Truckin' on the Western Branch

TowneBank started in a FROG? While a surprising number of successful businesses—including Amazon, Disney, Mattel, Hewett-Packard, Google, and Yankee Candle—were started in someone’s garage, TowneBank was born in the frog (finished room over the garage) of Chairman and CEO G. Robert Aston. From his home in Churchland, Aston steered the energies of his team of banking colleagues to develop a new bank. In 15 years TowneBank evolved into a family of companies providing a full range of financial services as well as insurance, real estate, and property management services. His original team included R. Scott Morgan, William A. Copeland Jr., U. Starr Oliver, William T. Hodsden, Keith D. Horton, Judy D. Moody Stephenson, Dawn S. Glynn, Peggy U. Moser, Ruth W. Guthrie, J. Morgan Davis, P. Ward Robinett, Clyde E. McFarland Jr., and Sandra S. Dresch.

Launched in April 1999 with 90 employees, the organization grew to its current 1,757 employees and a $137 million payroll. BAUERFINANCIAL, Inc., a leading independent bank and credit union rating and research firm, calls TowneBank one of the strongest financial institutions in the nation.

Aston grew up in banking from the age of 16 when he worked after school at Citizens Trust in downtown Portsmouth. After graduating from Cradock High School, he joined the small bank full time and was exposed to every job there. He was named bank president in 1980. When the bank was sold five years later, he went to Commerce Bank of Virginia and took Scott Morgan and half a dozen other employees with him. That bank would later become part of BB&T.

But as successful as he was, Aston felt the confines of a larger, more bureaucratic work environment. He missed the opportunity to be creative and the ability to get new ideas in place without going through multiple layers of approvals and changes.

Previous page: The Garage Gang, left to right Sitting:William A. Copeland (Buddy), R. Scott Morgan, Margaret Moser (Peggy), Keith D. Horton, Dawn S. Glynn, Clyde E. McFarland, Jr., J. Morgan Davis left to right Standing: Judy Stephenson, William T. Hodsden (Bill), U. Starr Oliver, G Robert Aston, Jr., (Bob), P. Ward Robinett, Sandra Dresch, Ruth Guthrie. Images by Sheally

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