As women in banking, it is important that we lift each other up and celebrate each other's accomplishments. The entire purpose of the Girl Banker blog is to do just that! The Girl Banker of the Week series serves as a way to highlight Girl Bankers everywhere by telling their stories and motivating and encouraging other women in banking. It also is a great way for women in banking to connect! Read below about this week's Girl Banker of the Week! Carrie Price | Director of Marketing | Southern Bancorp Banking wasn't the first career choice for Carrie Price right out of college. In fact, she never thought she would be a banker! In her words, "I didn't choose banking. Banking chose me." Upon her graduation from the University of Arkansas, Carrie thought she would work a banking gig temporarily until she figured out what she wanted to do for a career. Now, 14 years and 46 branches later, Carrie serves as the Director of Marketing for Southern Bancorp. She specializes in product development, advertisement and media placement, public relations and branding for both the bank and the nonprofits she supports and covers a market area that includes Arkansas and Mississippi. She combines her commitment to Southern’s community-centric mission and her role as a company ambassador with her own passion for community involvement. She is an active member of the Clark County community where she serves on numerous local and regional boards, including Downtown Arkadelphia, where she’s served as promotions co-chairman for 5 years. In this role, she’s helped plan large-scale events such as Arktoberfest, Crawfest and the Andy Allison Super Kids Mile Run, most of which enjoy participant levels numbering in the thousands. She has also served on the Battle of the Ravine Rally Committee for the entirety of its existence and as chair was chosen to accept the Nonprofit of the Year Award from Arkadelphia Regional Economic Development and Area Chamber of Commerce. A leader both within the company and in her community, Carrie was selected as a member of the inaugural class of Leadership Clark County, along with being an associate member of Junior Auxiliary and a member of Beta Sigma Phi. She’s an advocate for the public school system and is currently serving as the 2017-2018 Perritt Primary Parent Teacher Committee President where she successfully led a recent fundraising effort by the organization for much-needed technology and school security advancements for children pre-K through 1st grade. She is also a leader in promoting Southern Bancorp’s school savings program and assisting with the Arkadelphia Promise scholarship program, a project funded by Southern Bancorp and the Ross Foundation that sends high school graduates to college for free. Carrie is the epitome of an All-American girl and an A+ community banker. I met Carrie when we were both members of Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority at the U of A and always loved her energy, infectious smile and sweet demeanor. If you ask Carrie about her most important job, she would tell you it is being a momma to her 3 children, Emmett, Boyd and Cora June and wife to Nathan. MOTIVATION | "My children are my motivation. I want them to see that you can be a successful career and still be a rockstar momma!" Join me as we celebrate Carrie Price as this week's Girl Banker of the Week! Know someone who should be the next Girl Banker of the Week? Email nominations to thegirlbanker@gmail.com.