Greg Allen taking charge of FEDC

FOSTORIA — When Greg Allen retired from banking, he wasn't finished working.With 37 years of banking experience and time spent on various economic-development boards, Allen, fresh off two months of retirement, joined on with the Fostoria Economic Development Corporation in September to become executive director of FEDC and the Fostoria Learning Center.He succeeds Renee Smith, who will depart at the end of the year along with FEDC Projects Director Sarah Stephens Krupp to run the consulting business they recently started, Thrive Community Partners."The last 27 years, I worked for First Federal Bank, which became Premier Bank, which became WesBanco," said Allen, who retired as an executive vice president. "... This opportunity was discussed in the April, May time frame, when Renee announced that she was leaving. Some friends of mine who were on the board talked to me about the position — Tom Reineke, Ford Mennel, Mark Baker and John Schuld."I've got a certain amount of experience, at least from a board perspective — different economic-development boards," Allen said, noting that he's held such roles with FEDC and in Defiance, Allen County, Hancock County and Fort Wayne, Indiana. "But never actually as a combatant. I'm in the trenches now. It's a little bit different, being on a board to being a doer."But, his "doing" experience is in the financial field, and that certainly accounts for plenty."My background's in commercial lending, so I have a pretty good idea of financials and understandings stuff that will work or not work," he said. "A lot of times, you can spin your wheels on some things that may not work, but we want to focus on things that will work. So, I think, also, from that perspective, I have a lot of contacts in the business community, probably throughout northwest Ohio, northeast Indiana. Also, from the political sphere, I've been very involved in supporting people in that period of time, too. Hoperfully, we'll see if we can garner some support for different projects that we see happening in the future here in Fostoria."Allen is gathering the thoughts of others while having some particulars in mind."It's very hard sometimes to go from zero to 10," he said. "If you break it down, you can do it step by step by step to figure out how you can make that happen."Though he now lives closer to Findlay, Allen said he feels a connection to Fostoria from having previously lived in the city and he sees his new position as an opportunity to give back."I've always had a heart for Fostoria," he said. "My wife and I lived here back in 1994 through '98 and I've had long-term relationships with a lot of different clients from a banking perspective here in Fostoria for 30 years. So, I've always enjoyed the community. I think we're very fortunate that Renee and Sarah have left the organization in very good shape. From a financial perspective, the Fostoria Learning Center's been a phenomenal success; we're cash-flow positive. At the same time, we're a very-well-supported organization by the community, from the Fostoria Economic Development Corporation standpoint. So, I'm very fortunate that Renee and Sarah have done a great job. It's a position of strength, and, hopefully, just through my contacts and relationships I can help foster different opportunities for economic growth for the business community in Fostoria."Smith and Stephens Krupp said they've received the support of FEDC's executive board as they complete their contractual obligations to the organization while moving forward with their personal endeavor."We will still be involved in (FEDC) in 2026, but we will be involved in more of a limited capacity and it will be more behind the scenes," Smith said. "So, we will still handle certain things, special projects. We have some projects that are currently going on; we will carry those through 2026 and we will continue to be available to assist Greg and (Chamber/Small Business Director) Crystal (Laird) in their new roles because we want this transition to be as smooth as possible. So, we will still be around. We'll still be involved. It's just going to look a little different."Smith and Stephens Krupp each spent a total of about 13 years working for FEDC and the Fostoria Area Chamber of Commerce, with Stephens Krupp working in two separate stints. Much of their time was spent working together, which resulted in a friendship and cohesiveness that spawned the creation of their new business."That business has been growing to a point where we kind of had to make a decision whether we'd continue to run that business on the side or pursue it full-time," Stephens Krupp said. "So, beginning in January 2026, we are pursuing that venture full-time."It's a lot of the things that we have been able to do here in Fostoria that we've learned and we've grown and found success in. We kind of have a unique skill set that we think can benefit other communities. So, we are working with other communities in other states and across Ohio, doing things like economic development, grants writing, strategic planning, small business and entrepreneurship. We're really excited, and that's what we're embarking on."