Personal Banking Key to our success was the yearlong promotion of a low rate home equity line of credit. As a result, our home equity lines increased by 44% over 2001.  Washington Trust’s core deposits set  a new record, exceeding $1 billion, thanks  in part to the acquisition of First Bank and Trust. A bank-wide marketing campaign, launched to promote our new presence in Providence and Cranston, stimulated new business throughout our market area and attracted additional dollars from both new and existing customers. The Bank’s website, www.washtrust.com, took on a new  look and feel in 2002, aimed at improving navigation and offering online loan  applications. The site’s new Financial Resources section includes articles on  subjects pertaining to personal banking, business banking, trust services, and  investment services. It also includes a short ith mortgage rates dipping to 40-year lows in 2002, Washington Trust’s retail lending department enjoyed a record year, doubling the projections set forth at the beginning of the year and exceeding the record set in 2001 by nearly one-third. As we entered the traditionally  busy late spring and summer months, we successfully introduced our mortgage and home equity line products in our new  markets in the greater Providence area and central Rhode Island. While home equity loan/line business was burgeoning through- out our market area, an important portion  of that business can be attributed to our  new presence in the cities of Providence  and Cranston, R.I. ten Housing additions and home  improvements were popular with  our customers in 2002, as they took  advantage of historically low interest  rates and skyrocketing home values  to refinance or obtain home equity  loans and lines of credit. At Washington Trust we  know that, more than anything else, helping people today  means providing exceptional  service backed by knowledge, experience and personal  attention to detail.