Sentinel photo by SIERRA BOLGER
Citizens Bank in Burnham has announced that it will close this December.

BURNHAM — At first glance, John “Jack” Heckert might have thought the letter from Citizens Bank was junk mail, offering some product or service he didn’t necessarily want or need. 

After reading the letter, the 91-year-old Reedsville man realized it was a bit more serious and his banking routine might have to change a bit.  

Heckert and other Citizens Bank customers received a notification that the Burnham branch, located at 308 N. Logan Blvd. would be shuttered at 12 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 13.  

The bank is near the Greater Lewistown Shopping Plaza. 

The one paragraph letter read, “We’ve enjoyed getting to know you at the Burnham branch on 308 North Logan Boulevard in Burnham, PA. We wanted to personally inform you that we will be closing on Wednesday, December 13, 2023, at 12:00 p.m. We want to make it as convenient as possible for you to continue to bank with us. So, although the Burnham branch won’t be available, you can still bank anytime using an ATM, online or mobile.” 

Heckert had been banking at the Burnham branch since the 1970s, when there was a different name on the door. 

Today, he banks in-person about once monthly. After the Burnham branch closes, the nearest Citizens Bank will be in State College. “Now everything is online,” Heckert said.  “I was concerned about switching banks and about my direct deposit for my social security.” 

He admits he was relieved to find out it was just the branch location and not the bank that was closing. “He thought he would have to move all his stuff out,” said Heckert’s son, Brian. 

Brian Rothrock of Lewistown received the same notice from Citizens Bank, but he wasn’t too upset or surprised by the news. 

Rothrock was dining out last week when he ran into two bank employees, who shared the news of the closure. 

It’s an inconvenience for Rothrock as Citizens Bank is the only place he can get the game-day Penn State booster buttons. Now, he will have to drive over the Seven Mountains instead of picking them up in Burnham. “There’s branches in State College,” he said. 

With more than 1,000 branches across 11 states, Citizens Bank announced last week that it is closing two in the Pittsburgh area in November after 14 others shuttered. The Pennsylvania closures came after the bank closed locations across the country, including several in August in New York. 

Citizens, which was founded in 1828 and headquartered in Providence, R.I., is not the only bank facing closures as more companies grapple with the effects of consumers choosing digital banking rather than going to brick-and-mortar branches. According to Crowdfund Insider, 1,144 bank branches have shuttered this year. 

As of the end of May, there were 78,121 bank branches in the U.S., but fewer and fewer people are visiting these branches when you can manage just about everything on a smartphone or computer. 

The following banks have closed branches in 2023: 

• PNC – 201 

• US Bank – 185 

• Wells Fargo – 160 

• JP Morgan Chase – 54 

• Bank of America – 49 

• Santander – 44 

• Citizens Bank – 38 

• Huntington Bank – 32 

• M&T Bank – 21 

• Fifth Third Bank – 19 

Similar to the horse and buggy, economists believe physical banks will eventually become few and far between. They say today’s consumers don’t want to spend the time driving to a branch then waiting for a teller, who offers a service they can do remotely.