When Kent Manor was growing up, he often thought he would later pursue a career in the outdoors. That was often where you would find him, outside working with his father.
“I was always outside with my dad, and we did a lot of sweating,” he said.
But a chance conversation between Kevin and Bank of Yazoo former president Van Ray would develop into a new chapter for Kent. Now the 28-year-old serves at BYC as the vice president loan officer. But don’t worry…he still finds time for the outdoors.
Kent, the son of Kevin and Kim Manor, grew up in Yazoo County. He attended Benton Academy his entire life, from kindergarten to graduation. And although he headed to Mississippi State University after graduation, he always knew he would be returning to Yazoo.
“I never had the desire to move off like so many other young people did,” he said. “I knew I wanted to come back here because I am a homebody. I never really planned on leaving. I like the people of Yazoo, and I guess you can say I am a creature of habit. Home is comfortable to me.”
Kent earned his bachelor's degree in agricultural economics from MSU in the spring of 2018. He admits he wasn’t really sure what the future held for him at first.
“I definitely didn’t see myself coming into the banking industry because I had always worked outside with my dad,” he said. “I didn’t see this one coming.”
But after a conversation between Kevin and Ray, Kent was asked to come down to the local bank.
“I came back to talk to Van Ray,” he said. “We talked a few times, and I just started working here.”
Kent began his career at BYC on Aug. 31, 2018 as a loan officer trainee. Now, he serves as the bank’s vice president loan officer. With every role he held at the bank up until the present day, his name plate with title sits on a bookshelf in his current office.
“I collected every one of my plates,” he said, with a smile, pointing at the bookcase.
Ray and Jamey Carter, BYC’s Yazoo/Flora market president and senior loan officer, were two employees within the local bank that Kent admired and respected. Through their leadership, he has found his own place within the banking family.
“I handle any type of loan request, regardless of the purpose or amount,” Kent said. “We look at every one of them from personal expenses to buying land, a house, a vehicle. You name it, we look at all of them.”
And helping people acquire those loans, and in essence their dreams as well, is the biggest reward for Kent.
“I like helping people, especially with the land loans when we get to closing,” Kent said. “It can be a place they have really been wanting to maybe build a house on, when it gets done and they are so happy, that is what I like accomplishing at the end of each day.”
The tight-knit comradery within BYC is also another appealing aspect for Kent. That relationship makes a big difference.
“It makes any job all the better,” he added.
When he is not inside the office, there is usually only one other place you will find Kent…on the back of a horse. He has made quite the name for himself in the rodeo circuit, particularly barrel racing.
“I have been riding horses for 28 years, my whole life,” he said. “It was something my dad and I always did together. I like going fast. You can never get a perfect run so it is a challenge every time to get it right. I am naturally a competitive person so it was always something for me to do even when I was a small child. My dad started me out when I was a kid, and it kind of got me hooked.”
He and Kevin not only still ride together at home, but they travel and run horses together in rodeos and competitions.
“It is all thanks to my dad,” Kent said. “I wouldn’t have any of it without him helping me. He still helps me. I wouldn’t have nearly as much without him.”
But can he beat dad?
“He beats me,” Kent said, with a laugh. “You got to watch him. I have never let him win, but he still beats me.”
Kent recently performed well at a state barrel racing competition, placing first and fifth during a second run and later placing sixth in the finals. And although he has three horses, there is no doubt which one is his favorite.
“Caddy,” he said, pointing to a photograph of the yellow horse. “I have won several things with him. He would tear up an Army tank. But being smooth is fast with barrel horses.”
And his dad isn’t the only one in Kent’s corner. His mother Kim offers her support for them both.
“Mom is very supportive,” he said. “She is the calm one.”
When asked if he will pursue other competitions in the rodeo circuit, Kent said barrel racing is where he is meant to be.
“When I master that, I will move onto to something else, but I will be riding horses for the rest of my life,” he said. “That’s all I study. When I am home, I just watch rodeos all the time, every night, on the Cowboy Channel.”
Perhaps that competitive nature seeps over into his profession as well. Kent is determined to provide exceptional customer service and interaction.
“That is what makes BYC so special,” he said. “It is what we strive for to give us that edge.”
The future is wide open for Kent, but he knows his place is within the Yazoo community. It is home for the young banker.
“The small-town feel is what makes Yazoo special, and I won’t get that anywhere else,” he said. “From going to Benton Academy to today, there is a closeness among people. You are not just one of many. You are a community.”
