BB&T Corporation says that F. Dixon Whitworth Jr., has retired as president of its Winchester-based Blue Ridge Region. The bank has named John C. Williams, president of BB&T’s Lynchburg-based Virginia South Central Region, to succeed Whitworth.
BB&T divides its banking network into 33 autonomous community bank regions, each with its own president, to ensure that decisions are made in market and close to the local client base. BB&T’s Blue Ridge Region includes 14 counties, extending down the Shenandoah Valley and including the cities of Winchester, Warrenton, Harrisonburg, Staunton and Lexington. The region has 60 branches, approximately $2.2 billion in deposits, $1 billion in loans and employs 525 people.
“Dixon has certainly played a pivotal leadership role in BB&T’s rapid expansion in Virginia and we can’t thank him enough for his dedicated, client- focused leadership,” says Ricky Brown, manager of BB&T’s banking network. “We’ve valued his insightful leadership and wish him the best in this newest phase of his life. We are also pleased that Dixon will continue to serve in a consultative affiliation with the bank.”
Whitworth, 62, is stepping down after a 36-year career in financial services. He began his banking career in Richmond with Central National Bank, Southern Bankshares and Jefferson Bankshares before moving to Winchester-based F&M National Corporation in 1985. The Front Royal native was elected to the F&M corporate board and named executive vice president in 1985. He was subsequently named as president and chief executive officer of F&M Trust Company. BB&T acquired F&M in 2001 in a $1.18 billion deal, which, combined with its acquisition of First Virginia Banks in 2003, gave BB&T the second largest deposit market share in Virginia.
Whitworth is chairman of Valley Health System, serves on the board of trustees at Shenandoah University, and is a trustee of Christ Episcopal Church. He is a past rector of the board of visitors for Virginia Commonwealth University, past chairman of Winchester Medical Center, and past president of the Winchester Rotary Club. Whitworth earned his bachelor’s degree from Wake Forest University. He also earned a Master of Business Administration Degree from Virginia Commonwealth University and a Juris Doctorate Degree from the University of Richmond School of Law.
Williams, 59, joined BB&T in 1983. He has served as a business services Manager in Greenville, N.C.; a city executive and area manager in Moore County, N.C.; and a regional retail banking manager in Pinehurst, N.C. He previously served as president of BB&T community bank regions based in Pikeville, Ky., and Charlottesville.
“John’s extensive commercial knowledge and career accomplishment make him an excellent choice to succeed Dixon as president of our Blue Ridge Region,” says Brown. “As a longtime senior manager at BB&T, John has a keen understanding of what it means to deliver the BB&T brand of highly personal and competent client service.”
Williams serves on the advisory boards for the Retail University of Longwood Career Center, the Appalachian College Association and the Education Alliance of West Virginia. He is a member of the Kentucky Coal Association and West Virginia Coal Association. He is a former president of the Public Education Foundation of Moore County and the Pinehurst Forum and a former chairman of the Sandhills Area Chamber of Commerce and the Moore County United Way. The Chapel Hill, N.C., native earned his bachelor’s degree in history from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He also is a graduate of the Graduate School of Banking of the South.
With the two regional president announcements, BB&T also says that its Virginia South Central Region will be absorbed by the Central Virginia (based in Richmond), Battlefield (Fairfax), Southwest Virginia (Roanoke) and Blue Ridge regions.