R. P. Holding Foundation Announces $1 million Gift to Campbell

     A gift of $1 million has been committed to Campbell University’s John W. Pope Jr. Convocation Center project by the R. P. Holding Foundation. The announcement was made recently by Frank B. Holding, Sr., president of the Foundation.
    R. P. Holding was the catalyst for the phenomenal growth of First Citizens Bank & Trust Company, rising from assistant cashier and bookkeeper-teller at First National Bank of Smithfield, N.C., to president of First Citizens, the name given to the company after it merged with Citizens National Bank. In 1939, Holding was appointed to the state Banking Commission, and he served as president of the North Carolina Bankers Association from 1942-43. Upon his death in 1957, First Citizens Bank & Trust was operating in 32 communities with assets totaling more than $200 million. Guided by the leadership of Holding’s sons and grandson, First Citizens has become one of the state’s most powerful financial forces, reporting 340 branches and over $11 billion in assets.
   A loyal supporter of Campbell University, the R.P. Holding Foundation endowed the R.P. Holding Chair of Finance in 2002. Frank B. Holding, Jr., president of First Citizens Bank and Trust, presented the chair to Campbell’s Lundy-Fetterman School of Business. His father, Frank B. Holding, Sr., has served several terms on Campbell University’s Presidential Board of Advisors. His wife, Ella Ann, an accomplished pianist, was Artist in Residence for Music at Campbell for over 10 years.
   “We are grateful to the R.P. Holding family and the foundation for their generous gift,” said Campbell President Dr. Jerry M. Wallace. “Their support and loyalty throughout the years has led Campbell to many of its finest achievements.”
    Campbell’s John W. Pope Convocation Center will serve as a venue for sporting and cultural events for Campbell University and the entire Harnett County region. The $30 million Center will contain 3,000 fixed seats with a seating capacity of up to 5,000 and house an additional practice floor for basketball and volleyball, a wrestling room and the athletics hall of fame. It will also contain a 6,000 square-foot fitness center. Construction is scheduled to be completed in 2010.
   Founded in 1887, Campbell University is North Carolina’s second largest private institution of higher education. Located in Buies Creek, NC, just east of the center of the state, Campbell combines academic excellence and Christian commitment. More information about Campbell University is available on the Web site, www.campbell.edu.
 

Bulletin 0024-4/26/05