While the poor economy prompted some of the nation’s largest banks and financial services firms to cut back on charitable giving last year, several community banks in Massachusetts found ways to give more – and benefit themselves, too.

Pittsfield-based Berkshire Bank awarded $1.3 million in grants to nonprofit organizations in western Massachusetts, Vermont and New York in 2011.

But the 2011 total doesn’t just represent an increase in dollars compared to 2010, during which the bank gave $817,077.

In 2011, Berkshire acquired Legacy Bancorp – and its foundation, which gave about $300,000 annually, according to Berkshire spokesman Lori Gazzillo. Also during the year, flooding ravaged Vermont and Upstate New York, where Legacy did business before the acquisition.

“Needs are increasing, so we tried hard to hold steady, or increase, funding,” Gazzillo said. In all, Berkshire gave grants to more than 280 organizations last year.

Charitable giving is good for the communities banks serve, banks say. But it’s also a good opportunity for banks to affix their names on a variety of good deeds prospective customers will associate with the bank. In that sense, making grants to nonprofit organizations, while inherently valuable, must be done in combination with the kinds of sponsorships that afford a higher profile.

“Supporting nonprofits is something that’s recognized by nonprofits,” Gazzillo said. “Sponsorships are a different kind of recognition. You might be recognized at an event, or have a banner at an event.”

Self Serving

That distinction was also recognized by Ralph Valente, senior vice president and director of marketing at Rockland Trust.

Over the years, Rockland has developed a variety of ways to donate to nonprofits. In addition to simply giving money, the bank also encourages employees to volunteer and serve on the boards of community organizations.

In the last three years, the bank established its Rock CORP, or “Community Outreach Program,” which allows individuals to directly ask the bank for assistance through a dedicated website.

As a result, Rockland staff has completed several projects, including some community gardening, Valente said.

“We jump in our Rockland Trust van and spend the day hoeing and digging. We’ve got our Rockland Trust shirts on…it all ties together,” Valente told Banker & Tradesman. “It’s important to get our name out there.”

With that in mind, Rockland “reorganized a little bit” the way it considers requests for donations.

If it’s going to use the opportunities to give money, time and effort to the community, it also wants to be visible in places and situations where its largesse will likely benefit the bank.

So, the bank gives to nonprofits that serve its footprint, and it tends to prefer giving to local organizations that focus on youth and families – or at the very least, national organizations that have strong, visible local chapters, like the United Way.

In some ways, those partnerships can provide the most bang for the bank’s buck.

Recently, Valente and Rockland Trust CEO Christopher Oddleifson recorded a radio message for the United Way. Valente wouldn’t provide specific details, but said giving levels have remained steady at Rockland for the last few years.

The stability, or in some cases the increase, in charitable giving at community banks is a bit of a contrast with the nation’s largest banks and financial services firms. For example,The Daily Mail in London recently reported severe cuts in charitable grants from Goldman Sachs, which gave $78 million to charity in 2011. That’s a large number – but it gave $320 million in 2010 and $500 million in 2009.

Bank of America has perhaps played it safer. It gave $200 million each year between 2006 and 2010. It hasn’t yet released giving totals for 2011.