Harris had come up from Richmond to head Crestar's first foray into Northern Virginia. When Crestar acquired DC's National Savings and Trust, he mover into a building at 15th Street and New York Avenue, across the street from the Treasury Department. He had a closet in the corner of his office demolished so he'd always have a view of the street below.

It was more than an aesthetic gesture. Harris realized that banking in Washington was undergoing a seismic shift. Local banks and bankers were being replaced by institutions with no ties to the area. The opportunities for Harris to be a financial and civic leader could not have been better. "Bill recognized where he could help," says John R. Tydings, president of The Greater Washington Board of Trade. "Whether it was helping the neighborhoods of DC... or his interest in the arts... or his civic commitment through his involvement with the Federal City Council or Leadership Washington."

Under Harris's leadership, Crestar expanded, acquiring 18 banks and thrifts. When Harris arrived, Crestar (now SunTrust) was number 12 in deposit market share. He moved it up to number 2. Crestar also became a leader in granting loans to minorities and families whose incomes made other banks dismiss them as "bad risks".

Harris went from Norfolk trainee to the senior banker in the nation's capital. When he died unexpectedly after an emergency appendectomy in 1996, he had become one of the best friends the city ever had. At his funeral, Father William J. Byron urged mourners to dedicate themselves to serving the community as Harris had.

"What a monumental tribute that would be to a man who himself is a genuine Washington monument," Bryon said.