The Loomis Communities Announces New Resident Member of Board

SPRINGFIELD — The Loomis Communities announced a new resident member of its board of directors, Sanford Belden, who has resided at Loomis Village in South Hadley with his wife since 2018.

Belden retired in 2006 as the CEO of Community Bank System, a large-scale regional financial institution headquartered in Syracuse, N.Y., with 225 bank branches and a variety of other financial-services businesses in four states. He previously served as a senior executive in New York City at a large international bank, at a major national bank headquartered in Minneapolis, and with Farm Credit Banks, a government-sponsored entity.

Belden has served on more than 30 governance boards for both for-profit and not-for-profit entities throughout the U.S., including on the board of governors of the American Red Cross in Washington, D.C. Locally, he has served as a board member of Springfield Symphony Orchestra, Smith College, Kestrel Land Trust, and the Center for EcoTechnology. Additionally, he has served as chair of the Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts, Cooley Dickinson Hospital, and Pioneer Valley Habitat for Humanity.

In addition to his career working at financial institutions, Belden held a faculty position at Cornell University and earned a mid-career certification from Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth. Belden has bachelor’s, master’s and Ph.D. degrees in economics from Purdue University.

“We are fortunate to have so many people living in our communities with years of business, organizational, and philanthropic experience,” said Margaret Mantoni, president and CEO of the Loomis Communities. “Sandy Belden is one of those with a wealth of knowledge in so many areas, and we welcome his perspective as a resident member of the Loomis Community’s board.”