Gainesville banker Bill Galardi has died at the age of 73 following a long illness.
Galardi was born in New York City but grew up in Atlanta.
After graduating from college and spending some time in the Navy, Galardi began a long and successful career as president of several community banks, according to his obituary. At one time or another he was affiliated with banks in Columbus, Georgia; St. Albans,West Virginia; and Summit National Bank in Atlanta. He moved to Gainesville in 1992 to take the helm of Citizens Bank (now Bank of America), a local institution since 1913. He broke new ground in 1993 by hiring one of the early graduates of the Shepherd Spinal Clinic’s apprenticeship program for disabled adults.
In 1994, Galardi became president of Community Bank and Trust in Gainesville. In that role, he was proud to open the first bank branch that primarily served Gainesville's Hispanic community and to hire one of the area’s first Spanish-speaking loan officers.
A longtime member of Grace Episcopal Church, he was also a member of the Gainesville Rotary Club and served on the board of directors of the United Way of Hall County, the Gainesville Community Foundation, Gateway House, and the Quinlan Visual Arts Center.
A memorial service will be held at Grace Episcopal Church on Tuesday, February 11 at 2:00.
(A complete obituary can be found on the AccessWDUN Obituaries Page.)
