Tyler

Longtime Tyler banker and philanthropist Charles Lincoln Childers died on Monday after an extended illness.

B.G. "Bill" Hartley, chairman of the board and chief executive officer of Southside Bank, when told of Childers' death, said, "I have lost a good friend of some 50-plus years. Our association began when Charlie was an examiner for the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas and I worked for the Texas Banking Department. Charlie was a good banker in his days at Tyler Bank and Trust, conservative and successful. He will be missed."

Henry Bell III, executive director of the Tyler Area Chamber of Commerce, said, "He was a great community leader. He was on the board of directors for the chamber and a very well respected banker in East Texas and probably the whole state. He was always involved and very active in community affairs."

A.W. "Whit" Riter III, whose father A.W. Riter Jr. was a contemporary of Childers, viewed Childers as "one of the patriarchs in the banking industry in East Texas. He trained many young men in the industry, who have gone on to become noted in their field.

"He was an outstanding banker who was very involved in the industry and at the same time, he believed in giving back to the community," Riter said.

"The great patriarchs left their mark on the city of Tyler and East Texas. Those men affected not only the city and the area but its culture as well.

"He was a kind man, who showed his kindness to his family and to his customers as well," Riter said.

Former Tyler Independent School District Superintendent Jim Plyler recalled Childers was on the TISD board of directors from 1972 to 1978 and was vice president of the school board, 1974-75, and president in the 1975-76 school year. "He was there to help with the bond issue in 1975 and also with the illegal immigration suit at the same time. It wasn't that long ago that we had gone through desegregation. He helped us through some trying times. He was a good board member and made good suggestions, which we were happy to get."

Plyler also is a member of the First Presbyterian Church, where Childers and his wife, the former Jean Brewer, were members. Childers was also a deacon, elder and trustee of the church.

"Charles was a good church member. He and his wife were there practically every Sunday without fail. When his illness hit him, that was hard on them. I felt so sorry for him. And for Jean, too, Plyler said,

"He was a great citizen of Tyler and will be missed greatly. We visited at church a lot. He was a great guy. He was interested in the schools. He wanted good schools and worked for good schools."

George T. Hall, vice president of Southside Bank, also knew Childers very well. When contacted, he said, "I've known Charlie for many, many years. He was a fine banker and a very close friend."

"Charles Childers was a tower of strength at the old Tyler Bank and Trust Company, as well as in many leadership positions in Tyler," Eleanor Stringer, who had been friends with the Childers for more than 40 years, said. He was a fair-minded banker with a sense of quiet dignity and integrity who served people in all walks of life throughout the entire East Texas area - he was a great credit to the banking industry.

"Charlie and Jean Childers, along with my late husband, J. Harold Stringer, and I attended countless Texas Bankers and American Bankers conventions together for many years, leaving me with many fond memories of both Harold and Charlie. He was a fine Christian gentleman who loved his family, his church and the community of Tyler. He and his principles will be missed."

A memorial service for Charles L. Childers, 83, of Tyler will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday at First Presbyterian Church with the Rev. Dr. Stuart Baskin and the Rev. Ben McAnally officiating.

Interment will be at Rose Hill Mausoleum in Tyler prior to the service.

Childers was born on Feb. 12, 1925, in Dallas to the late Charles Lee and Mamie Lou Swift Childers. He was a 1942 graduate of Sunset High School in Dallas. Childers served in the Marine Corps during World War II, serving at Pearl Harbor, and was in Officer Candidate School at Purdue University when the war ended. Childers went on to get his Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Southern Methodist University in 1947 and completed graduate studies at the SMU Southwestern Graduate School of Banking in 1960. In 1970, he graduated from the Senior Bank Officer's School at Harvard University. In 1988, he was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from Texas College.

Childers' banking career included working for the Federal Reserve Bank in Dallas before moving to Tyler in 1957. He joined Tyler Bank and Trust Company, which became part of Republic Bank, and served as president, chairman of the board and CEO for 30 years. He retired from banking in 1987 after 50 years of service.

Mr. Childers was very involved in the Tyler community. In 1980, he received the T.B. Butler Award for Most Outstanding Citizen of the City of Tyler. He also received the "Heroes of Tyler Public Schools" Award in 2002. He was a member of the Executive Committee and the Hi-Tech Committee of the Tyler chamber.

He served as past president of the Texas Bankers Association, Tyler Area Chamber of Commerce, Texas Rose Festival, Order of the Rose, Strutters Rose Parade, Tyler-Smith County United Fund, East Texas Symphony Association, Tyler Community Concerts, Tyler YMCA, March of Dimes, Mental Health and Mental Retardation Association, East Texas Mental Health, Inc., and Tyler Industrial Foundation. He also served as Director of the Tyler Rose Museum Association.

Childers also served as chairman or board member of the East Texas Hospital Foundation, University of Texas at Tyler Development, University of Texas Health Center at Tyler Development, Conference of State Bank Supervisors, American Bankers Association Commercial Lending Division, East Texas State Fair Executive Committee, Tyler Planning and Zoning Commission, Smith County Appraisal District Review Board and as consultant to the Smith County auditor. He was a member of Sharon Temple and served as treasurer in 1972.

He is survived by a loving family including his wife of 58 years, Jean Brewer Childers; a son, Richard Lee Childers and wife Beverly of Austin; a daughter, Terri Childers Brown and husband Daniel of Austin; and four grandchildren, Ryan Brown, Devin Brown, Kelly Childers, and Kevin Childers.

Visitation is scheduled 5:30-7 p.m. Tuesday at Stewart Family Funeral Home, 7525 Old Jacksonville Highway, Tyler, 75703.

Memorials in honor of Charles Childers may be made to First Presbyterian Church, 230 W. Rusk St., Tyler, 75701 or Hospice of East Texas, 4111 University Blvd., Tyler, 75702.

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