Florida Banking December 2022/January 2023

Serving its communities for 75 years CCB Community Bank

C CB Community Bank, founded in 1947 in Andalusia, Ala., celebrated its 75th anniversary in 2022 with gratitude for the support of its bankers and local communities. Today, the bank has two locations in Alabama and three locations in North Florida with branches in Crestview, Niceville, and most recently, DeFuniak Springs. The bank celebrated the milestone anniversary with “lots of cake and ice cream,” and luncheons at each of its branches serving both employees and the local community. The anniversary celebration culminated with a barbecue in the bank’s hometown and an outdoor concert featuring country music singer Lee Greenwood, which CCB Community Bank sponsored as a kickoff event welcoming the Vietnam Traveling Memorial Wall to town. Bank leadership believed this to be the perfect opportunity Andrews has been with CCB Community Bank for more than 20 years; he opened his first checking account with the bank, which was previously called Covington County Bank. Andrews assumed the position of CEO in 2020 when long-term CEO Tom Lane retired. Lane served as CEO for 38 years. “Tom Lane brought CCB Community Bank from $50 million in assets to where it is today,”Andrews said. Today, the bank has $608 million in assets. “He had a huge influence on this bank, and he was the driver of our expansion into Florida.” The bank honored Lane for his service during the 75th anniversary festivities earlier this year, as there were no opportunities for special events when he retired during the pandemic. In celebrating its milestone anniversary, CCB Community Bank felt it was important to include retirees and former employees as appreciation for their service. “We’ve had many long-term employees who have seen the bank grow, and they’ve been a big part of our success. It’s all about the people,” said Florida President Alan Wood. to show its gratitude for the community’s support. “We’ve been around for 75 years, and it’s because of the community and our bankers,” said CEO Michael Andrews.

Some employees have worked at CCB Community Bank for more than 40 years. With such loyalty and longevity, both Andrews and Wood agree their employees’ commitment to the bank’s mission of community involvement and strong corporate citizenship have played a key role in its success. “We’re all paddling in the same direction; there are no questions about our core values or where we’re going. Get involved, give back, be a part of the community… that’s what we’re all about,” Andrews said. Wood added: “We want to be visible and active with local organizations; we try to talk the talk and walk the walk. We encourage our employees to find a passion and to get involved with local community organizations.” One such community partnership is with the Emerald Coast Autism Center in Niceville. CCB

Community Bank financed its first facility (featured on the cover of this issue) and the organization recently broke ground on its second facility “Emerald Coast Learning Center,” located on the Northwest Florida State College campus. The non-profit organization is dedicated to educating and improving the lives of individuals with autism in Okaloosa and Walton counties and surrounding areas.

“WE’VE BEEN AROUND FOR 75 YEARS, AND IT’S BECAUSE OF THE COMMUNITY AND OUR BANKERS.”

- MICHAEL ANDREWS

“ECAC is helping our entire community. People are moving to this area because of the facility and what they’re doing. This organization is impacting lives, and for us to have just a small part in that is very satisfying,” Wood said. CCB Community Bank operates a local decision making model. Andrews and Wood believe that it’s important for each branch to have the autonomy to make decisions. “We want to be able to give our customers decisions in a prompt, timely manner,” Andrews said. “It doesn’t matter if it’s a $5,000 or a $5 million loan — it’s important to the person sitting across the desk, and therefore it’s important to us. We want to make sure that decisions are made by the people our customers are dealing with.” The bank also has an advisory board in Florida CCB Community Bank, Continued on page 10

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