by Bailey White
Staff Writer
It’s a safe assumption that Bob Helms is going to be the tallest person in any room he enters.
At six feet seven inches tall, the CEO of Wachovia Bank, Florida is easy to find in a crowd.
But that’s not all that sets him apart.
Helms is known for his gentle Southern accent and kind manner. And now, he’s known as the person who’ll serve as Chamber of Commerce chairman in 2005.
His duties begin in January 2004, when as chairman-elect Helms will lead the Chamber’s Leadership Trip and the annual planning process.
“It’s a well laid-out schedule of duties,” he said.
In the meantime, “I’m in training,” he said. “It’s a great pleasure working with [current Chamber chairman-elect] Barry Allred [current Chamber chairman] Jim McCollum.”
Helms is a familiar face on many boards- United Way, WJCT and the Florida Chamber Foundation, for which he serves as chairman.
“I’ve gotten great support from Wachovia,” he said, of the company he’s been with since 1969. “They have an expectation that we give back to the community.”
A serious battle with cancer several years ago also contributed to his desire to get involved in the community around him. While Helms said that statistically he’s no more at-risk than anyone else these days, it’s clear that he wants to get the most out of every day.
“I’m five years out,” he said. “And I was very fortunate. It taught me what’s really important. That it’s not all about work. Family and community considerations are important too, and they’re things that maybe can get ignored if if you don’t have the kind of experience I did.”
Helms will serve as Chamber chair during the 2005 Super Bowl, an event he’s anticipating greatly.
“I think we’ll be 100 percent ready,” he said. “We’ll make a huge and positive impression on everybody. We’ll present very well.”
He’s currently serving as chair of the Super Bowl Involvement Task Force.
“We’re identifying four or five areas where we think we can support the Super Bowl Host Committee,” he said. “Most significantly, we’re helping the committee in fulfilling the NFL’s mandate of small, minority and women owned businesses involvement.”
Helms was born in Monroe, North Carolina, a suburb of Charlotte. At the University of Western Carolina, he majored in business administration and psychology. He moved to Jacksonville from Richmond, Va., four years ago and lives in Ortega.
“Over the years we transferred a lot of people to Jacksonville,” he said. “We’d come back to them a few years later and to ask them to come back [to Richmond] but they never wanted to. Now I have a greater perspective on why. It’s very pleasant here. It’s a great city.”
You might expect with the advantage of his height, basketball would be a favorite pastime, but he’s humble about his abilities.
“I’ve got a three-inch vertical leap,” he joked.
He does admit to enjoying a little hunting now and then.
And golf? Only rarely.
“As is typical of people of my height, I’m not very good at it.”