[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 35 (Thursday, March 1, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E432]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  IN HONOR OF SYNOVUS BEING NAMED ONE OF THE BEST COMPANIES IN AMERICA

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                      HON. SANFORD D. BISHOP, JR.

                               of georgia

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 1, 2007

  Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize and 
commend a company that has made Columbus, GA, the Second Congressional 
District of Georgia and the United States proud. Synovus, a diversified 
financial services holding company based in Columbus, GA, recently was 
named by Forbes magazine to their Platinum 400 List of America's Best 
Big Companies.
  To create the list, Forbes looked at more than 1,000 publicly traded 
companies with at least $1 billion in revenue, and chose 400 based on 
metrics, earnings forecasts, corporate governance ratings, and other 
public company information. Of course, Forbes selected these companies 
not just for their financial performance, but also for their 
leadership, innovation, and execution.
  The story of Synovus epitomizes the American spirit, exemplifying the 
kindness, innovation and enterprising character that has come to define 
this country. In the 1880s, a mill worker at Eagle and Phenix Mill in 
Columbus caught her dress in a piece of machinery. As her dress tore, 
her life savings, which she had sewn into her hem thinking it was the 
safest place for her money, spilled across the floor.
  G. Gunby Jordan, the mill's secretary and treasurer, happened by and 
offered to keep her money in the mill safe and pay her monthly interest 
on the deposits. He soon offered the same service to all the mill 
workers, a system which years later, inspired Mr. Gunby to establish 
the institution that became Columbus Bank and Trust Company--Synovus' 
lead bank.
  More than a century has passed since that torn dress, and like the 
act that founded Synovus, the company has continued to operate on the 
principles of integrity, character, treating people right and doing the 
right thing.
  And it has served the company in good stead: Today, Synovus is one of 
the largest and strongest financial institutions in the Southeast, with 
39 banks and $31 billion in assets.
  Indeed, I am proud to have this company in my district. Please join 
me in congratulating Synovus and its 14,000 employees on receiving this 
award.

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