“It just all converged at one time: having my first child, buying my first house, and losing my job. I had to find work to take care of my family. I started my first bank at 26 years old and didn’t have a clue what I was doing. We actually got a book called ‘How to Start a Bank.’ I always have been an entrepreneur at heart, so starting new businesses is in my blood. I didn’t found Veritex, my bank where I am president, until I was 49. I worked at many community banks in my life up to organizing Veritex.
“In 2009, the time was right. Veritex has been an incredible blessing, and I do look back when things get hard and think, ‘I made it through then, and I can make it through now.’ It wised me up to see what the future business world might be like sometimes. One of the guiding principles at Veritex is that I expect myself and my 330 employees to prioritize family first. Nobody on his or her deathbed wishes they’d worked an extra two or three hours. My son was a college golfer, and we made a point that I would make as many tournaments as possible. Now that he’s not doing that anymore, I cherish the times I got to be there.
