Eastern Bank chief exiting after guiding years of growth

Stan Lukowski arrived on the North Shore financial scene 30 years ago as a vice president of Salem Savings Bank. Industry rules were so rigid, banks couldn't open branches across county lines. Most folks just tucked away their savings in a local branch, where they paid their mortgage, too.

Lukowski is retiring, effective today, as chief executive officer of Eastern Bank, the state's largest independent bank and $6.5 billion powerhouse that started with a simple merger between Salem Savings Bank and First East Savings of Lynn in 1981. Lukowski was named Eastern's first president.

"A lot of years have gone by," said Lukowski, 65, an affable man who lives in Topsfield. "It's gratifying to see how much the bank has grown," both in size and technologically, he said. "We serve different markets, with a lot of specialized products."

Eastern's headquarters now are on State Street in Boston. The bank has 73 branches, stretching from Salisbury to Cape Cod. It sells insurance, municipal bonds, and has Internet customers all over the world. It gives away millions of dollars to community groups through its nonprofit foundation. Doug Flutie, a New England sports icon, is its celebrity spokesman.

But Lukowski said he is most proud of Eastern's 1,700 employees. "The thing that is most satisfying is the development of the people in the organization," he said in an interview. "They've enabled us to grow from very small banking roots to a large competitive organization."

Richard C. Holbrook , the bank's longtime president, will succeed Lukowski as chairman and chief executive officer, effective tomorrow. Robert F. Rivers , who joined Eastern earlier this year from a bank in Omaha, will take over as president. The pair are committed to maintaining Eastern's independence, Lukowski said.

"I can comfortably retire, knowing we have a first-rate management team in place," said Lukowski, who was named Eastern's chief executive in 1992. "I'm confident in their ability to manage this bank, to take it to the next level."

As a mutual bank, Eastern is owned by its depositors. It can't be bought by a competitor without first filing to become a public company.

"We don't have shareholders. . . . Our priority is our customers," Lukowski said. "We're now a very large bank, but we still pride ourselves on being in touch with our customers. "

Lukowski won't be walking away entirely. He'll take a seat on Eastern's board of directors. He'll continue to serve as chairman of the board of the Massachusetts Taxpayer s Foundation and the Massachusetts Housing Partnership, and keep his seat on other boards, he said.

"I can't just sit around and do nothing," said Lukowski, who does love golf. "I'll still be involved, and as a director at Eastern, I'll be able to watch the bank's progress from a seat in the front row."

Presidential 'scoop' fondly recalled

It was a busy afternoon in May 1977 at the Junction Ice Cream shop in South Hamilton. A black limousine pulled into the parking lot. Out jumped a man in a suit, who headed for the back door. A freshly made gallon of butter pecan was ready and waiting for the nation's 38th president, who was sitting in the limousine.

The death of Gerald Ford last week brought back the memory for Junction owner Mike Davis, 58, who closed the shop and sold the land to a developer last year.

"I made a special batch for him," Davis said. "We had trouble finding the pecans, but we did. We made sure it was all tempered and ready to scoop when they arrived."

Ford was in town that spring, five months after leaving the White House, to deliver the commencement address at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary , where his son Michael was graduating. While studying there, the younger Ford lived in Essex. He sometimes visited the Junction, but often would send his Secret Service agents to pick up ice cream for him, Davis said. The presidential "scoop" was arranged by the Essex fire chief, Ivan Muise, Davis recalled. "Being the fire chief, he knew the Secret Service real well. We knew President Ford would be in town, and that his favorite ice cream was butter pecan. So we made him up a batch."

Davis never bragged about the gesture. There were no pictures or signs in the shop. But the memory is frozen in time. "I was sad when I heard he died," Davis said. "He was just a regular good guy. We had a little tie to him through our ice cream."

Kathy McCabe can be reached at kmccabe@globe.com.