Jim Elco was waiting outside JP Morgan Chase Bank on the Avenue of the Fountains, peering inside to see if his wife had arrived at work. A surprise party was waiting for her and Jim wanted to make sure she had a perfect day celebrating her milestone year. He also wanted to make sure she knew it wasn’t his idea.

“She hates this kind of stuff, so I’m going to tell her I had nothing to do with this,” Jim said, who had absolutely everything to do with it.

Barbara Elco celebrates 25 years of service at the bank, predating the time when JP Morgan Chase Bank took over the space after acquiring Bank One in the summer of 2004.

“It’s a big part of my life, you know? It means a lot to me, the relationships that I’ve formed here,” Barbara said.

Barbara began working for Bank One as a teller, where she met her husband who walked in one day hoping to cash a business check.

“I made him mad because I didn’t do what he wanted,” Barbara recalled. The two started dating and later married in 2001, celebrating 21 years together in October.

“I can be myself in this place and relate to people the way I would outside the bank,” Barbara said. “I can be real and sincere and form genuine relationships with people.”

While Barbara creates lasting friendships with her customers, she does not hesitate to mention her intolerance of poorly behaved customers, taking on a sheriff of the West persona that has at times put unruly customers in their place.

“I’ll say, ‘I’m sorry, I’m not helping you unless you change your attitude,’” Barbara explains. “I think they respect that, too, because those are the ones that will come back because they know you’re sincere.”

The new Branch Manager at JP Morgan Chase, Tamara Betor, has only known Barbara for a few weeks, but her reputation has already left a lasting impression.

“I’ve gotten so much feedback, almost daily, about people coming in asking if [Barbara] is here and where she’s at,” Betor explained.

Some regulars will come in when Barbara is away and decide to come back only when she returns to work.

“She’s just so incredibly authentic,” Betor said, which draws customers to her. Betor points out that Barbara is an expert at diffusing tough situations and knows how to make people feel at ease.

Over the last two years, Barbara has taken a part-time role at the bank to spend more time with her granddaughter, and in a year from now, she plans to retire.

“It’s not just about getting the numbers…it’s beyond that. You have to be real,” Barbara said. “That’s what I really enjoy. That’s what I’m going to miss.”

For Barbara, the most important aspect of work is being genuine and making sure people feel valued and heard. In her mind, it’s what has brought her success in her role and what’s given her the energy to stick around for 25 years.

Besides her customers, Barbara does not fail to mention her coworkers who have been by her side all this time.

“We’re like a family here,” Barbara said. “We don’t always get along, you know, we sometimes get irritated with each other, but we’re family, so we get over it and we try to understand each other. We have a good team here. Everybody really does work together and care about each other.”

Barbara represents all that is good in a community like Fountain Hills, and her legacy of compassion, toughness and authenticity has touched everyone she encounters.

“I want to thank all of my customers for being a part of my life,” Barbara said. “I’m grateful for the relationships that I’ve built. It’s not about what I’ve done for them, it’s about what they gave to me.”