TEXAS BANKING NEWS, PEOPLE AND IDEAS
TEXAS BANKING NEWS, PEOPLE AND IDEAS
Longtime Texas banker Lee Roy Gaskamp Jr., 69, passed away on September 6 after an exhausting battle with COVID-19. During his lifetime, he served at several community banks and as a commissioned state bank examiner with the Texas Department of Banking before founding the Bank of Brenham in 2001. He served as the bank’s president … Read more
Lowell “Stretch” Smith Jr., longtime banker and avid civic supporter in Johnson County, passed away on August 29. He was 88. For decades, he helped lead the First State Bank of Rio Vista. Smith grew up on a family ranch near Rio Vista. Many people knew him as “Stretch,” a nickname acquired from his high … Read more
William Elery (Bill) Howard Jr., 79 of Victoria passed away peacefully on August 12 from complications of a rare form of Parkinsonism called progressive supranuclear palsy. Services were held on August 18 at Holy Family Catholic Church in Victoria. Howard served for many years as president and chief executive officer of Cuero-based TrustTexas Bank; after … Read more
Dallas banking icon George Jones passed away on May 21 at age 77. For most of the past year, he endured challenges caused by an illness—the exceedingly rare Vexas Syndrome—that had developed over the past 20 years. But, according to his obituary, no one ever heard him complain. After earning his BBA degree from the … Read more
Evangelina Cuellar Rangel, a teller at Castroville State Bank, passed away on February 15 in San Antonio. She was 69. Known by family, friends and coworkers as Angie, Rangel served as a bank teller for more than 30 years. According to her obituary, “She enjoyed seeing and talking to her customers every day. She had … Read more
Wayne Fogle, a longtime Dallas banker, passed away at his home on February 23. He was 85. Fogle began his banking career at Midland National Bank after serving in the Finance Corp of the U.S. Army. In 1965, he moved to Dallas where he continued his banking career at Hampton State Bank, Trinity National Bank, … Read more
Wayne Henry Frederick, founder of the financial services company The WFA Group, passed away on December 31, 2020. He was 88. Upon graduating from high school, Frederick served in the U.S. Navy from 1951 to 1955 during the Korean War, attached to the U.S. Mine Force Fleet in Charleston, South Carolina. While he was stationed … Read more
Thomas Wesley Herbst, former president and CEO of First State Bank of Jasper, passed away on January 8. He was 87. After earning a degree in chemical engineering from the University of Texas in 1956, he worked for the Ethyl Corp. in Houston before returning to Jasper to work for the First State Bank in … Read more
Jerome J. “Buddy” Lednicky Jr., former chairman of State National Bank, passed away on January 1 at his residence in West. He was 84. After earning his bachelor’s degree from Texas A&M University and serving in the U.S. Army and Army Reserves, Lednicky launched his banking career, which culminated with his roles as chairman and … Read more
Scotty Wood Lindley, 66, passed away on December 14 in Abilene. At the time of his death, he was serving as president of the Abilene branch of the First National Bank of Albany/Breckenridge. Born in 1954 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Lindley married Terry Lee Ramsey in 1977. He earned his BBA degree in finance, with a … Read more