As a community-focused bank, Arvest has made supporting local nonprofits and organizations a key element of how its associates interact with the cities they live in, and Ron Witherspoon is no exception to this rule.
Since returning to Little Rock as President of Arvest Bank – Central Arkansas, Ron’s involvement in local organizations and programs to give back to his community has been varied, with a focus on supporting Arvest’s partnership with Economics Arkansas and the bank’s annual Million Meals campaign. Now a board member for Economics Arkansas and celebrating a record year for Million Meals, he looks forward to the impact the bank can make in the future.
“We are honored to be able to support nonprofits across Central Arkansas through direct involvement, financial partnerships and Arvest Foundation grants,” Ron says. “While we want to continue supporting our existing partners, we also want to keep finding new ways to support local and regional organizations to drive community growth.”
Arvest has been a long-time partner of Economics Arkansas, a nonprofit that provides financial literacy resources and training to PreK-12 teachers to promote economic literacy in Arkansas. In addition to financial contributions to Economics Arkansas, Arvest offers free, bilingual financial education courses through the Arvest Opportunity Fund’s EmpowerED program. As a new board member for Economics Arkansas, Ron is ready to contribute when and where he can to help promote the organization’s mission to increase financial literacy across the state.
“Economics Arkansas’ vision for promoting work readiness, entrepreneurship and financial literacy in Arkansas goes hand-in-hand with the work Arvest is striving to achieve in the communities we serve in Central Arkansas and throughout our footprint,” Ron says.
Celebrating its 15th year in 2025, Million Meals is Arvest’s annual campaign to combat food insecurity across its four-state footprint. This year, Arvest associates raised over $615,000 for the bank’s 80-plus community food partners. For Ron and Arvest’s Central Arkansas team, though, this campaign hits closer to home. Arkansas is ranked first in the nation in food insecurity according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA’s) latest report. Arvest Bank Central Arkansas’ main food partner during Million Meals has been the Arkansas Foodbank since 2013, and Ron has encouraged Arvest associates, board members and others to dedicate their time and resources to the campaign. This year, his team put together a cookbook with recipes from Arvest associates to sell in Central Arkansas Arvest branches to raise funds for the campaign. In the future, the team wants to enhance the cookbook by adding recipes from local chefs, as well as expanding collaboration by garnering support from other local organizations.
“Million Meals is one of the biggest bank-wide campaigns we have each year,” Ron says. “Knowing that our neighbors are the most at risk for facing food insecurity means we have a responsibility to help however we can, whether that’s volunteering with one of our local food partners or making a donation during the campaign.”
