Synovus and its local banks raise $507,657 for United Way

It was a $507,657 check presentation to United Way of the Chattahoochee Valley on Thursday, with Synovus Financial Corp. and its two local banks doing the giving.

Columbus Bank and Trust, CB&T Bank of East Alabama and the Synovus corporate headquarters staff raised the money for United Way, which supports 29 agencies and 57 programs in the surrounding area. United Way is working to wrap up its 2016 campaign, with a goal of raising $7.1 million.

Synovus said more than 60 percent of its local employees participated in this year’s United Way effort. The Columbus banks have 17 branches altogether in the Columbus-Phenix City market.

“We are grateful for the work of United Way of the Chattahoochee Valley and the difference it makes in the lives of our neighbors every day in this community,” Synovus Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Kessel Stelling said in a statement. “We are proud to support its efforts here.”

Money raised by United Way goes to help residents in the Georgia counties of Muscogee, Chattahoochee, Harris, Marion, Stewart, Talbot and Taylor, as well as Russell County in Alabama.

As a whole, Synovus operates 28 locally branded bank divisions with 250 branches and 332 ATMs in Georgia, Alabama, Florida, South Carolina and Tennessee. The regional bank oversees about $30 billion in assets.

This story was originally published December 16, 2016 at 11:38 AM with the headline "Synovus and its local banks raise $507,657 for United Way."