On the 50th anniversary of Myra Lancaster’s time at the Bank of Yazoo, she admits many people assumed she would be retiring soon.
“I am not retiring any time soon,” she quickly adds, with a smile. “Everybody thought I would retire after 50 years. But here I am working on my 52nd year. I like to blow and go too much. I look forward to coming into work every day.”
Lancaster, a Bentonia native, arrived at the local bank in 1973. And more than likely, she is the first voice customers may hear when they call as she continues to serve in the accounts service department. For over five decades, BYC has been more than just a career. It is her home.
“This is my home, my place,” she said. “It will always be very dear to me, and I am not ready to leave yet.”
Lancaster attended Bentonia High School and graduated from Tri-County Academy in 1972. When it came time to decide what career path to choose, she said her mother made the decision clear.
“I didn’t know what I wanted to do, but my mother told me that I had to get a job,” she said, with a laugh.
Upon graduation, Lancaster first worked part-time at the Yazoo County Courthouse for about six months. It was when her uncle, W.S. Hancock, approached the bank president at BYC that a new door opened for her.
“My uncle was friends with the bank president,” Lancaster said. “And my mother said I had to get a job, so she called him, and I came to the bank the next day and started working that very week. I have been here ever since.”
Lancaster has always been involved with bookkeeping and accounting services at the local bank. And the role has been perfect for her, adding that working with customers has been the most rewarding experience for her.
“The banking industry has changed a lot over the years, but I just love working with the customers,” she said. “Being from Bentonia, everybody knows everybody. And I enjoy being able to have that one-on-one time with the customers. It means a lot to know the people while you are helping them. Everybody likes to hear that familiar voice.”
Besides the familiarity with customers, Lancaster said it is the working relationship within the bank family that also makes a difference. She said the bank operates very much like a family.
“They are like my family,” she said. “We have been through thick and thin, the good times and the bad times. We just look out for one another. They are my extended family.”
Lancaster also credits the examples set by those before her, including B. Frank Williams, Phil William, D.P. McGowan, Griffin Norquist, Van Ray, Bob Bailey, Charlie Williams and Frances Crocker.
“They have all had such an influence on my life here,” she said. “I felt like I was a child when I came with all of them being older than me. Now I feel like I am the oldest one here.”
And with the bank’s current leaders, including Ben Aldridge, Jamey Carter and Kent Manor, she said that tradition will continue.
“They are very good to work for and with,” she said. “They are my friends at and away from work, and they are wonderful.”
When she is not at work, Lancaster is an active member of Bentonia Methodist Church. She also enjoys yard work, riding her bicycle and spending time with her family.
“If I am not at the bank, I am in Bentonia or at the church,” she said. “I just like having something to do. I get up in the morning and must have a reason to go.”
“I am not going anywhere,” she added, with a smile.
