There is a lot of bad press about banks just now, and some of it is deserved. However, our experience shows the good side of banks, and that story deserves to be told, too.

The flood in January 2005 on the Santa Clara River near St. George destroyed our house. We then had a mortgage with Wells Fargo on a non-existent house. We went to Wells Fargo and told them we still intended to pay off our mortgage, even though the house didn't exist, but if they had any programs to help victims of natural disasters, we would appreciate learning about it. Some time later, the local Wells Fargo bank told us that Wells Fargo had forgiven our mortgage, with no negative credit ratings applied to our financial status, and we could do whatever we wanted with the lot. That act of generosity saved us more than $100,000 at a time when we had lost our house.

So, when you hear bad press about banks, remember that some banks also deserve credit (no pun intended) for their good works.

Lois and Jack Worlton

Salt Lake City