Eddie Downer III
E.M. "Eddie" Downer, III is Chairman Emeritus of the Mechanics Bank Board of Directors, continuing to serve the bank through his extensive community activities. He served as Chairman of the Board of Mechanics Bank from 1981 until May, 2010, the third generation of his family to have led the bank. He served as president of the bank from 1971 to 1981.
While he has had tremendous success in banking, Eddie considers his greatest contribution to be his service work for those less fortunate. He believes those who have the means have the responsibility for helping to make their community better. It is a philosophy that was instilled in him by his father and his grandfather. Everyone who knows Eddie describes him in the same way...he is the consummate gentleman who puts others first.
His numerous professional and civic affiliations include serving as chairman of Opportunity West, a nonprofit organization promoting financial literacy; as a board member of the Contra Costa Economic Partnership; and on the boards of the Richmond Museum Endowment Fund and the Richmond Art Center Endowment Fund.
Eddie has supported a long list of organizations including the Boy Scouts of America and the East Bay Region of the United Way of the Bay Area.
