thinking when he learned about the bank’s community work.

“To be able to see that firsthand is something really special,” he added.

There is also a personal connection between the people leading First Service and the County the bank hopes to serve.

Eoff was born and raised in Saline County. He graduated from Benton High School in 2009 and later attended Arkansas State University. After college, he came home. Today, Eoff and his wife and high school sweetheart Megan are raising their son in the same community where they grew up.

“Saline County is home,” Eoff said. “It’s the only thing I’ve ever really known.”

Crist has her own deep roots in the County.

She grew up in Bryant and has worked in banking for 19 years, with experience in retail banking, mortgages, commercial banking, and business development. Her husband, Cody, also hails from Bryant. They are raising their two children in the community.

Putting a Benton graduate and a Bryant graduate in the same bank also creates some friendly competition. “I’m wearing blue. Adam’s wearing maroon,” Crist joked about the longtime Benton and Bryant rivalry.

But when it comes to business, Eoff says the line between the two cities disappears. He talks about Saline County as one community.

“You’ve got to have everybody to be successful,” Eoff said.

The bank currently operates from its location near Highway 5 and Springhill Road in Benton. Its planned permanent location will give First Service a larger stake in the community it entered in 2025.

And Eoff sees the bank’s growth extending beyond that first building.

Asked what he hopes to be talking about five years from now, Eoff said he would like to see stronger community relationships and continued growth. That could eventually mean another First Service location in Saline County.

Crist has the same goal. “I want people to realize who First Service is,” she said. “We’re getting out in the community, doing loans and getting deposits.”

For a bank that started more than six decades ago in Dermott, the idea is simple. First Service wants to grow in Saline County by becoming part of Saline County. And if this first year and a half is any sign, Eoff and Crist believe they are just getting started.