CONTRIBUTED

The year 2012 marks a major milestone for Four Oaks Bank.

The community bank, headquartered in the town of Four Oaks in central Johnston County, is celebrating 100 years of service. Four Oaks Bank opened its doors as the Bank of Four Oaks in 1912, in its namesake town.

The growth of Four Oaks Bank was contained within Johnston County until 2000, when it opened the first Wake County branch in Fuquay-Varina.

The bank currently has 16 locations serving the diverse needs of communities in Johnston, Wake, Harnett, Moore, Richmond, Duplin and Sampson counties. The bank employs 200 people and holds deposits of $760 million and assets of $933 million.

For three consecutive years - 2007, 2008 and 2009 - Four Oaks Bank was named by USBanker magazine in its listing of the Top 200 community banks in the country, based on the three-year average return on equity, the release said.

"We are very excited to reach this major threshold of one century," said Ayden R. Lee Jr., CEO, president and chairman of the board of the bank. "Where we are going as a bank, especially as we step into our second century, will be greatly impacted by where we have been. This bank has a rich heritage of relationship-based banking that has withstood the tests of time and the many challenges of the past 100 years, including the Great Depression of the 1930s.

"This day and time, there are few businesses and probably very few banks that can look back on 100 years of service. The economic downturn of the past few years has been a tremendous challenge to all businesses, and especially to the banks and financial institutions that have backed them. Although we still have a long way to go before we realize full economic recovery, we are beginning to see some positive signs.

"For us at Four Oaks Bank, this 100th anniversary is coming at a good time. It gives us cause to reflect on all our blessings of these past 100 years, and gives us inspiration for planning and building for new ones in the years to come."

According Four Oaks Bank Marketing Director Pam Ashworth, the bank kicked off its centennial celebration with a slogan contest as a precelebration warm-up to get people excited about the upcoming campaign. The contest was open to all bank customers and employees, and the resulting slogan was "Celebrating Our Roots ... Embracing Our Future!"

Among the activities the bank has planned is a traveling historical display, featuring artifacts, photos, documents and articles highlighting its early years. The display will be exhibited at each of the bank's offices during the year.