The Skophammer family became involved with the Farmers State Bank of Hartland in 1929, when Joseph Skophammer first became an employee. Over the decades, the Skophammer family eventually acquired all the bank stock. Joe Skophammer’s daughter Nancy Skophammer, became bank President in 2001 after Mr. Skophammer passed away at 94 years of age. Nancy led the bank through the financial crisis of 2008-2010 and helped grow the bank to more than $90 million in assets by 2012, the year of the bank’s 100th anniversary.

In 2013 two existing employees Daniel Otten and Mark Heinemann, formed a new bank holding company called Minnesota Community Bancshares, with the purpose of raising local funds to purchase all the bank shares from Nancy Skophammer and her two sisters, Mary Jo Wilcox and Diane Stockwell. Minnesota Community Bancshares obtained $7.6 million in funding commitments from 78 local investors through a Private Placement Offering in December of 2013. The purchase transaction was closed on April 11, 2014. Nancy has since retired and Daniel Otten, now CEO and Mark Heinemann, now President, are leading the bank into the future with a new board of directors, renewed energy and many of the same employees.