BUSINESS NEWS
A Jones County man whose name has been synonymous with banking for more than four decades said he has retired from the profession for his final time.
A reception in the honor of Thad Childs’ retirement at Morris Bank Dec. 29 celebrated his 10 years at the bank as well as his 46 years in community banking. Childs is perhaps best remembered for his 21 years as President and CEO of the Bank of Gray.
His first retirement was 16 years ago but was short lived.
In a Jan. 13 interview, he said this was his final retirement from banking, but Childs did not sound like he would be taking to a rocking chair any time soon.
“This is it. I thought it was when I retired in 2006. My plan then was to go into land development, but I was persuaded to change my mind,” he said.
Childs did step down as president and CEO of the bank but stayed on in the role of Senior Community Banker, making loans and acting as a consultant. The bank merged with Security Bank in 2003 and was purchased by State Bank in 2009. Childs remained in his position during both.
The banker said he was approached in 2012 by officials of Morris Bank in Dublin and made the decision to move to the Morris Bank branch that opened in Gray with long-time coworkers Alan Childs and Cheryl Thomas.
Among the three, they brought with them over 100 years of banking experience, in addition to their solid reputations and extensive relationships in the Middle Georgia area. Childs said he felt it was an honor to be asked to go to Morris Bank.
“We hit the ground running. It was almost like a fairy tale,” he said.
Childs said banking laws have changed, but in general he has always done business the same way.
“I like to work one on one with people,” he said.
A little history
The Childs family has been in Jones County for generations, but Thad Childs was born in Douglas. He attended Coffee County schools until his freshman year of high school.
In a 2006 article about his first retirement, Childs said he got his work ethic from his father, who worked at the same company for 43 years. He said he was taught to work hard and have good character to be successful. He attended the University of Georgia for four years and served four years in the Navy before he moved to Gray.
Childs started working as a production manager of a textiles plant that was a seven-day a week job. He said he had a two-year-old son and realized he needed better hours. His first banking job was at First National Bank, which later became the Trust Company Bank, and his boss Alan Neal was his mentor.
When Francis Golson was ready to retire as the head of the Bank of Gray, Childs said he was asked if he would be interested in the job. He said yes and worked a year with Golson before he retired.
Childs said he had run a branch but not a bank, and he credited Thomas, who knew the operations end, with his success. He said she was as instrumental as he was for the bank’s growth from $24 million to $315 million during those 21 years.
Childs said he considered himself as guiding the rudder while all the employees are doing the work, and he believed his years in textiles taught him the importance of treating employees well.
Next chapter
The retiree said his banking career has been a positive experience, and he has enjoyed it all.
“I’d call my banking style small-town, community banking. That’s how I banked through all my career. I’ve done multimillion dollar deals and $1,000 loans,” he recalled. “It was the small loans that really helped people that I enjoyed more.”
Childs said the fact that he is now 76 years old played into to his decision to retire.
“It’s time to call ‘time out’ and enjoy being with my family,” he said.
He said this is an emotional time for him, thinking about the many things he was fortunate enough to be a part of over the year, such as the start of the Boys and Girls Club of Jones County and the Gray/Jones County Chamber of Commerce.
When looking at what is next for him, Childs said he would probably go to the beach more and may deal with some land. He said the goal is no stress.
“But it may be fun to be involved in making a few deals,” the retiree said.
Childs said he still gets up early to run but not before 5 a.m. He said he feels better now that he is getting more sleep.
In addition to his banking reputation, Childs was well known as a runner. He ran every morning for 37 years, 10 months and six days before a health issue in 2017 broke his streak.
Childs got the go ahead from his doctors and started running again, but he said he will have to live to be 108 to break his original record.
“I don’t run as fast or for near as long, but it’s still important to me,” he said.
The retiree joked that he remembered what his father always told people about his longevity.
“Daddy would say he wanted to die standing up, with all of his teeth,” Childs said. “That’s what I want to do.”
