Penn Community Bank CEO Jeane Vidoni honored for advocacy

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As CEO of Penn Community Bank, which holds $3 billion in assets and employs more than 300 people, it’s not surprising that Jeane Vidoni has earned her share of industry honors. 

Most recently, Vidoni was awarded the 2026 William S. Latoff Advocacy Award by the PA Bankers Association during PA Bankers Day at the State Capital.  

The award recognizes individuals who demonstrate excellence in advocacy as active policymakers for PA Bankers, outspoken champions for the banking industry, and committed supporters of the Pennsylvania Bankers Public Affairs Committee. 

But having been in the banking industry since 1983, she said she’s had plenty of time to earn a few accolades including being named to the Lehigh Valley Business Power Banking List. 

Still, she said she was honored by the recognition. 

 “It is truly humbling to receive the Pennsylvania Bankers Association William S. Latoff Advocacy Award,” Vidoni said. “I have long believed that community banking represents ‘Greater Good Banking’ in action — where financial institutions have both the opportunity and responsibility to strengthen the communities they serve. Advocacy is not simply about policy discussions in Harrisburg or Washington — it is about standing up every day for the customers, businesses, families, and neighborhoods that depend on strong, relationship-driven financial institutions. ” 

 She was quick to point out that she didn’t get to her current position alone. 

She started out in the marketing and advertising side of the banking industry, beginning at First National Bank in Allentown. 

She said that isn’t a track that usually leads to the role of CEO; people in the finance and lending end of banking are more likely to end up in the role. 

She credits great mentorship for getting her on the track for leadership. 

At a time when most women in banking were in teller roles and women made up just a handful of managers, Vidoni said people saw something in her and encouraged her. 

It’s something she’s never forgotten. 

“My mentors were both men and women,” she said. “Mentors often look for people who are showing leadership skills and try to work with them. That’s what happened to me.”  

And she said that’s what she tries to do for others that work at Penn Community. In fact, she said mentorship is an important part of her leadership style. 

By promoting from within, she said she knows those taking on larger roles have knowledge beyond their job description and understand the market they’re in. 

In fact, she was an internal promotion when she became CEO of Penn Community Bank in 2013. 

Did she always dream of being a bank CEO? Vidoni said she’s not sure that was her original goal, but she does remember going to a bank retreat when she was in her early 30s and was asked to write down her long-term goals.  

“I wrote that I wanted to be a bank president someday, so I must have been thinking along those lines,” Vidoni said. 

Navigating leadership of a bank is no easy task, however. She said with all the things changing in the world whether its technology, interest rates or geo-political concerns, a bank CEO needs to stay on top of what’s going on and adapt quickly, making sure all staff have the skills they need to keep up the changing marketplace. 

Her big joy right now is that Penn Community Bank, which is headquartered in Perkasie, moved into the Lehigh Valley in 2020 and it has become the bank’s fastest growing market. 

“It brings me back to where I started. To be back here is important to me,” she said. 

Besides her work at Penn Community Bank, Vidoni currently leads PA Bankers’ federal government relations committee and, in this capacity, serves as a member of the association’s Advocacy Committee. Previously, she served as chair of the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia’s Community Depository Institutions Advisory Council and was appointed by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System to serve as president of the national CDIAC, where she provided insight on banking and lending conditions affecting the economy.  

She also actively supports PaBPAC and regularly participates in advocacy efforts and industry initiatives.