The Liberty Bell: Leadership Q&A

Wade Gaynor, Henderson Market President

Spring 2025 Edition

As president in Henderson, please reflect on how you got to where you are today, and what were some important lessons you learned along the way?

“My journey to Henderson includes a baseball career, countless address changes and plenty of lessons. One of the most valuable came from Little League.

After every game, no matter how late or what the score was, my parents made me help pick up trash—dugouts, stands, even bathrooms. “Why are we always the ones cleaning up?” I’d complain. Mom would ask, “Well, should someone else do it?” and Dad would just tell me to quit whining. Over time, other families joined in, and the habit stuck with me.

At 17, after an American Legion game, I finished cleaning the dugout when a WKU coach stopped me in the parking lot. He liked my swing—but he offered me a scholarship after he saw me clean up the dugout after the game. Thanks, Mom!

Fast-forward a few years to 2015. After seven years of pro ball, I’m 27 years old and I had just finished a brutal year between AA and AAA in the Detroit Tigers organization. While working at a warehouse in Lexington, I got a call from Rick Embry, then Market President for Independence Bank in Hawesville. Rick had learned I was retiring from baseball and asked about my interest in banking. A couple of weeks later, after an interview with Tawna, I started my new career.

For the next few years, I spent time as a teller, credit analyst, in mortgage ops and shadowing lenders. In 2018, I became a loan officer in Hawesville, and soon after, Market President for Hancock County. I spent six years working in the community that raised me, forged deep relationships with my co-workers and learned the ins and outs of banking. This past summer, after a few conversations with Jim Davis and Phil Riney, I transferred to Henderson County.

Perhaps it seems trivial, but there is a big lesson to my mother and father’s words. Servant leadership means leading by example and never seeing any task as beneath you. We shouldn’t expect others to do anything we, as leaders, aren’t willing to do.”

What goals do you have upcoming for Henderson County?

“Our goal in Henderson is to build on the great foundation that has been laid in this community. I’m a big fan of setting goals, but only when the goals are within your control. “Control the controllables” is something many of my coaches taught. So, what can we control? We can control our work ethic, commitment to Everyday Excellence, attitude, and how we treat everyone. We can’t control the economy, Fed rate changes or loan demand. I believe if we take care of the intangibles, the loan and deposit opportunities are sure to follow.”

What is one thing about you that might surprise others? 

“My wife, Neena, and I raise sheep, chickens and honey bees. In addition to the livestock and bees, some friends and I also started tapping maple trees for  maple syrup a few years ago. We laugh about our “hobby farm.” It doesn’t make enough money to be called a farm, and it costs too much time and money to be called a hobby! We enjoy the animals, mud and lessons it teaches our two boys, Josey and Wiley.”

What is one area of your life that you are actively trying to improve upon? 

“Hopefully, everyone is striving to improve themselves. For me, it starts and ends with faith and balance. All of us are mind, body and spirit. If we focus too much on one of the three, we can become off-kilter before the day is done. We can get caught up on the hamster wheel of day-to-day stresses that leave us no time to reflect. I’m actively striving towards a life of balance. Not just a work-life balance, which seems popular with my generation, but a life of balance – mind, body and spirit. I believe great leaders have this, giving them the confidence to serve others.”

How do you apply everyday excellence to your job leading your team? 

“Everyday Excellence can be applied in all aspects of life. Are we willing to grab a mop and clean the lobby? Do we hide when conflicts arise? Are we above certain tasks and jobs that need to be done? When I think of Everyday Excellence, I think of servant leadership. It’s great when we take care of a customer’s needs, but how many people are willing to go the extra mile?

My life has been filled with learning experiences and time spent serving other, which I continue to practice over my time as President in Henderson.”