Darrell Higginbotham, who presided over dramatic growth at Independence Bank in Owensboro while being involved in numerous community projects and initiatives, has retired.
Higginbotham, who spent his career in banking, retired at the end of December after 16 years as Daviess County president, having served as a leader with organizations like the Greater Owensboro Chamber of Commerce, the Greater Owensboro Economic Development Corp. and the Owensboro Health Foundation.
Higginbotham had a role in the downtown development plan that led to the building of the Hampton Inn and the Owensboro Convention Center, worked with students in area schools and focused on issues such a providing food for seniors in need.
“(Through) his leadership and the roles he played throughout the community, he left an indelible mark,” said Candance Castlen Brake, president and CEO of the Chamber of Commerce.
“Darrell did what was best in general, not what was best for Darrell,” Brake said. “I’ll continue to look up to Darrell. One attribute he has we don’t talk about enough is courage. He has courage to do not just what’s good for business, but what was good.”
Higginbotham’s career spanned 44 years, with most of it as a bank president. Higginbotham said he followed his father, James Higginbotham, into the profession; James retired as president of Commonwealth Bank in Ohio County in 1996.
“Throughout my career, I felt that being in a community bank, especially the president of a community bank, there was an obligation to not only be engaged in the community, but to give back,” Higginbotham said.
Over the years, some of the boards Higginbotham served on included Brescia University, Girls Inc., Boulware Mission and the RiverPark Center. Higginbotham was also chairman of the Chamber of Commerce board.
Higginbotham helped found Feed Seniors Now, an annual food drive. Levi Reames, owner of Comfort Keepers Owensboro, said Higginbotham helped the food drive get off the ground.
“I went to Darrell and said, ‘I need help with this.’ He took the reins and ran with it,” Reames said, adding that Higginbotham helped line up major donors, such as Specialty Foods Group and Kroger.
“It got huge because of Darrell’s help,” Reames said. “… It got to where we were raising several tons of food.”
Jennifer Williams, director of aging and social services with the Green River Area Development District, said of Feed Seniors Now: “Darrell was a big driving force” in starting the program.
“I love working with Darrell,” Williams said. “He’s passionate, and he’s a go-getter. He has the know-how to get things done.”
During his time as Daviess County bank president, Independence Bank grew from $186 million to $889 million in deposits.
“In his time as market president, he quadrupled the size of the Daviess County market share,” said Jacob Reid, Independence Bank’s president. “I really always admired Darrell. Everyone wanted to be their best for Darrell, and that’s how it happened: He inspired everyone to be their best, and they worked a lot harder.”
Higginbotham said he is confident in the bank’s future, and said the bank will continue being active in the community.
“That was a blessing for me when I joined, the bank had the same philosophy of being engaged and being involved in the community,” Higginbotham said. “I would say the big difference in my banking career (is) in the industry, the majority of banks look at contributions (and donations) as an expense. At Independence Bank, we actually refer to them as investments.”
Before the pandemic, the bank would send volunteers weekly to Estes Elementary School to read with students. Tammy Nugent of Estes Elementary said Higginbotham has been reading with a pair of siblings and will continue to work with them in middle school.
“The child that read with Darrell loved him to death,” Nugent said. The bank has also done other things for students at the school, such as purchasing bicycles for students with perfect attendance at the end of the school year.
“They are always doing something for us,” Nugent said.
Higginbotham said he will continue staying involved in the community.
“I already miss the banking profession, especially the daily contacts with the employees I worked with and the customers I worked with,” Higginbotham said. “But I’ll find other ways to be engaged.”