By HARRIET PROTHRO PENROD

I felt a tinge of guilt for keeping Steve Walker off the golf course on the first sunny day that we had seen in over a week, knowing there were more rainy days in the immediate forecast. Our lunch meeting couldn’t wait, however. I had been looking forward to getting his take on a list of topics – the local economy, retirement, family, Southern Trace, to name just a few.

I had no idea what a coincidence it was that I asked Steve Walker to join me for lunch at Julie Anne’s Bakery & Café.

“I remember when this place went into business,” he says as he looks around the establishment. “This place started out with an SBA (Small Business Administration) loan and look at what it’s become.”

Walker remembers because he was President/CEO of Commercial National Bank, the institution that handled the loan for Julie Anne’s, which has been creating specialty baked goods since 1992. After a 39-year career in the commercial banking industry, Walker has been a part of many such business successes.

It is also a career that kept Walker away from the Shreveport area for many years. In fact, he spent a total of 20 years working in other markets – including a stint in New York. So why, after retiring from J.P. Morgan Chase in 2015, did he and his wife, Nancy, decide to stay in Shreveport?

Turns out, it’s the perfect place for the Walkers. It’s where Nancy grew up (Steve is a Plain Dealing native) and where their daughter has settled with her husband and three sons. It’s also close to Houston, where their oldest son lives with his wife, two daughters, and a son.

While their youngest son has settled quite a bit farther away — in Chicago with his wife and two sons — the Walkers are able to travel there often. Had they decided on another city to call home after retiring, the likely places include Houston (“we have family and friends there”), Chicago (“family is there”), or New York City (“I got to know the city”).

If it were up to Nancy, however, they might have ended up in northwest Florida, where they lived during the first year of their marriage while Steve served in the Air Force.

“Nancy always wanted to be on the beach,” he says.

It’s here, however, where they feel comfortable. “Shreveport has a reasonable cost of living, and we have a lot of friends here,” says Walker. “No place is perfect, but there are a lot of good things here.”

In fact, Walker says he is more optimistic about Shreveport’s future now than he has been in a long, long time.

“The ‘hole’ that was created in our economy from the oil and gas and real estate downturn hit here harder than a lot of other places,” he says. “But we’re in the process of refilling that hole. I learned in business that it’s good to get involved in something at the low point and build it up instead of the high point and trying to hold on.”

A new battery plant in town as well as sawmills in Plain Dealing and Arcadia are just a couple of reasons for optimism. “We’re adding diversity back that we once had,” he says. “There is a lot of investment going on. Diversity creates diverse jobs.”

As both a businessman and a Shreveport resident, Walker has a strong interest in the future of the local economy. And just because he has retired from the banking industry does not mean he doesn’t have his hand in the business of Shreveport.

“I’m no less busy than when I was working,” says Walker. “I never grew tired of what I was doing. I just wanted the freedom of time. My life was divided into 15-minute appointments. The seven years I have been retired have been a blessing. I have the freedom of my schedule.”

That schedule is a busy one, however, with travelling, hunting, grandkids, and volunteer work. Both he and Nancy – who just celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary — serve on the boards of a number of foundations.

Then there is golf. As one of the group of members that purchased Southern Trace Country Club and led the revitalization of the golf course, Walker has found another way to stay busy. With the golf course back in first-class shape, the next phase of the master plan – the clubhouse – should start soon.

I may have kept him off the course on this beautiful day, but it was worth it. And, besides, he says he’s already got a tee time for tomorrow.

Contact Harriet at sbjharriet@gmail.com