UMB Bank invested $250,000 in three Lubbock nonprofits at the end of 2025, giving critical support to organizations serving the community and reflecting UMB’s commitment to supporting communities where it operates.

The gift was split among:

Habitat for Humanity Lubbock ($160,000)

Lubbock-Area United Way ($50,000)

East Lubbock Resident-Owned Business Initiative ($40,000)

“We’re honored to support our community by investing in organizations that are providing critical services and support to our local people,” said James Arnold, West Texas market president at UMB Bank. “We look forward to seeing these organizations and the individuals they serve continue to thrive for years to come.”

The gifts came at a critical time for all three organizations, each facing unique challenges in serving Lubbock’s most vulnerable populations. Arnold said the selection process involved input from local senior leadership, identifying organizations making a broad community impact.

Finishing what they started

For Habitat for Humanity, the timing was crucial. When Executive Director Christy Reeves answered the phone from UMB Bank in December, she expected a routine conversation. What she got instead was news of a $160,000 gift — the largest single donation the organization has received during her tenure.

“I just couldn’t believe it. We’ve gotten cumulative gifts from people over the years, but we’ve never just gotten a check for that amount. It was just incredible,” Reeves said.

The organization has been struggling to complete houses already under construction as building costs have doubled in recent years. Many builds in progress were stuck because costs continued to rise faster than they could raise funds.

“It was getting scary because we had homeowners waiting to get into their houses and we couldn’t keep up with the cost of supplies,” Reeves said.

The $160,000 will enable Habitat to complete multiple homes, including a house for a woman who has been waiting almost a year to move in. Reeves explains the gift will do more than house people; it will provide futures.

“When you get people stepping out of housing insecurity and get them a foothold, they go back to school, they advance their careers. It’s just a long-term gift that will go on and reward Lubbock for a long, long time,” Reeves said.

The gift’s unrestricted nature — meaning Habitat can use it for any operational need — makes it especially valuable. The organization plans to secure building materials now and store them to avoid further price increases, helping continue its mission of providing affordable homeownership to families who cannot afford to own a home.

Creating Career Pathways

For Reggie Dial, founder of East Lubbock Resident-Owned Business Initiative (ELROBI), the $40,000 gift represents validation of a vision he’s been building on since 2018. The organization runs a six-week, pre-apprenticeship program training Lubbock residents in skilled trades, including HVAC, plumbing and electrical work.

“When James said $40,000, I was pretty shocked and at the same time very thankful. There are other worthy organizations within our city that are deserving, but UMB chose us,” Dial said.

Dial, a Lubbock native and Navy veteran, started the program after recognizing a critical gap in the community. When visiting local schools as part of a program he helped run with Texas Tech’s College of Education, he discovered three out of every five students he spoke with didn’t want to attend college – a reversal from when he was growing up.

“We have to show students there are other ways to be successful without going to college, and this is one of those ways,” Dial said.

The number of youth (ages 15-24) not in education, employment, or training has gone down since spiking at almost 14 percent during COVID-19, but it still hovered at 11.5 percent in 2024.

While college may not be for everyone, it’s critically important for high school graduates to create a career plan, Dial explained.

The program has served approximately 300 students since its founding, with a 78 percent success rate. Most graduates stay in Lubbock, filling critical roles in high-demand industries. ELROBI partners with local banks to teach financial literacy alongside technical skills, emphasizing what Dial calls the “Circle of Success.”

“Our motto is not just a job, but a career. There’s a big difference between a job and a career,” he said.

Part of UMB’s gift will fund a comprehensive effort starting next month, which will help reach more people who need career pathways outside of traditional college and university options.

United Way

Lubbock United Way serves as a hub, connecting resources to more than 20 partnering agencies across the South Plains. This collaboration impacts thousands of families in the Lubbock community each year.

So, when the board heard UMB chose their organization as part of the year-end gift, they were excited to see how many partners they could help.

“Lubbock is a community that truly shows up for one another, especially in times of need,” said Tonya Gomez, marketing and communications director for Lubbock United Way. “There’s a strong spirit of generosity and collaboration here that makes this work both meaningful and personal.”

The UMB gift is a powerful vote of confidence in the organization’s mission and the work it’s been doing in West Texas since 1946, she said.

“While we’re still being intentional in the planning of how this gift will be used, we know it will strengthen our partner agencies and expand access to essential services,” she said.

A broader commitment

The Lubbock donations are part of UMB’s larger philanthropic strategy. The bank donated more than $6.4 million in 2025 across its markets, with a focus on communities where it operates. This year, Lubbock joined Dubuque, Iowa, and Albuquerque, New Mexico, as focus cities for the bank’s year-end giving.

“They wanted to do things that impacted the community holistically and broadly. These three nonprofits really touch a lot of needs in our community,” Arnold said.

Reeves said UMB’s commitment challenges assumptions about what happens when larger institutions acquire local banks.

“I think it’s so exciting because when bigger companies acquire banks that might’ve been local at one time, you worry and think, ‘Oh, now it’s not really local anymore.’ But here they are investing locally in these programs like ours,” she said.

Note: Sponsors who support Lubbock Lights with their advertising can get Sponsored Content stories based on their level of support. The Lubbock Lights news staff had no role in the creation or production of this story.

Related

Related posts