William Edward Thurmond, Jr.

President

Ed Thurmond was elected to the Board in 2018 for a four-year term and re-elected in 2022 for a second four-year term that will expire in February 2026. Ed was also elected to serve as President in 2018 and continues to serve in that capacity.

Ed is a sixth generation Holmes Countian whose ancestors were among the founders of St. Mary’s Episcopal Church in Lexington. He received an accounting degree from Mississippi State University and a juris doctorate from University of Mississippi School of Law. After a short stint as a First Lieutenant in the U. S. Army, Ed returned home in 1967 to manage Thurmond’s, Inc., a family owned hardware and appliance store from which he has recently retired. He has served the community in many capacities including a term as Mayor of Lexington. He held the position of Treasurer of the Episcopal Diocese of Mississippi for fifteen years and served as District Governor of Rotary International in the year 2020-2021.

Ed is married to the former Fran Walker of Stoneville, Mississippi. They have two children and four grandchildren all who presently reside in the state of Virginia.

Ed is a descendant of the McBee, Herbert, Mattox, and Thurmond families all of which have family members buried in Lexington Odd Fellows Cemetery.