Members of the Georgia Bankers Association (GBA) have elected and installed officers and five new members to the Leadership GBA Board of Directors for the 2024-2025 program year. 

Brad Sheffield, senior vice president and regional retail sales manager at Synovus Bank in Statesboro, was installed as chair. Members elected Robert Duvall, first vice president and branch manager at Bank of Madison, as chair-elect. Zach Giddens, commercial banker and senior vice president at Morris Bank in Warner Robbins, was elected vice chair. 

"This is a group of talented and engaged leaders for their banks and for GBA. The future is bright for our industry with bankers of their caliber coming into the prime of their careers," said GBA Chairman Brad Barber, president and CEO of First National Bank, Bainbridge. 

A section of the Georgia Bankers Association, Leadership GBA supports the advancement of career bankers by providing leadership development training, serving as a forum through which career bankers can network and exchange ideas and promoting industry advocacy activities at the local, state and federal levels. 

In addition, five new board members representing the association’s geographic divisions have been elected by their peers or appointed to At Large positions. They are: 

• North Group: Philip Bernardi, executive vice president and chief banking officer, Oconee State Bank, Watkinsville

• Central Group: Kyle Stonecipher, vice president and chief lending officer, West Central Georgia Bank, Thomaston

• South Group: Blair Blackburn, chief financial officer, AB&T, Albany

• At-Large: Stewart Esary, market president, Pike division, United Bank, Zebulon

• At-Large: Bert Durand, vice president, commercial banking, Citizens Bank of Georgia, Cumming