AVEN WHITTINGTON

CHARLES AVEN WHITTINGTON was born December 10, 1917 in Greenwood, MS and spent his childhood there and in Washington, DC where his father, William M. Whittington, represented the Mississippi Delta in Congress from 1926 to 1949. Educated in Greenwood public schools, Whittington graduated from Princeton University in 1939 with a BA in economics. During World War II, he served in the Army Air Force.

Whittington was named Staplcotn's Board chairman in 1986 and oversaw the changes triggered by the retirement of Hank Hodges and the transition of Woods Eastland from Board chairman to president. The following year, Whittington also assumed the duties of president of National Cotton Council.

"As chairman, Aven was extremely effective," Eastland says. "He was well known in the Delta as someone the growers could have confidence in. Because of his Cotton Council and Mississippi Chemical Board activities, he was also well known in Louisiana, Tennessee, Missouri, and Arkansas. A person of his stature gave the company added credibility. A combination of his obvious reserve and conservatism was important to some people. There were people who joined this new marketing concept, the Mill Sales Program, because Aven was head of it.

"Aven had the respect on the Board that the chairman has to have. You are chairman of this Board not because you own the majority equity of the company, but because of ability and respect," Eastland said.

"Aven Whittington was the perfect chairman for Staplcotn," Billy Percy, who succeeded Whittington as Staplcotn chairman, recalls. "He was a calming influence, a sort of father figure. He made members feel the company was in good hands, which is probably the most important thing the chairman can do. His everyday administration of the Board was impeccable, and he was above controversy. He was just exactly the kind of person you would want as Board chairman, particularly in a co-op," Percy said.

From the beginning of his career, Aven's fortunes were inextricably tied to cotton and a diversified agriculture. In addition to cotton, he grows soybeans, milo, and rice. Besides serving as Staplcotn's Board chairman 1986-1992, Whittington has served as president of National Cotton Council, Delta Council, the Greenwood Kiwanis Club, Mississippi Association of Soil Conservation Commissioners, Leflore County Farm Bureau, Delta Area Council of the Boy Scouts of America, Mississippi Heart Association, the Greenwood Little Theatre, and Cottonlandia Educational and Recreational Foundation.

He has chaired the boards of Yazoo Valley-Minter City Oil Mill, Farmers Supply Cooperative, and the Farm Credit Bank of New Orleans. He served as a director of Mississippi Chemical Corporation, Delta Purchasing Federation, and the Bank of Commerce. Whittington is active in the First Baptist Church of Greenwood and serves as a trustee of Mississippi College.

Whittington is married to the former Hortense Spann Griffin, and the couple has four children.