Spotlight On Joe Kiefer II Of “Visit Evansville” 

By Michael L. Smith, Jr. 

This series of interviews aims to find Evansville locals making a positive impact on the community through their hard work and bravery to showcase their amazing contributions. 

This week I had the opportunity to speak with Joe Kiefer II, Evansville Teachers Federal Credit Union Financial Advisor and the President of the Board of Commissioners of “Visit Evansville”. 

Tell Us About a Little about Yourself & Your Work 

I’m married to a lovely woman named Emily. She’s from Louisville, KY. We met there when I was going to grad school. We have three beautiful daughters: Adeline, who is five and a half; Josie, who is 2 and a half; and Isabella, who was born September 2021. #GirlDad 

It can be a wild household, but it’s fun. The girls have been a great experience for me, and it’s terrific being a parent. My family and my girls mean everything to me. Everything I do inevitably comes back to them. They are my Why! 

I work as a Financial Advisor with Evansville Teachers Financial Group (ETFG) located at Evansville Teachers Federal Credit Union. I guide individuals and families through the income planning process, typically for retirement. Ideally, we are working with them throughout the transition into retirement and everything that comes after. It’s about relationships at ETFG – we are with our clients every step of the way! Additionally, I was just promoted to Program Manager on January 1, 2022. As Program Manager, I am responsible for leading the Evansville region’s Advisor and Administrative Teams. This includes strategic planning; recruiting; and developing personnel, while creating a working environment that surpasses members’ needs. 

I was born and raised in Evansville. I attended Methodist Temple for pre-school on Lincoln Avenue, then to St. Ben’s, and finally Memorial High School. So, a lot of my life was spent on Lincoln Avenue. After high school, I went to Bellarmine University in Louisville. (I always joke about how my life story might sound a little better if I went to the University of Evansville.) I earned a bachelor’s degree in Economics & Business as well as a Master’s of Business Administration. My experience away from home was valuable. I loved my time in Louisville and at Bellarmine; I learned a lot and created a lot of friendships. But I always had this sense of hometown pride and felt a calling to come back to Evansville. Luckily, I have a lot of families here which made coming back an easy decision. 

I’m also the Booster Club president at Memorial High School. We are expanding the club this year into more of a full-fledged Booster Club – formalizing the experience some. We’ve got young people getting involved and even some of the older folks, the OGs so to speak, are coming back out to help. It’s been super exciting to be part of this expansion and to get that energy back up. Most importantly the additional revenue we can raise will go to scholarships and help offset the hidden costs of tuition. 

The skills I’ve developed at ETFCU, at the Booster Club, and having coached at Memorial for 6 years are all very transferable to “Visit Evansville”. I was appointed to the “Visit Evansville” 

Board of Commissioners back in 2015. Where I started to where I am now, as President of the Board, has involved a lot of learning and a lot of change. It’s a dynamic Board and staff. We have a lot of influence in the community. There are a lot of Boards in the community that is more “behind the curtains”, where people don’t really get to see what they are accomplishing for Evansville and Vanderburgh County. What makes “Visit Evansville” unique is the level of transparency. We are often that front page paper kind of storyline, which can be exciting! We are the official tourism arm of the community and are charged with telling Evansville’s and our surrounding region’s story to those who don’t live here. That comes with a lot of responsibility. We are a quasi-governmental agency – we are funded by tax dollars, specifically innkeepers’ taxes. That’s the bulk of our revenue. Our main purpose is to increase tourism to Evansville – particularly overnight tourism. Stay at our hotels, shop at our stores, and eat at our restaurants. That tourism target is vast and includes conventions, leisure markets, sports, entertainment, etc. Tourism is exciting! Most people can get behind tourism without being asked – people tend to understand the necessity for it. That innate support for our core mission makes this a very lively organization. 

How is “Visit Evansville” trying to accomplish its goals within the community? 

I can talk a little about some recent projects and strategies. When we hired Jim Wood, our previous CEO, we decided that we wanted a playbook. We felt, at the time, we were reactive when we wanted to be proactive. Not that we didn’t have good projects – we had some amazing projects we were able to support financially – Mesker Zoo and the Deaconess Aquatic Center are two recent examples. Regarding our longer-term planning and vision, we wanted to ensure we were taking a proactive approach. We wanted to create a specific plan. So, that’s where this 10-year playbook came in. Jim Wood and his staff at the time did a wonderful job of putting that playbook together with the Board. 

Now that we have Alexis Berggren coming in, we have this playbook that tells us what the community needs to succeed over the next ten years – how to draw more tourism in and how to leverage what we are already good at. Although we have the playbook, we also must recognize we need the people – people who can go out and execute the vision. The staff we have on our team is beyond fantastic for exactly that. They are hard workers; they have an innovative mindset that keeps us continually asking how and why. I trust our tourism reach under Alexis and her staff will expand and become more diverse. 

In terms of projects, our bread and butter right now are youth sports and the Deaconess Sports Park. Obviously, the pandemic has come down hard on parents and kids, but despite the hardships we still have people engaging in youth sports and using the Sports Park. People are still traveling for sports despite the pandemic. Disclaimer – we are doing everything possible to be as safe as we can while facilitating the demand. Luckily, we have a facility in Evansville that can capture that energy and desire. That’s a huge thing we are going to continue to leverage. We are looking to expand the park and are currently doing a project to replace the turf. We want to maximize the time our kids can be out there playing, which will bring more people into the city. Right now, we are working on rendering some new ideas as we expand and potentially 

add some fields. It’s going to be vibrant. Although it’s a little early to be revealing too much about those plans, I am amped for it! 

How has the pandemic impacted you & your organization’s work for the city? 

As we all know, the pandemic has been a huge drain on everyone physically, mentally, and emotionally. ETFCU Financial Group saw substantial growth despite the hard times. A lot of the market was—and still is—stagnant, but our team managed to grow in terms of staff; assets under management; and clients. A lot of that growth must be credited to our amazing team, but we must also credit our ability to be present with our clients in a safe manner. Evansville Teachers Federal Credit Union has done an excellent job of providing a safe work environment while allowing us to continue to work in the office and meet people face-to-face. Maintaining that face-to-face connection with our clients is important. We have an outstanding culture. We aren’t making transactions, we are creating and maintaining relationships. 

With “Visit Evansville”, it was some of the same things helping us succeed. We have a great culture at “Visit Evansville”. Our staff desires to be successful and we (the board) want to provide the tools to allow that to happen. It has been challenging. Tourism was one of the hardest-hit industries of the pandemic. The biggest brunt of that hit was from a convention standpoint, with some of our biggest events like Frog Follies being canceled or postponed. Those were massive, sell-out weekends that we lost. We also lost smaller events that used to fill the gaps between bigger events. It was a heavy hit. Organizations in that realm deal with a lot of liability when hosting events. They were (and are continuing to be) very cautious bringing people together from different parts of the country. 

We have managed to remain competitive in certain areas, areas that have helped us weather the storm so to speak, like the Deaconess Sports Park and the Goebel Soccer fields and other events orchestrated by Eric Marvin and Sports Corp. If we had lost those events the situation would have been even worse. The successes in those areas have kept us afloat. Parents and kids, they aren’t willing to sacrifice sports. They are going to find a place no matter what to keep that part of their travel schedule. If we can facilitate that – capture those opportunities while maintaining a safe environment – it would be silly to pass that up. Reflecting on where we stand today (after shutting down the economy and seeing the tourism and leisure industries being crushed) I’m tickled to be where we are. We are very well positioned to commission projects that are going to bring to Evansville into the future. 

What motivates you to continue your good work? 

I’m the type of person who likes to stay busy. I’d be a little freaked out if I wasn’t involved with things, especially within the community I live and grew up in. I’m blessed to be 32 years old and President of the Board of “Visit Evansville”, and I don’t take that for granted. Part of the community aspect is pride in the place you live. If I had stayed in Louisville after college I would have gotten involved there as well, but I still feel this sense of hometown pride for Evansville. That can’t be created—it’s organic and unique to each community. It makes it a bit easier when you can say, “Hey, I was born here.” I want to be able to say someday that I was part of the growth here. There are a lot of fantastic things going on in the city. 

I constantly want to grow, not be stagnate. I’m motivated by having a voice. I want to clarify; I never seek a situation where I am given a voice. What I seek is an opportunity to earn a voice, to earn influence. I’ve worked hard in every role I’ve been in. I dig in. I don’t just show up to the Board meetings and coast through. I want to be involved and figure out how things work, how the organization works. More importantly – ask why things work the way they do. Understanding the Why, participating in the Why – that is the key. I want to bring new and fun ideas. I stay positive and try to infuse those things into the culture. I believe when you have that kind of attitude you will be successful in life. 

I’m not one who is going to be involved in twelve or thirteen different things and unable to devote sufficient time to any of them. I’m going to be involved in three or four different things, and I’m going to give 100% of myself to those endeavors. That’s what motivates me – having a voice, being involved in the community, meeting new people, and making new connections. We have an amazing community. 

What can our community do to better support “Visit Evansville”? 

Attitude is everything. When it comes to loving and being involved in your community, I’m going to borrow a saying from one of my clients: “Joe, I’m not a half glass full or a half glass empty kind of guy. I’m the guy that’s just happy he has a glass!” That really stayed with me. If this is your city, your community, don’t get lost in the negativity and the complaining. Instead, focus on the good – focus on what you can do to help better it. Having the right attitude is so important. Even if you don’t like what Evansville has to offer, focusing on the negatives and complaining without action isn’t going to do anything. It’s not going to better the community. If you want something changed, get involved, make your voice heard. 

The truth of the matter is we can build amazing facilities; we can create awesome events. But word of mouth is one of the biggest aspects of getting people involved and generating growth. Having the right mentality and attitude about your community enables that community to sell itself. Tell people about the things you like or care about. Try to stay positive and support what the community does. 

If USI or UE is having a big game and you like sports, try to make it to those games. When the visiting team comes to Evansville and sees a rowdy crowd supporting the home team they think, “Wow, this is a strong community.” It doesn’t have to be sports-related, it can be any of the events we put on, like Frog Follies or a bridge tournament. We are also welcome to new ideas. Get out and offer up what you think will make Evansville a better place. Share stories with people or get involved in the community wherever you can. Have a positive attitude and support the events you want to see more of in Evansville. That’s huge. 

FOOTNOTE: Check the background of this investment professional on FINRA’s BrokerCheck. 

Representatives are registered, securities sold, advisory services offered through CUNA Brokerage Services, Inc. (CBSI), member FINRA/SIPC, a registered broker/dealer, and investment advisor, which is not an affiliate of the credit union. CBSI is under contract with the financial institution to make securities available to members. Not NCUA/NCUSIF/FDIC insured, May Lose Value, No Financial Institution Guarantee. Not a deposit of any financial institution. FR-4243348.1-0122-0224