{"id":19883,"date":"2026-06-26T00:30:57","date_gmt":"2026-06-26T00:30:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/?p=19883"},"modified":"2026-06-26T00:30:57","modified_gmt":"2026-06-26T00:30:57","slug":"percy-rankins-the-man-who-opened-doors-never-stopped-holding-them-open","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/2026\/06\/26\/percy-rankins-the-man-who-opened-doors-never-stopped-holding-them-open\/","title":{"rendered":"Percy Rankins: The Man Who Opened Doors & Never Stopped Holding Them Open"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Percy and Rose Rankins<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

At 97, the pioneering Toledo banker, deacon, mentor and community servant continues a lifetime of helping others rise<\/strong><\/h3>\n

By Asia Nail<\/p>\n

The Truth Reporter<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

When Percy Rankins<\/strong> looks back on his life, he doesn’t talk much about being a history maker.<\/p>\n

Instead, he talks about helping people.<\/p>\n

He talks about visiting elderly friends after work. He talks about giving young people their first jobs. He talks about buying groceries for church events, serving communion, and showing up when someone needs a hand.<\/p>\n

“I’ve always tried to help somebody,” Rankins says. “It’s just part of me.”<\/p>\n

That simple philosophy helped shape a remarkable journey that stretched from a segregated farm in Alabama to the executive offices of Toledo’s banking industry, making him one of the first Black bankers in the city and a trailblazer for generations who followed.<\/p>\n

Today, Rankins remains active in ministry, community service and church leadership. The doors he helped open did not close behind him. They remained open for future generations, including leaders such as Deborah Barnett<\/strong> and Larry Sykes<\/strong>, who would go on to make their own contributions to Toledo’s financial and civic landscape.<\/p>\n

A Dream Born Inside a Bank<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Rankins was born in Evergreen, Alabama, during the height of segregation.<\/p>\n

He grew up on a farm and remembers hard work from an early age. By the time he reached the 11th grade, he was ready for something different.<\/p>\n

After briefly leaving school for work, a teacher challenged him to return and finish his education.<\/p>\n

That advice changed his life.<\/p>\n

Soon afterward, his father took him to a local bank to borrow $40 so he could travel north to Toledo for better opportunities.<\/p>\n

In the late 1940s, banking was not a field where Black faces were commonly seen. Jim Crow laws still ruled much of the South, and many employers simply did not hire African Americans for professional positions. For a teenager from a small Alabama farm, the men behind those teller windows represented more than a paycheck. They represented opportunity, stability and a future that seemed out of reach.<\/p>\n

As he waited, Rankins watched the young white men working behind the teller windows.<\/p>\n

“I said to God, ‘Lord, why can’t I have a job like that?'”<\/p>\n

The thought stayed with him.<\/p>\n

What Rankins did not know was that God had already begun writing the answer. It would take 15 years for that prayer to unfold.<\/p>\n

From Railroad Worker to Banker<\/strong><\/h2>\n

After moving to Toledo, Rankins worked several jobs before being drafted into the Army during the Korean War era. Instead of being sent to the front lines, health issues led to a reassignment, and he spent two years serving in Germany.<\/p>\n

When he returned home, he resumed work with the railroad. But in 1960, while making a payment at Toledo Home Federal Savings and Loan<\/strong>, an unexpected opportunity appeared.<\/p>\n

A Black security officer approached him and asked whether he would be interested in working for the bank.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe bank had been watching me,” Rankins recalls.<\/p>\n

During his interview, he made something very clear.<\/p>\n

“I told them I had no intention of doing maintenance work the rest of my life. I believe with the right training and education, I can do any job that anyone else can do.”<\/p>\n

Those words would eventually become reality.<\/p>\n

In 1963<\/strong>, Rankins became the first Black bank teller<\/strong> in Toledo.<\/p>\n

Breaking Barriers One Customer at a Time<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The promotion was historic, but it wasn’t easy.<\/p>\n

When Rankins first opened his teller window, many customers refused to come to him.<\/p>\n

“They would tell me they weren’t in a hurry and they could wait.”<\/p>\n

The rejection stung.<\/p>\n

Then, while praying one day, he says he felt God shift his perspective.<\/p>\n

“Just remember, every customer you don’t wait on is another customer you don’t have to worry about making a mistake on.”<\/p>\n

The encouragement helped him push forward.<\/p>\n

Slowly, customers began approaching his window. Trust grew. Relationships formed.<\/p>\n

Before long, Rankins moved from teller to head teller, branch leadership positions, assistant secretary, loan officer and eventually vice president.<\/p>\n

His rise through the banking ranks was like watching a locked door slowly swing open, not just for him, but for everyone coming behind him.<\/p>\n

Creating a Roadmap for Others<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Rankins understands the significance of his journey.<\/p>\n

“Eventually I realized that I was setting a roadmap for other Blacks professionals to follow,” he says.<\/p>\n

Throughout his career, he helped countless Black families purchase homes and encouraged young professionals entering the banking field.<\/p>\n

Many received their first opportunities because Rankins was willing to take a chance on them.<\/p>\n

Even today, people still stop him.<\/p>\n

“They say, ‘Mr. Percy Rankins, I know you may not remember who I am, but you gave me my first job.'”<\/p>\n

His influence stretched beyond one bank. Rankins worked for Toledo Home Federal, First Federal and later Mid Am Bank, which became part of Huntington.<\/p>\n

In 1994, after decades of service, he retired as a vice president.<\/p>\n

But his work was far from finished.<\/p>\n

Faith as the Foundation<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Long before he became a banking executive, Rankins was building a life centered on faith.<\/p>\n

He joined Third Baptist Church in 1948.<\/p>\n

After working overnight shifts at Union Station, he would go home, shower, and head straight to church before finally getting some sleep.<\/p>\n

Over the years, he became an usher, then chief usher, and eventually an ordained deacon in 1980.<\/p>\n

For more than seven decades, faith guided his decisions.<\/p>\n

“Seek God. Seek Christ,” Rankins urges. “If you have Christ ahead of your life, He’ll direct you in which way to go.”<\/p>\n

Today, he worships at Cass Road Baptist Church, where he mentors deacons and serves the congregation he now calls home.<\/p>\n

Even at 97, he remains active in ministry, regularly administering communion and helping organize church events.<\/p>\n

Lessons for the Next Generation<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Rankins believes success begins with preparation.<\/p>\n

When asked what advice he would give young people who feel overlooked or underestimated, his answer comes quickly.<\/p>\n

“Make sure you’re prepared. Make sure you look your best. Make sure your career path is something you want to do.”<\/p>\n

He encourages young professionals to approach every opportunity with confidence and purpose.<\/p>\n

For Rankins, education also played a major role.<\/p>\n

Throughout his career, he attended banking schools, completed correspondence courses, studied at Davis Business College and spent summers at Ohio University sharpening his skills.<\/p>\n

His dedication eventually earned him a banking degree equivalent to a master’s degree.<\/p>\n

The lesson is simple: never stop learning.<\/p>\n

A Legacy of Service<\/strong><\/p>\n

Perhaps the clearest picture of Percy Rankins is not found in a bank boardroom.<\/p>\n

It is found in the quiet faithfulness of a man who kept showing up for people, decade after decade.<\/p>\n

When asked what he hopes people will say about him 100 years from now, Rankins pauses.<\/p>\n

Then he smiles gently.<\/p>\n

“I hope it’s good,” he says. “Because it was never about me, it was always about what God allowed me to do for others.”<\/p>\n

For nearly a century, Percy Rankins has done more than break barriers.<\/p>\n

He has walked through doors others once thought were closed, and then turned back to hold them open so others could enter.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

At 97, the pioneering Toledo banker, deacon, mentor and community servant continues a lifetime of helping others rise By Asia Nail The Truth Reporter   When Percy Rankins looks back on his life, he doesn’t talk much about being a history maker. Instead, he talks about helping people. He talks about visiting elderly friends after […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":19884,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[250,17],"tags":[],"wf_post_folders":[353],"class_list":["post-19883","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local-news","category-local"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19883","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19883"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19883\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19886,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19883\/revisions\/19886"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19884"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19883"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19883"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19883"},{"taxonomy":"wf_post_folders","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wf_post_folders?post=19883"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}