JULY 20, 2001

Four to be inducted into N.C. Business Hall of Fame

Four outstanding business leaders representing the financial services, textiles and other industries will be inducted into the North Carolina Business Hall of Fame this fall. Sponsored by Junior Achievement and NCCBI, the North Carolina Business Hall of Fame will induct the following laureates as the class of 2001 are Edward E. Crutchfield of Charlotte, former chairman of First Union Corp.; C. Felix Harvey of Kinston, chairman of Harvey Enterprises and Affiliates; W. Duke Kimbrell of Gastonia, chairman and CEO of Parkdale Mills; and Dalton L. McMichael of Madison, former chairman of Mayo Yarns.

Junior Achievement of the Central Carolinas established the Hall of Fame in 1988 to recognize exemplary business leaders. Laureates must have significantly contributed to building North Carolina’s economy, as well as providing outstanding leadership in community and statewide service. Inductees into the Hall of Fame must be retired from their organization or be at least 70 years of age. At present, 56 men and women have been inducted into the Hall.

This year’s awards dinner will be held Tuesday evening, Nov. 13, at the Adam’s Mark Hotel in Charlotte. Here are brief profiles of the laureates:

Ed Crutchfield
When Ed Crutchfield was named president of First Union National Bank of North Carolina in 1973, he became the youngest president of a major bank in the United States. He had joined First Union only eight years earlier, after receiving his undergraduate degree from Davidson College and a Masters in Business Administration from Wharton School of Finance, University of Pennsylvania. In 1984, Crutchfield was named CEO of First Union and added the chairman title in the following year. During his tenure, First Union grew from a North Carolina-only bank with $17 billion in assets to the nation’s sixth-largest bank-holding company with $253 billion in assets, when he retired in 2000. There were 80 acquisitions during Crutchfield’s tenure at the bank. Crutchfield was instrumental in numerous civic, educational and charitable activities, such as assisting in the establishment of the Communities in Schools program in Charlotte; chairing capital campaigns for Johnson C. Smith University and the Salvation Army; and serving on the boards of national and regional firms.

Felix Harvey
Felix Harvey is very influential in the business community in Eastern North Carolina. One of the leading proponents for the Global TransPark, Felix serves as president and vice chairman of the GTP Foundation Board. He also is the chairman of Harvey Enterprises and Affiliates located in his hometown of Kinston. Among the Kinston-area businesses in which the five generations of Harveys have been leaders are agriculture, construction equipment and financial services. In 1998, he and other co-founders created a new community bank in Kinston – “the little bank.” This new venture was just the latest in Harvey’s long history with financial services, which included founding First Financial Corp. in 1978 and serving on the board of the North Carolina National Bank, now Bank of America. Harvey also served in 1976-1977 as chairman of NCCBI. He is a member of the board of visitors for Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business.

Duke Kimbrell
Running America’s largest independent yarn spinner in Parkdale Mills, which is headquartered in Gastonia, Duke Kimbrell started as a trainee in the textile business in 1949. He became president in 1961 of a $7 million-a-year, one-mill firm. During the intervening years, Kimbrell built Parkdale Mills into nearly a $1 billion-a-year operation with 29 mills. He has served as president of the American Yarn Spinners Association, and was recognized by Textile World as the second most influential leader in the 20th century for the textile industry. Kimbrell played a key role in establishing North Carolina State’s College of Textiles. He received the Watauga medal for service to his alma mater, N.C. State, in 1995 – the highest non-academic award bestowed by the university. Kimbrell is known for his support of numerous colleges throughout the state, as well as civic and charitable organizations in Gastonia.

Dalton McMichael
During Dalton McMichael's more than 60 years in the textile industry, he has had a hand in creating four successful textile companies: Madison Throwing Co., Macfield Texturing, Vintage Yarns and Mayo Yarns. Textile World gave McMichael its Lifetime Achievement Award in 1998 and named him to their list of the 50 most influential executives in the textile industry during the 20th century. McMichael is considered a pioneer in the textured yarn business; North Carolina Gov. James B. Hunt has called him one of the top 10 industrialists in the state's history. A former chairman of Mayo Yarns in Madison, McMichael is another industry leader known for his charitable giving. He has supported a long list of universities, colleges and schools. Morehead Memorial Hospital in Eden and its John Smith, Jr./Dalton McMichael Cancer Center provides advanced, high quality, easily accessible cancer care.

For more information on the North Carolina Business Hall of Fame or make table reservations for this year’s reception and dinner, contact the Junior Achievement office at (704) 536-9668, or write: Junior Achievement, NCBHOF, 4632 Holbrook Drive, Charlotte, NC 28212-5392. Information also is available by e-mail from Shannon Martin at smartin@jacarolinas.org.

Return to Page One