Mr. Stephens graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and served three years as lieutenant commander in the U.S. Navy in the Pacific during World War II. After the war, he earned an MBA from Harvard University. He worked for Jefferson-Pilot and Jefferson-Pilot Life Insurance Company for 40 years, retiring as President and CEO. Believing you should give back to your community, he served on the boards of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro United Community Services, Greensboro United Arts Council, N.C. School of the Arts, Research Triangle Institute and the Moses H. Cone Memorial Hospital. He served as a Trustee of The Duke Endowment from 1980 until his retirement in 2003.