Pub. 3 2012 Issue 3

fall 2012 7 Meet Steve Morris Your 2012-13 Chairman How I got into the banking business: My cost accounting professor can- celed class and encouraged all of us to attend “career day.” I did, and I interviewed with a recruiter, Blair Amole, from the Office of the Comp- troller of the Currency (OCC). Blair asked me to visit the Regional Office in Richmond for some testing. I took the tests and before leaving, I was asked to interview with the Regional Director, John Hensell. He offered me a job on the spot and I accepted. One unique thing about my bank: We were founded in 1869, making us the second oldest charter in West Virginia. The one person who’s had the greatest influence on my career: Richard Adams. I’ve been fortunate enough to have worked for some of WV’s greatest bankers: Charlie Gates, Charleston National; Bob Baronner, Sr., One Valley Bank; Michael Perry, Key Centurion; and Richard Adams, United Bank. All of these men deserve our respect and admiration for what they’ve done for our industry and our state. But without question, I have been inf luenced the most by Richard. He’s a great leader and “listens” better than anyone I’ve met. Recent accomplishment: My greatest accomplishment, which is my most recent, has been leading Jefferson Security Bank through the greatest recession that any of us has seen. The Eastern Panhandle was hit hard. All of us in business today can be proud of what we’ve accom- plished. Since the fourth quarter of 2007, more than 460 banks, mostly community banks, have been closed by the regulators. We’re still here, supporting our communities, making money and paying dividends. First job: Babe Roberts Golf Shop, South Charleston, WV. I was a student at WVSC, now WVSU, and captain of the golf team. Biggest career break: Becoming the CFO of the Bank of Dunbar. Gaston Caperton had purchased the bank and needed a numbers guy to make it a higher per- forming bank. The toughest part of the job: I can’t think of anything that I don’t enjoy about my job. Sure there are challenges, but that’s why we do what we do; we enjoy the challenge. The best advice I ever received: From my golf coach at WV State, Art Burris: “Focus on the next shot, not the last shot.” Translation: “Every action is a new action and an oppor- tunity to perform well.” Advice you would give young bankers: Learn from the present, because it will become your past, and probably your future. Something else I would like to accomplish: Get back to a 5 handicap. Something about me not everyone knows: I believe in pre-destination. About my family: Kathy and I have been married for 43 years. We have two children, Stephen and Lynn, and 3 grandchildren, Evan, Liam and Mary Katherine (Babe). We all live two streets and a fairway from each other. Outside interests: Golf, any beach, and the Washington Redskins. Q A M ESSAGE FROM THE C HAIRMAN By K. Stephen Morris, President and CEO, Jefferson Security Bank