Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, January 19, 1994 TAG: 9401190044
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: B-8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MAG POFF STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Guy W. Byrd Jr., well-known in Roanoke banking, is returning to head the bank along with A. Wayne Lewis, formerly an executive of Dominion.
A news conference to unveil details of the drive to organize the bank has been called for 11 a.m. in Hopkins Planetarium at Center in the Square.
"I'm not in a position to respond to any questions" in advance of the conference, said John Lambert, whose public relations agency is handling the event.
But a source close to the group of Roanoke Valley residents organizing the bank confirmed that the drive to sell stock will be announced today.
The drive would make valley residents shareholders of the new bank.
Another source close to the group said it has talked about establishing a new bank "ever since First Union announced it was buying Dominion."
First Union Corp. of Charlotte, N.C., said in September 1992 it would acquire Roanoke-based Dominion Bankshares Corp. The merger was completed in March.
Byrd, who spent 13 years in banking in Roanoke, will become chief executive officer of the new bank, the sources said.
Byrd, a native of Greensboro, N.C., and graduate of Davidson College, came to Roanoke in February 1977 as executive vice president and regional executive officer of Bank of Virginia, now Signet Bank. Prior to that, he had worked for banks in New York and New Orleans.
Byrd, 52, moved to Colonial American National Bank of Roanoke as its president in 1988.
After the merger of Colonial American with Crestar Bank the following year, Byrd was named executive vice president of Crestar's western region.
He left Roanoke in December 1989 to become president and chief executive officer of The National Bank of Commerce at Charleston, W.Va.
Byrd resigned from that position several days ago to coordinate the stock drive for the new Roanoke bank.
While he was in Roanoke, Byrd was a member of the Roanoke School Board. He also was president of Mill Mountain Theatre, Downtown Roanoke Inc. and the Roanoke Valley Science Museum.
Lewis was executive vice president and corporate secretary of Dominion Bankshares until his job was abolished in the merger with First Union. Under plans for the proposed new bank, he would be a senior manager; his title has not been announced.
Lewis, a Roanoke native and graduate of Roanoke College, worked for Dominion for 31 years.
by CNB