Eugene Michael Vereen, Jr. ’41

Eugene Michael Vereen, Jr. ’41 died Apr. 6 at Woodlands Living Center in Moultrie, Ga. He was the son of the late Eugene M. Vereen and Wyolene Nance Vereen. He was a graduate of Davidson, where he was a member of Phi Delta Theta fraternity. He was named a member of the 1941 “Senior Men of the Year” and was vice president of the North Carolina Collegiate Press Association. He had remained active with Davidson alumni and was named to the Davidson College Board of Visitors. After graduation, he was employed at Courts & Company, an investment banking and stock brokerage firm in Atlanta. In June 1942, he joined the U.S. Navy where he earned the rank of lieutenant commander, serving two years as the executive officer on the USS Shoshone. Returning to Moultrie after his military service, Vereen served as secretary and treasurer of the Moultrie Grocery Co. and was a sales representative for Riverside Manufacturing Co. in Georgia. He was a director of Riverside and of Moultrie Cotton Mills. In 1951, he purchased the Moultrie Insurance Company and served as its president until 1983. In 1971, Mr. Vereen founded and was the first president of the American Banking Co., which later became the first bank of ABC Bancorp. The Bancorp was organized in 1981 for bank expansion, and he served as its first board chairman. He also served as a member of the board of directors of each of the affiliated banks in their early stages. ABC Bancorp is now known as Ameris Bancorp and owns 45 bank branches in Georgia, Alabama, Florida, and South Carolina. Parallel to his business prowess, he also served his community in many civic leadership roles. He was president of the Junior Chamber of Commerce and the Moultrie Chamber of Commerce. He also served as chairman of the Community Chest, which later grew into The United Way of Colquitt County. Vereen was president of Moultrie Rotary and was named a Paul Harris Fellow of Rotary International in 1992. He served as president of the Moultrie Y.M.C.A., and served 10 years as a trustee of the Presbyterian Home in Quitman. His affiliation with First Presbyterian included serving as chairman of the board of deacons and as an elder. He also taught the Fellowship Class for seven years. He was married to the late Lauradine Baker Vereen, and is survived by his second wife, Nita P. Vereen, 52 Cherokee Rd., Moultrie, GA 31768; his sons, Eugene Michael Vereen III (Jennifer), John Cary Vereen (Azalee), and Douglas Davidson (Lisanne); daughters, Ellen Vereen Rumble (Theo), Joan Vereen Stallings, and Leigh Ann Davidson Adler (John); and grandchildren, Laura Marie Rumble, Gena Vereen Rumble, Erica Lauradine Stallings, Jonathan T. Stallings, Eugene Michael Vereen IV, Carsen Q. Vereen, Brooks McLean Vereen, John Cary Vereen Jr., Virginia Ann Vereen, Patrick Eugene Vereen, Donald M. Davidson, and James Steven Davidson.