By Holly Nine
Sometimes things happen in life that we can’t explain. Sometimes good, sometimes bad. Having a friend is always a good thing, and having a co-worker who is also a friend is even better.
Clay County Bank’s president and vice president have been friends all throughout their lives. Greg Gency and Bret Stover have a unique story of their lives together: 46 years of memories to be exact. When they were just young children, Gency and Stover attended elementary school together, then junior high school and then high school, graduating in 1982.
Usually, when you graduate high school, everyone’s lives go separate ways and in most cases you may never see a classmate again. Not so for Gency and Stover! They attended college together at Glenville State College, graduating in 1986. They were roommates even roommates at Glenville for three years.
On September 22, 1986, Stover and Gency both spent their first day as employees of Clay County Bank. When Gency and Stover became employees, the bank had $35 million in assets. In December 1986 the branch in Two Run opened.
In March 2005, when Gency became president/CEO and Stover became vice president/CFO, the bank had $54.6 million in assets and $27.6 million in loans. Over the years, the bank has continued to grow, and today, the bank has $85 million in assets and nearly $52 million in loans.
Not only has the bank grown financially over the years, it has undergone renovations. Renovations to the interior and exterior of the main office began in January 2005, and they were complete in July 2005. Also, in the past 10 years, the bank has expanded its services to its customers by adding such products as telephone banking, internet banking and mobile banking.
Like many others in Clay County and surrounding areas, June 23 brought flood waters that left a lot of destruction to the bank. Flood waters got into the basement of the bank of the main office on Main Street, Clay. Three feet of water did extensive damages to the operations department, the board room, storage room, kitchen area and the phone system. After three months, the basement has been cleaned, restored, remodeled and is now back to normal.
The Clay County Bank has seen many blessings of growth over the years, even when things happen that none of us are in control over. Congratulations to both Bret and Greg for their 30 years of service to the Clay County Bank and we offer well wishes for their continued years at Clay County Bank.
