Oak View National Bank opens Flint Hill branch

Bringing back a ‘hometown bank’ feeling to Rappahannock County

After a soft opening last week, the team at the new Flint Hill branch of Oak View National Bank — and some new customers — seem excited about the grand opening next week as well as  the bank’s future in Rappahannock County.

The Flint Hill branch is the fourth full-service branch for the locally-owned community bank, which has a presence in Fauquier and Culpeper counties. The branch opened its doors ahead of schedule, and according to Jason Brady, the bank’s community president and senior vice president, it has already seen an uptick in new customers.

Ruthie Windsor-Mann, of Washington, said before she went into the new branch last week, she had no intention of changing banks. After a friend took her inside to introduce her to the tellers and managers, Windsor-Mann said she took a business card home and researched the bank. She saw “glowing” reviews of other branches online, and decided to go back in and talk about opening an account. 

“I had not even considered changing banks or anything … until I went in there and tried the new one,” Windsor-Mann said in an interview Tuesday. “It's personal service, it’s not centralized with some place in Richmond . . . I’ve never seen anything quite like it in a bank.”

Brady, a Rappahannock native, said one of the hallmarks of a community bank is personalized, convenient service. He started his career at Rappahannock National Bank, and after years in larger, national banks, Brady said he missed local banking and having one-on-one relationships with clients. He was hired by Oak View five years ago as a lender with a plan to open a branch once a customer base was built up, but when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Brady said the plans for a new branch were put on hold.

Now, about a week into its soft opening, word has spread quickly, and Brady said the Flint Hill branch is drawing more people than they expected. 

“It’s encouraging,” Brady said. “We did a survey earlier this year … and we had really overwhelming support on that. That just kind of blew us away, about how many people were really looking forward to getting back to the community bank, like Rappahannock National Bank had been. So we took the leap, and here we are.”

Brady said as local banks have been bought out or consolidated, more and more people are flocking to Oak View, the last “truly local” bank in the area, seeking a “hometown bank” to work with. He hopes that this fourth branch can foster the same welcoming, community-centered environment that the Culpeper, Marshall and Warrenton branches have. 

Windsor-Mann said her experience at Oak View was different from other banks she has worked with. Each time she has gone into the branch, she said she has been greeted energetically and received a handwritten note from the staff when she opened her account. She said she has heard similar positive accounts from other people in Rappahannock who use the bank.

“It’s one of those things, I didn’t really know I had a problem with [banking] until I tried this,” she said. “[Oak View] is really a world of difference. I can’t put my finger on it other than to say it's so friendly … I’m sold on it, I’ve been telling everybody.”

“Everybody who works here knows each other, it's a big family… it’s a community feel,” Brady said. “I've been here five years, it's been great getting back to a community bank, and I think it’s not only valuable to me as an employer, but to the community, to help them with their financial needs.”

Oak View’s grand opening

The new branch is located at 644 Zachary Taylor Highway, Flint Hill. Grand opening festivities are planned throughout next week, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony, ice cream truck and lunch on Tuesday, Sept. 10. More information on grand opening events and hours can be found on the Oak View National Bank Facebook page.