Image courtesy of Greater Des Moines Partnership Facebook page

A business leader from Guthrie, Greene and Dallas counties was recently announced as a recipient of a prestigious honor.

Elizabeth “Liz” Garst will be inducted into the Iowa Business Hall of Fame. The Greater Des Moines Committee selected individuals for this honor because of their outstanding contributions to enhance and develop the business climate. 

Garst is the third-generation leader of the Garst Family Businesses. She is the president of Greene Investment Company, which is a single bank holding company with her family owning two banks, including Home State Bank and Raccoon Valley Bank. Garst has been able to grow those total bank assets from $250 million to over $750 million. Additionally, the Garst Family formed Whiterock Conservancy and in the past 15 years, Whiterock has grown to over 4,000 acres. 

Liz took the helm of the Garst Family Businesses in 2002, which included five banks, four holding companies, an insurance agency and 22 different land-owning entities. She is an advisor to the Environmental Law and Policy Center, is a member of the Guthrie County Democratic Central Committee and serves on the Iowa Environmental Council, Iowa Natural Resources Commission and the American Civil Liberties Union. 

Garst will be inducted along with Reynold Cramer who is the CEO of Fareway and Rick Tollakson who is the CEO of Hubbell Realty Company and Hubbell Extreme Build. A ceremony will be held on April 26th at the Meadows Events and Conference Center in Des Moines.