The United Way of Buffalo & Erie County is delighted to announce that Paulette Crooke, Regional President of Upstate Retail Banking for HSBC Bank USA, N.A., is serving as Chair of its 2008 Campaign.

Crooke joined HSBC in Syracuse, New York in 1973 and has worked in a number of functions including, retail banking, human resources, operations, and trade services. Crooke served as the District Executive for Downtown Manhattan, Rochester, and North Country Districts, overseeing all personal and small business activities for HSBC branches in those markets. Throughout her 35-year career at HSBC, she has worked in a variety of locations, including Watertown, Rochester, Syracuse, New York City and Buffalo.

Crooke is a member of the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors of the United Way of Buffalo & Erie County, a member of the Executive Committee of the Buffalo Zoo Board, Board member of the “HSBC in the Community” Foundation, Board member of the Western New York Clinical Information Exchange, Inc. (WYNCIE), and a member of the Advisory Council of the Buffalo District Small Business Administration. She has also held volunteer posts in each of the cities in which she has lived. In Buffalo, she has served as Chairman of the Personnel Committee of the United Way of Buffalo and Erie County, as well as Board member of the Arts Council of Buffalo and Villa Maria Academy. In Watertown she served as a Board Member for the United Way, Chamber of Commerce and Hospice. She also served on the Board of Crimestoppers in Rochester.

A native of Syracuse, she received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Mathematics from the College of Mount Saint Vincent in Riverdale, New York. She lives in Williamsville, New York with her husband Michael Toner and their son Ian.