YAKIMA — The Yakima Town Hall Speakers Series has received $3,500 from CoBank on behalf of Gene Batali, a member of the cooperative bank’s board. Batali is president of Batali Ranch Inc. and has been involved in valley agriculture most of his life.

The donation will be used to help Yakima Town Hall fulfill its mission of enriching the community by bringing nationally and internationally recognized speakers from the literary, political, artistic and business worlds to Yakima’s historic Capital Theatre. The 2011-2012 Yakima Town Hall lecture series includes speakers such as renowned primatologist Jane Goodall, acclaimed author and lecturer Brad Hirschfield, author and newspaper columnist Gina Barreca, and world famous physicist Dr. Michio Kaku.

“Our Town Hall Speaker Series could not exist without the generous support from companies like CoBank,” said Gail Davis, Yakima Town Hall president. “The series is important because it allows our community members to hear firsthand the diverse and rich stories of internationally renowned personalities and educators, providing an opportunity that wouldn’t otherwise be available in Yakima. This donation will enable us to continue to bring these speakers to Yakima and subsidize their appearances so that attendance is affordable for community members.”

“The Yakima Town Hall Speaker Series plays such an important role in enriching the greater Yakima community through informative, engaging and entertaining speakers,” Batali said. “As a participant and active supporter, I’m incredibly proud that CoBank is underwriting the series.” 

The gift is part of CoBank’s corporate giving program, which allows employees and board members to direct bank donations to their choice of non-profit organizations and programs. Through the program, CoBank donated more than $1.2 million last year to benefit local communities where its employees and directors live and work.

About CoBank: CoBank is a $69 billion cooperative bank serving vital industries across rural America. The bank provides loans, leases, export financing and other financial services to farmer-owned agricultural cooperatives, other agribusinesses and rural power, water and communications providers in all 50 states. 

CoBank is a member of the Farm Credit System, a nationwide network of banks and retail lending associations chartered to support the borrowing needs of U.S. agriculture and the nation’s rural economy. In addition to serving its direct borrowers, the bank also provides wholesale loans and other financial services to affiliated Farm Credit associations and other partners across the country. 

Headquartered outside Denver, Colorado, CoBank serves customers from regional banking centers across the U.S. and maintains an international representative office in Singapore. For more information about CoBank, visit the bank’s web site at www.cobank.com .