House Resolution 141

A RESOLUTION COMMENDING MR. JOHN M. HAIRSTON UPON HIS RETIREMENT AS AN OUTSTANDING MEMBER OF THE MISSISSIPPI GAMING COMMISSION AND HONORING HIS IMPRESSIVE LEADERSHIP AS PRESIDENT AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF HANCOCK HOLDING COMPANY, HANCOCK BANK AND WHITNEY BANK.

WHEREAS, Mr. John M. Hairston has retired from the Mississippi Gaming Commission after many years of dedicated service; and

WHEREAS, he is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Hancock Holding Company, Hancock Bank and Whitney Bank, serving as Chief Executive Officer since 2008, and as President of the company since 2014; and

WHEREAS, he joined the 115-year-old financial services company in 1994; and

WHEREAS, he also served as chief operating officer from 2008 to 2014, chief operations officer from 1994 to 2006, and as executive vice president of the company and banks from 1994 to 2006; and

WHEREAS, due to his impressive leadership, Hancock Holding has been noted by Veribanc as one of America's strongest and safest banks for 100 consecutive quarters, 25 years; and

WHEREAS, early in his career, he specialized in financial services consulting with Anderson Consulting (now Accenture); and

WHEREAS, active in business, community, economic development, and educational initiatives throughout his native Mississippi, he was appointed in 2004 and 2009 as director of the Board of Mississippi Information Technology Services, where in his second term he served as chairman; and

WHEREAS, he was similarly appointed in 2005 and 2010 to the Mississippi Gaming Commission as one of the three-member body who regulate the industry, and was appointed chairman in 2012 by Governor Phil Bryant; and

WHEREAS, he serves as cochairman of Governor Phil Bryant's GoCoast 2020 Commission Tourism Committee, is a member of the American Bankers Association Board of Directors and Audit Committee, is chairman of the Financial Education and Advocacy Committee in Washington, D.C., is vice chair of the American Banker Government Relations Committee, and is trustee and executive committee member of the National World War II Museum in New Orleans; and

WHEREAS, he is a past commissioner of the Mississippi Access to Justice Commission, appointed by Chief Justice Jim Smith, past commissioner of the Mississippi Gulf Coast Recovery and Revitalization Commission, past cochair of the Gulf Coast Business Council Premier Destination Initiative which sponsored legislation to form the first Gulf Coast Regional Convention and Visitors Bureau, past cochair of the American Bankers Association Dodd-Frank Task Force, and past chair of the Mississippi Bankers Legislative Committee; and

WHEREAS, he has served on the Board of Mississippi Enterprise for Technology, Partners for Stennis Space Center, and on numerous charitable and civic organizations on the Mississippi Coast and in banking-related organizations based in Washington, D.C.; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Hairston was also chairman of the 2012 Gulf Coast United Way Campaign, and immediate past chairman of the American Heart Association Heart Walk; and

WHEREAS, in spite of his rigorous schedule, Mr. Hairston still finds time for his beloved alma mater, Mississippi State University, by serving on the Bulldog Foundation Board and as past chair of Mississippi State University's College of Business Executive Advisory Board; and

WHEREAS, he also serves on the faculty of the Louisiana State University Graduate School of Banking in Baton Rouge; and

WHEREAS, his business acumen and astuteness have been celebrated by many prestigious business leaders, such as being voted as the Sun-Herald's Top 40 Business Leaders under 40, Top 10 Community Leaders and Mississippi Business Journal's Top 40 under 40 Business Leaders; and

WHEREAS, a Mississippi native, who is a product of Gulfport High School and graduated magna cum laude from Mississippi State University with a bachelor of science degree in chemical engineering has made our state proud; and

WHEREAS, he has been lovingly supported by his wife, Ann, and their two children; and

WHEREAS, socially, he enjoys fishing, going on trips with his family and attending Mississippi State athletic events; and

WHEREAS, it is the policy of the House of Representatives to honor and congratulate great Mississippians, who have positively contributed to the quality of life of our citizens:

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, That we do hereby commend and congratulate Mr. John M. Hairston upon his retirement as an outstanding member of the Mississippi Gaming Commission and honoring his impressive leadership as President and Chief Executive Officer of Hancock Holding Company, Hancock Bank and Whitney Bank.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be furnished to Mr. John M. Hairston and to the members of the Capitol Press Corps.